The Joy of PHP: Deep Dive into Sessions

By: Alan Forbes

Narrated by: Virtual Voice

Take Your PHP Skills to the Next Level with Sessions!

In The Joy of PHP, we introduced aspiring programmers to the world of interactive web development using PHP and MySQL. Through the engaging case study of Sam’s Used Cars, we demonstrated how Sam, a used car dealer, could manage an ever-changing inventory online with PHP-powered dynamic pages. That book became a consistent best-seller and earned top ratings in its category (Computers & Technology → Programming → PHP).

But readers wanted more. They asked for short, focused guides that dive deeply into specific PHP topics. And now, here it is!

In this concise and practical guide, we extend Sam’s story and website to explore an essential PHP feature: sessions. Sessions allow developers to personalize website experiences by tracking user information securely. With this capability, Sam’s website can now:

• Let users log in to access customized features.
• Display sensitive data (like car costs) only to Sam while showing shoppers the public asking price.
• Tailor functionality for different roles, such as salespeople, data entry staff, and administrators.

This guide walks you through the entire process step-by-step, including:

• Creating a user table in your database to store login credentials and roles.
• Building a login form and processing user authentication with PHP.
• Assigning session variables to users based on their roles.
• Restricting or granting access to features based on user roles.

Every line of code is thoroughly explained in plain, easy-to-understand English. Even if you’re not an expert, you’ll feel confident tackling this project.

Do You Need to Read The Joy of PHP First? While it’s not required, it's highly recommended. This book builds on the foundation laid in The Joy of PHP, continuing the narrative and using the same sample website and code base. If you’re comfortable with:

• Basic PHP syntax
• Using phpMyAdmin
• Writing SQL queries (e.g., INSERT, UPDATE, DELETE, and CREATE TABLE) ...you’ll be right at home here.

If you’re ready to level up your PHP knowledge and dive deep into sessions, grab this book today.

Let’s continue Sam’s story and unlock the power of PHP sessions. Your journey to mastering web development awaits!