Is it a source of shame to be a PHP developer?

22 October 2018

Some people say that PHP is not a good programming language. They also say that being a PHP developer is a source of shame. I can’t agree with that. Why?

When I started my first job as an IT specialist years ago (it’s not important how many ?), I was given an opportunity to learn PHP and become a developer. At that time PHP was already a very popular language. Everyone was making websites using PHP and MySQL. PHP was easy enough to start quickly and make simple websites with databases in a couple of days. It sounds like front-end technologies from not so long ago, doesn’t it? ?

Later on, I heard some jokes about PHP not being a “real” programming language. These stereotypes were based on the construction of PHP language, mainly before version 5.0.0. Prior to this edition, the language was mainly used for structural programming, partly because its objectivity support was poor.

Everything changed with version 5.0.0, the PHP engine was rewritten, and could now compete with other server-side languages. That was in 2004… over the next few years, additional modifications were introduced to the language, up to version 7, whose performance has been more than doubled.

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The last 14 years of language development have resulted in revolutionary changes that make PHP language a fully worthwhile, modern object-oriented programming language. Only this stereotype still haunts it as a memory of the ”good old” times. I think that mainly with regard to programmers of other languages, the last version of PHP they had to deal with was below 5.0.0.

This bad reputation also had a tangible effect in the form of reduced interest among young IT specialists. The market still needs PHP programmers, but these years of reduced interest caused a considerable deficit of experienced specialists. Currently, it is visible in the form of a large increase in earnings proposed in job advertisements, which restores the balance in the market and the inflow of young talented people.

In my opinion, being a PHP master was never a reason to be ashamed. There are many languages on the market, everyone can find something for themselves, but that does not mean that they should consider themselves more valuable specialists. The PHP language has come a long way since its inception in the 90s, to the modern language it is now, and its continued popularity speaks for itself.

So code in PHP and be proud of it, or use a different language while respecting others! ?

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