About the Authors
Laura Thomson is a lecturer in the School of Computer Science and Information
Technology at RMIT University in Melbourne, Australia. She is also a partner in the
award-winning Web-development firm Tangled Web Design. Laura has previously
worked for Telstra and the Boston Consulting Group. She holds a Bachelor of Applied
Science (Computer Science) degree and a Bachelor of Engineering (Computer Systems
Engineering) degree with honors, and is currently completing her Ph.D. in Adaptive
Web Sites. In her spare time, she enjoys sleeping. Laura can be reached via email at

Luke Welling is a lecturer in the School of Computer Science and Information
Technology at RMIT University in Melbourne, Australia. He is also a partner in Tangled
Web Design. He holds a Bachelor of Applied Science (Computer Science) degree and is
currently completing a master’s degree in Genetic Algorithms for Communication
Network Design. In his spare time, he attempts to perfect his insomnia. Luke can be
reached via email at
About the Contributors
Israel Denis, Jr. is a freelance consultant working on e-commerce projects throughout
the world. He specializes in integrating ERP packages such as SAP and Lawson with
custom Web solutions.When he is not busy designing software or writing books, Israel
enjoys traveling to Italy, a place he considers home. Israel obtained a master’s degree in
Electrical Engineering from Georgia Tech in Atlanta, Georgia, in 1998. He is the author
of numerous articles about Linux, Apache, PHP, and MySQL. He has worked for compa-
nies such as GE and Procter & Gamble with mainly Unix-based computer systems. Israel
can be reached via email at
Chris Newman is a consultant programmer specializing in the development of dynam-
ic Internet applications. He has extensive commercial experience using PHP and
MySQL to produce a wide range of applications for an international client base.A grad-
uate of Keele University, Chris lives in Stoke-on-Trent, England, where he runs
Lightwood Consultancy Ltd., the company he founded in 1999 to further his interest in
Internet development. Chris became fascinated with the potential of the Internet while
at the university, and is thrilled to be working with cutting-edge technology. More infor-

Email:
Mail: Mark Taber
Associate Publisher
Sams Publishing
201 West 103rd Street
Indianapolis, IN 46290 USA
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Introduction
WELCOME TO PHP AND
MYSQL W
EB DEVELOPMENT
.Within its pages, you will find
distilled knowledge from our experiences using PHP and MySQL, two of the hottest
Web development tools around.
In this introduction, we’ll cover
n
Why you should read this book
n
What you will be able to achieve using this book
n
What PHP and MySQL are and why they’re great
n
An overview of the latest features of PHP 4