PHP Syntax
A PHP script can be placed anywhere in the document.
A PHP script starts with <?php and ends with ?>:
<?php
// PHP code goes here
?>
The default file extension for PHP files is ".php". A PHP file normally contains HTML tags, and some PHP scripting code. Below, we have an example of a simple PHP file, with a PHP script that uses a built-in PHP function "echo" to output the text "Hello World!" on a web page:
<html>
<body>
<h1>My first PHP page</h1>
<?php
echo "Hello World!";
?>
</body>
</html>
You need to keep in mind this one crucial thing:
Every PHP statement should end with a
;
Comments in PHP
A comment in PHP code is a line that is not read/executed as part of the program. Its only purpose is to be read by someone who is looking at the code. Comments can be used to: • Let others understand what you are doing • Remind yourself of what you did - Most programmers have experienced coming back to their own work a year or two later and having to re-figure out what they did. Comments can remind you of what you were thinking when you wrote the code PHP supports several ways of commenting:
<html>
<body>
<?php
// This is a single-line comment
# This is also a single-line comment
/*
This is a multiple-lines comment block
that spans over multiple
lines
*/
// You can also use comments to leave out parts of a code line
$x = 5 /* + 15 */ + 5;
echo $x;
?>
</body>
</html>