PHP, Of use to anything but web ?
 

Hi, just wondering is PHP at all useful to non web application ?
thanks

You can use it in standalone applications, even GUI applications. There are far better choices, in my opinion.

To be fair, PHP was aimed as a server-side scripting language therefore you should make sure it remains in the zone it was designed for. Client-side applications would require additional dependencies in order to interpret the language for a start, and clients (end-users) don't want that kind of hassle.

Plus, setting up PHP on a system isn't the easiest of tasks unless you're using XAMPP.

In short, I would say that the answer is no, it shouldn't really be used for client-side applications because it was never designed for that, and even now it's not designed for that.

XAMPP is a help, but not necessary. I have configured PHP in my IIS pretty easily just following the instructions in the install text file. Preconfigured PHP, PHPMyAdmin just leaves you out from getting the hands a little dirty with their configuration. :)

Ive found that it's easy to setup, even on linux (Most of the time its pre-installed anyway). The hard part is trying to get it configured with things like mysql & other libraries. That can be tricky.

Yes; However, In my personal opinion, I'd leave PHP in the realm of web development... maybe let it out back to play in the realm of system scripting (if you lack perl, python, or shell knowledge) every once in a while.

i have used it to make GTK apps before. It works ok, but it's still a scripting language.

I enjoy php on the web though i use it every chance i get.

i would quite like to learn PHP but i think i should concentrate on c# atm as thats what im gonna be using when i start work in aug ...

Well, your question didn't ask, C# vs. PHP....

that isn't my question.. lol