PHP - reliable for creating a issue tracker for companies?

Question

Hi.

I am about to start a business. The product will be an issue tracker for business clients.

I know PHP and I like PHP so my first instinct would be to build it using the Symfony PHP framework.

But will it be credible for future clients and investors?

So maybe I should use Java.

What are your thoughts about it?

Answer 1

• There are already a lot of open source issue trackers. Maybe you can sell and support one of them. Note that if a program is open source, it does not have to be free. You can add extensions and help or train your users.
• I would not use PHP for any real product. It contains bugs and is inconsistent. However, many people do and there are a lot of succesful products in PHP.
• I don't think the customers judge your product on the programming language. They judge it on whether it works.
• PHP is one of the environments that is the easiest to deploy. It is very easy to find hosting with PHP and MySQL enabled.

Answer 2

Are you planning on developing this primarily to sell to other people? If so, then I'd recommend selling it as a service rather than a product - not least because then the language its developed in is less of an issue.

Speaking as someone who has spent a lot of time supporting both Java and PHP apps, I do not understand why Java has so much more cachet in Enterprise circles. Especially when there are high profile sites (e.g. Facebook, sugarCRM) built in PHP.

"There are already a lot of open source issue trackers" - yes, but most of them are pretty awful.

my first instinct would be to build it using the Symfony PHP framework

Really? Sounds like you are trying to find something to write using Symfony rather than starting from the point of creating a great support tool, or a great business model.

It is a crowded market place - you need to think about what makes your idea better/more attractive than the many free and commercial packages.

Answer 3

A well written PHP will always be better than a poorly written Java. And symcbean is right : the principal question is the functionalities you offer, not the language.