Must-have Skills Of A Php Developer

By Author: Jonathan Paul
Total Articles: 66
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PHP is the most popular server-side scripting language and is favoured by most web developers and business owners. Nearly 78.9 per cent of the active websites are built with PHP including some of the most widely used ones like Facebook, Tumblr, Wikipedia, MailChimp, and more. Hence, with this fast-growing programming language, the demand for PHP developers is also growing and getting stronger. But now, the problem is that with millions of developers around, it is difficult to find the best PHP developer having all the required skills. However, if you are a business owner, you need to look for the must-have PHP development skills in the developer before choosing to ensure your project will stand out from what’s already there on the web. 
 
Skillset a PHP web developer must possess to build competitive websites using the language. 
 
Knowledge of the basics required for PHP web development:
Knowing just the PHP codes is not enough if a developer wants ...
... to be an expert in the field. A solid understanding and knowledge of front-end programming languages such as CSS, JavaScript, and HTML are also required to efficiently and effectively develop and design a PHP project. Being well-versed with PHP along with these languages can help the developers to create websites that can boost user experience and business ROI. An expert developer must also be able to comfortably manage different databases that PHP supports like MySQL, PostgreSQL, etc. Apart from these, having familiarity with PHP-based frameworks like Zend, Laravel, CodeIgniter, Symfony, CakePHP, etc., is also essential to build websites effortlessly and flawlessly. Working in a team also becomes easy with the use of these frameworks and PHP development tools. 
 
A strong grip over the best practices for PHP development:
If a PHP web developer is aware of the best PHP development practices, then it can speed up the development process. Resolving or fixing issues can also get easier and faster with these practices. It also helps in improving the code readability. These practices save a lot of time even when working with the frameworks. Developers can find these tips and practices in many online tutorials shared by experts in this field. The programming languages have been around in use for over a decade and have the support of a large community behind them that helps with these tips and practices for building a PHP project smoothly.  
 
Must be able to work comfortably with the Composer, PHPUnit and PSR:
PHPUnit, Composer, and PSR are some of the PHP development tools that every developer must know about. The Composer is the dependency manager that takes care of the PHP libraries, functions, and classes and allows developers to easily install more than one version of each on the basis of a per project. This tool also helps to check for the latest versions of the libraries and update them whenever required or whenever a new version gets released. 
 
The PSR or PHP Standard Recommendation is the PHP-specification tool designed to standardise PHP web development concepts and enhance the interoperability of the PHP frameworks and the other components. Today, there are 13 accepted standards published by the PHP-FIG and each of these comes with its own purpose. Developers must learn these and follow the same to reduce or avoid any unnecessary variations in the codes. 
 
PHP Unit is a widely-used unit-testing framework the developers use for automated testing of smaller units of PHP codes. Unit testing is a very good practice to ensure bug-free PHP development. This testing approach can be even set up before a programmer starts writing the codes. 
 
Apart from these, a dedicated and reliable PHP programmer must also possess some essential soft-skills like:

Easy adaptability
Excellent and seamless communication skills

 
So, having mastery of the basic PHP development skills, knowledge of different PHP-based frameworks like Laravel, CakePHP, CodeIgniter, Zend, etc., ability to use the latest version of PHP, and the latest tools, apart from strong communication skills and learning capabilities, can prove the developer is highly skilled. Choosing to work with such professionals can ensure a top-notch website development with PHP. 
 
Jo is the most skilful and dedicated PHP developer associated with the top PHP development company in Australia, PHPProgrammers. The author has written this article to highlight the skills every PHP web developer must possess to fit every client requirement and project specification.

Jonathan Paul is a techie, knowledgeable and highly skilled Magento Developer of Australia working with PHPProgrammers who like to share his industrial knowledge and insights with the readers.