[crazyjugglerdrummer]

I'm in 9th grade (and addicted to programming, or I wouldn't be here ) and am trying to figure out which technologies will still be employable in several years when I'm looking for a job. Who do you think will be on top in server side programming in several years? ASP.net is more recent with some new features, but it's currently bound pretty much to windows, and PHP is cross platform and more widely used. Which would you recommend?

(I am in a semi-unique situation, so any and all other insights on PHP vs. ASP.net battle are most definitely welcome.

[zombie_chan51]

I would say PHP, though I do like ASP.NET better. PHP is more widely used.

This post has been edited by zombie_chan51: 20 January 2010 - 05:28 PM

[coden4fun]

ASP.Net & ASP.Net MVC

[papuccino1]

PHP is the cancer.

Anyone who's developed things in PHP will tell you that something is broken with the language. Convoluted and just unwiedly.

[PsychoCoder]

@papuccino1 I would have to disagree, PHP is a great web development platform. It has proven itself much longer than ASP.NET has

[papuccino1]

No doubt it's been around for a very long time. But the thing is unwieldy and convoluted.

This article is pretty good to read, shows some PHP's shortcomings.
http://www.codinghor...ves/001119.html

This post has been edited by papuccino1: 20 January 2010 - 06:38 PM

[BenignDesign]

.... because the best way to form an opinion on PHP is read a PHP-bashing article written by an ASP.NET coder. That's pure genius.

Quote

The internet is overrun with PHP sucks articles -- I practically ran out of browser tabs opening them all.

ASP.NET sucks
PHP sucks

Oh, looky! The argument works both ways.

PHP can be very clean, concise and eloquent when written properly. Free apps try to include everything you might need, but very little that you actually use. Try writing a custom app. You'll gain a much deeper understanding of the language.

I've been writing PHP every day for the past 5 years. I love it. And as for the list of "Functions starting with A"... I've only ever used 4 of them.

Quote

So here's my problem, based on my limited experience with PHP...

I have extremely limited experience with ASP.NET. As a result, I don't run about publishing articles on how badly it sucks.

@OP: I feel I have no real right to tell you which language to choose. I love PHP with a deep and abiding passion, but as I stated above, I have extremely limited ASP.NET experience. Hence, I have no authority to make a recommendation.

[galorin]

I have done a bit of PHP web programming, and looked at other people's ASP code, so I think I am equally unqualified to talk about both languages. Here's my take on it.

I think that PHP is the way to go. Just look at Netcraft, http://news.netcraft...ver_survey.html and note how high Apache is. and you will typically have PHP with Apache install. These statistics don't show static Apache sites, but even my business's static site is backed by PHP.

PHP is also incredibly useful offline, and that is where I have more experience with it. I've used it to create dynamic PDF reports that get emailed to key people monthly, and, in combination with BASH and Perl, to process Apache logs on a daily basis. Heck, I've even done a few automated system tasks in it because PHP was the right language. Can that be done with ASP? I don't honestly know.

[SixOfEleven]

Most web servers, I believe, are *nix based. *nix based servers can not run ASP.NET applications. Windows servers, however, can run PHP applications with the proper add-on. Why not work on PHP for web development and work a little on C# or VB.NET for desktop development. If you have an understanding of C# or VB.NET you should be able to pick up ASP.NET down the line if you want to because you will be using C# or VB.NET for coding the site.

Personally, I'm not one to say this language is better than that language. Each has their merits and drawbacks. Learn the concepts, that will take you farther.

[Nykc]

PHP has something .ASP does not: Experience, it is more mature and used more widely.

More and more applications are going cross platform, therefore either .ASP will have to do a better job of adapting to x-platform abilities or restrict itself to a limited audience. If the latter wins out then .ASP will eventually become as popular and useful as VBScript!

[galorin]

Nykc, on 21 Jan, 2010 - 07:11 AM, said:

More and more applications are going cross platform, therefore either .ASP will have to do a better job of adapting to x-platform abilities or restrict itself to a limited audience. If the latter wins out then .ASP will eventually become as popular and useful as VBScript!

I don't find this surprising, as ASP.net is essentially VBScript for IIS.

[PsychoCoder]

galorin, on 21 Jan, 2010 - 07:17 AM, said:

I don't find this surprising, as ASP.net is essentially VBScript for IIS.

Wow, not even close my friend. That's like comparing a Ferrari to a Hyundai. ASP.NET is far above VBScript it's not even funny.

And I disagree with it needing to go cross-platform, ASP.NET will survive just fine the way it is, working in a Windows environment.

[baavgai]

papuccino1, on 20 Jan, 2010 - 07:26 PM, said:

PHP is the cancer.

Yeah, it's popular because it sucks. Actually, it's bashed because it's popular. ASP.NET is bashed for pretty much the same reason.

The main reason for bashing in the originally linked article; complexity and a large function base. Same can be said of ASP.NET, or C for that matter.

Crappy coders write crap code, regardless of language used. The sad fact is much, if not most, web site code seen in the wild was done as a beginner attempt at programming. The site designer was told to make it dynamic and used the recommended tool. Add to that the quirky nature of trying to run a stateful application via HTTP using nothing more than a markup language. It's an ugly business no matter the tool you choose.

[TriggaMike]

JSP?


*runs away*

[Raynes]

Clojure.

Teh Compojure!

*runs away*