Lesson 01

Introduction to PHP

What PHP is, how it works with a web server, and how to write and run your very first script.

Syntax echo phpinfo() Beginners

What you'll learn

What PHP is and where it runs
How PHP fits into the client-server model
How to open and close a PHP block
Using echo to output text
Using phpinfo() to inspect your environment

Code examples

Here's the code written in the video. You can copy and paste these directly into a .php file on your server.

<?php

// Your first PHP script
echo "Hello, world!";

// You can also use print
print "<p>This is a paragraph.</p>";

?>

<?php

// This outputs a full page of info about your PHP installation.
// Delete this file from your server once you're done with it!
phpinfo();

?>

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
  <title>My First PHP Page</title>
</head>
<body>

  <h1>Welcome</h1>

  <?php
    $name = "World";
    echo "<p>Hello, " . $name . "!</p>";
  ?>

</body>
</html>

Notes & tips

PHP files need a server. Unlike HTML, PHP won't run if you just open the file in a browser. You need a web server (Apache, Nginx) or a local environment like XAMPP or Laragon.

Delete phpinfo.php when you're done. It exposes details about your server configuration that you don't want public.

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