Build Dynamic, Database-Driven Web Sites PHP is a fully developed, server-side embedded scripting language, and its importance for web application development has grown with the rise of the Apache web server. Are you a novice programmer? This book starts with the basics and takes you wherever you want to go. A seasoned pro? You'll be amazed at how much you can capitalize on PHP's power and object-oriented support, and how it leverages your knowledge of other languages. Finally, if you're a PHP user in search of an authoritative reference, you need look no further. Mastering PHP 4.1 guides you through all levels of real-world web programming problems and provides expert advice on which solutions work best. Coverage Includes: Reading and writing files Validating data with regular expressions Accessing MySQL and PostgreSQL databases Accessing LDAP servers Generating images and PDF documents on the fly Building authentication and access-control systems Sending e-mail and building web-to-e-mail interfaces Creating your own classes Closing common security holes in PHP scripts Parsing and generating XML documents Using sessions to store persistent data Debugging misbehaving scripts Encrypting and decrypting sensitive data Note: CD-ROM/DVD and other supplementary materials are not included as part of eBook file.