SSI, is php better?

[smallfish]

i have been using SSI scripts in my sites for simplicity and maintenance. Is PHP a better way to go, and if so, why?

thx,
grant

[Compguy Pete]

Once you get to know PHP it's easier to use... however if SSI works for you and you understand it already there isn't a real good reason to use one over the other that I'm aware of... Perhaps someone else may feel differently.

However I will say this... Using SSI is much more taxing on a server than PHP is, so if your server load is already high you might be able to help speed up your website by moving to PHP.

[Kravvitz]

PHP is better, because it is a full scripting language -- it's capable of a lot more than SSI is. If SSI does what you need, then you may not want to go to the trouble of switching everything over.

[Robert Wellock]

PHP can pull data from different servers for starters.

[felgall]

SSI should be faster because it doesn't have to run any PHP. It just needs to include the HTML fragment into the page.

With PHP there will be an extra scan to see if there is any additional PHP in either the main page or the included file.

Of course SSI doesn't allow you to include any programming in your page.

Each has a different use. I use both on my site.

[NogDog]

If the server is running the module version of PHP (which any self-respecting web host should), the processing time to parse a page to find any PHP code is negligible, especially compared to the time to transmit it over the net. I don't know how that compares to the processing time for whatever parses the page for SSI's, but I really doubt whichever way is faster is significanly enough faster to alter your choice as to which to use, other than which provides the desired functionality (and which is supported by the host, of course).