ASP v PHP v ColdFusion v Perl

I'm just curious what other people experiences are with server-side scripts like this. I've only used Perl, but I'd like to learn both PHP and ASP to some extent. What are the real differences? Which do you prefer and why? Is ColdFusion really worth anything? I don't ever remember seeing a '.cf' webstie.

 

it's personal preference really. The first thing you must understand is that PHP, ASP, CF etc are all environments and aside from what is required to run them all perform the same functions. I've never liked CF .. thought it was too slow
I code primarily in ASP mainly because I started out in VBA so it was a natural transition. I've done some minor PHP programming and I didn't care for the syntax much but it was easy enough. I've stayed with ASP mainly because I can use portable databases with it like Access. Draw back is that you can only run it on a windows platform. PHP is able to run on both. CF is pretty much dead and I wouldn't even bother with it.
If you want a REALLY powerful fully compiled web language, then VB.NET or C# are your best bets. It's hands down the best web language available right now.

 

I though C# was just an extension of C++. Hm. Haveta look into it.

(((Ahh! Head exploding! To much to learn!)))

 

PHP is my favorite although perl is good too, I just don't know Perl too well . I don't like CF, and ASP isn't my cup of tea but it's alright if you're gonna work with Windows web servers, since I never have (other than once and that was just an expirement), I can't say much, my mom does alot of work with ASP, so it's alright

 

I've always enjoyed using shellscripts in my SSIs. preferably written in the Bourne shell

o Draith

 

I've never actally use the Bourne shell. I've used BASH quite a bit, though. It's the first thing I type on our school's Sun server since I refuse to use the less-user-friendly-than-DOS C-shell.

 

i have been using ASP because it was easy to learn the basics reletivley quickly and without too much real learning. Yes my scripts are a bit slow and somtimes die for no reason, but it works. i improve them all the time. Im actually trying to port a website from ASP to PHP at the moment, and its taken a helluva lot longer to work out the basics in php than it has in asp. and the scriptare much more complicated

 

hey da_chicken,

Did I say Bourne Shell? I meant bash at least for scripting. Bourne shell is ksh, isn't it. I'm horrible, oy. However if it's not a script, I actually prefer to work from the tcsh, I just have a bias towards it really.

hey goldfish, I'm actually just learning php right now and i kind of like it. from what i've gathered it seems to follow a basic syntax similar to java and c(++) which is pretty nice (I have yet to learn those to a decent level so don't consider me an expert). None the less for those who are wondering about php, I would say it has some advantage over other methods based simply on it's being opensource which effectively makes its design team massive, and its engine more efficient as each day passes and people contribute.

if you want some more words on it, I can quote the book Core PHP Programming: Using PHP to build dynamic web sites by Leon Atkinson (second edition). He compares php to: Perl as cgi, microsoft's Active Server Pages (ASP), Allaire's Cold Fusion and generic others that cost money . He writes:

 

Bourne shell == sh
Bourne again shell == bash
C shell == csh
Turbo C shell == tcsh
Korn Shell == ksh
Z Shell == zsh

etc.

And truly scripts aren't that great, I dont think they offer enough power that a language dedicated to this would....

 

nah yeah,

I remember the shells, I'm just being a ditz. And I keep forgetting that people don't know me that well on here. I used the shellscripts for small cgis that track user data (namely visiting location, time of visit) and the post the info to a speciality page.

then again I also enjoy designing analog computers, networking the toasters in my house and making monitors out of old spectrometers, as well as reinventing wheels and finding the most inefficient and round-about fashion (I call them Rube Goldberg Wheels).

hope that helps

 

lol, nah, Re-inventing the whell is such a bore... when you can't

 

I think pretty much most stuff has been said here.

I would like to add, though, that php has some amazing features. It allows very high-level powerful features to be coded with relative ease. It's great for an easily-implemented abstracted approach to programming (which, i won't go into the obvious benefits here). It also allows you do to some dirty tricks, also. The use of variable variables, a pretty fully fledged OO, MASSIVE support - both community wise, and in what the language supports (virtually every DB interface language you can imagine). Its free, and is cross-platform - which is a very big plus. But, really most of the strong benefits of any language will only come into play if you plan on doing a large scale (either size of code, number of clients, hosts etc etc) project. If you just plan on making ye-standard web-site, with forum support, some dynamic content - then i guess it depends on what language you find easiest to learn.

I actually don't subscribe to the belief of choosing a language based on speed. If speed is a serious issue, then you wouldn't be asking questions like this. The first approach to better speed, is a knowledge of your language, and using this to apply better code (both from an theoretical and engineering point of view). If you are familiar with C like languages, PHP is probably for you. If you are going to deal with non-db permenant data stuctures (e.g. stored in a text file) - then go for Perl. If you know VB, or have a background in procedural programming - go for ASP. If you can't be arsed to learn to program - CF.

one other point - if you do use PHP - you get a free kick-arse forum (namely PHPBB) available for use.

(i use PHP, if you hadn't guessed )