Getting into server side scripting

Andorien

So I'm pretty experience with programming, using C++ and C#. I know HTML/CSS (as well as how to do it properly, instead of "lol tables"). I'd like to start some server side scripting, since that seems to be where you really start getting a lot of cool stuff going on.

Well, there's only one problem. I really hate php. The whole thing just seems pretty convoluted and messy. The syntax is always pretty ugly, and difficult to penetrate. I know php is the most popular option, and easy to get a server that supports it, but I'd like to know if I have other (viable) options. I hear a lot of good things about Ruby on Rails, but I don't really know how to get started with it.

Help me HA!

Adrien

PHP or Python or Perl. Or Ruby. Whatever works. In a broad sense I wouldn't recommend Ruby — mainly just because I don't know it, but also because it is much less popular. That said, I don't know any reason to advise against it, if it works for you.

If you don't know any, Python is probably the most accessible— but if you know C, PHP is the most accessible, in addition to being the purpose built web dev language. If you're doing web, PHP will save you time.

If it just doesn't work then it just doesn't work, but I'd advise you to take an hour or two and really put something together to get a feel for it before you throw it out. And you should learn Perl or Python or Ruby too, anyway; scripting is a handy skill.

VThornheart

(prepares to be killed with large stones)

I really like ASP.NET.

(ducks)

It's got some bizzare quirks at times, but I feel it's about as structured as you can get for a server side scripting language. I recommend taking a look at it... especially if you know C# (it's pretty much just learning a new library of available methods added onto C#, and then learning about general stuff that you'll have to learn no matter what language you choose: stuff like Session states, cookies, security etc...)

.:Orion

I will recommend Ruby, because I know it and it's an awesome language :P.

But it does mean you have to learn a new language before you can be good at the server-side scripting thing.

Ruby on Rails is a big framework. I recommend Camping to start. You can fool around with it, get something simple up and running.

Link to Camping documentation/readme/download/etc. : http://camping.rubyforge.org/files/README.html

I wouldn't skip Ruby just because it's unpopular. Ruby has a great community and as a language it's gaining popularity fast.


Really ASP .NET isn't that bad. I second VThornheart, if you already know C# and the .NET Framework, it's a good place to familiarize yourself with how server-side web apps work.

(It's not as fun as Ruby though)

VThornheart

Aye, and I agree with you on Ruby. I really love what you can do with it... I mean, you can do fun stuff with ASP.NET, and it's easy to work with... but Ruby's one of the few server side languages I know that you can use to make a truly RESTful web service using. Which is awesome.

zilo

ASP has the added bonus of being painless to set up. You can be up and rolling with a test server on your home PC in less than an hour if you don't know what you're doing, and less than ten minutes if you do.

Plus, MSDN. There are comparable resources out there for other languages but this is the one you surely already know how to navigate.

Andorien

I never thought of ASP.net. I might have to check it out.

Thanks guys. I'll still be checking this thread if anyone has anything else to add.

Ganluan

Andorien wrote: »

I never thought of ASP.net. I might have to check it out.

Thanks guys. I'll still be checking this thread if anyone has anything else to add.

ASP .NET is, by far, the best web development platform right now with their newest capabilities in VS 2008. The Javascript Intellisense makes writing Ajax hooks even easier, and you get some incredible functionality from some of the data-bound list items.

VThornheart

Ooh! I need to try VS 2008... I think my boss just got it in on friday. Javascript Intellisense would be a GODSEND (that language is MERCILESS, as I learned when writing a vista gadget this weekend).

Weretaco

The javascript debugging stuff in 2k8 is sooooo good. I'm just finishing up an app with it and having breakpoints + intellisense is fuckin awesome.