OOP or regular PHP for beginner?

Question

Hi there, I have been using PHP for almost 6 months, as i came from the non-programming background i took great pain learning it, for me to get the basics right was a daunting task . i am still unfamiliar with the OOP concept properly(although i have learnt the basics like classes, objects, inheritance, constructors, destructors, methods and properties).

I am starting away with my first project, building an Arabic Blog for a small time author, i want the advice from PHP Gurus, as it is my first ever project in PHP. should i follow the structured PHP or is it advisable to dive in OOP and start my Project using the OOP. (I have a dead line to meet).

Please do not advice me on using any CMS like Wordpress, or joomla or Drupal. i took the project only to experience the learning.

thank you..

Answer 1

If you haven't learned the basics and there's a deadline, I would not use OOP.

Answer 2

I would start by just making it work whichever way makes sense right now, probably just using functions, you can always come back and restructure your program later to be more OO. Most people realize ways to make their program OO after they have made it another way...

Answer 3

If you're able to understand the basics of procedural programming (variables/if/while statements) I'd strongly recommend diving into OOP. Chances are you will feel like it's completely pointless at first, adding unnecessary abstractions and syntax to something that seems trivial. However once you start working on anything non-trivial, you'll realize the benefits of highly structured OOP.

It's better to start off with something simple and ease yourself into the (sometimes complicated) concepts.

Answer 4

If you don't know how to write object oriented PHP, DO NOT write your client's codebase in that manner.

Learn it on your own time. You have a deadline to meet, a customer to satisfy, and a relationship to keep strong. How would your client feel if he knew you were kicking around and experimenting with stuff you had never done before on his project?

Think of it this way: If I was a painter and I told you that I was going to replace the drywall in your house before paining because I had never painted a fresh slab of drywall before... would you really want me to do that? No, you'd probably just want me to paint the existing walls.

If you find that you need OOP but do not know how to do it, then I'm afraid that you are not qualified for the job you have taken on. You can try to make it work, but good luck to you. Fortunately, your client really won't care about how the code is written as long as the UI looks nice, the site/application is fast, and the features all work as expected.

Answer 5

If you already know the majority of the concepts you don't you push it a bit further and start using a framework?

I would suggest Codeigniter.

1. Has a great manual
2. Will put you using OOP in a very soft-way
3. Will force you to adapt to coding standards

Just my two cents.

Hope it helps.

Answer 6

Use a framework. Fat-Free Framework recommended. It's the only framework that allows you to write procedural code and switch over to OOP gradually as you are able to. Little goes to waste.