There is a Interesting brief history of how PHP came to be so widely used for Web Development in a book titled “Programming PHP, 3rd Edition” (http://shop.oreilly.com/product/0636920012443.do). While reading this brief history some phrases came to mind. You might have heard of phrases such as “Minimal viable product”, “Using the right tool for the right job”, and “KISS principle”. You can have as much interactivity by using Javascript frameworks in your web applications but when it comes to business, certain things belong on the server and not on a users web browser. This is where a server side scripting language such as PHP shines and so many people depend on it.

You won't appreciate PHP for Web Development work until you are faced with a Web Application built using a different language or explore other ways of building Web Applications. For most Web Applications with very few dynamic views or elements. This article (http://www.alandmoore.com/blog/2013/02/02/from-php-to-python-things-i-wish-id-known/) has great coverage of usual experiences when working with Python while developing Web Applications:

This comment from “php to python” article is interesting. Developer put together a web server when a template engine was all that was needed.:

“..Python is awesome. After months, I have pretty much exactly what I need/wanted with the Falcon framework — which, at this point, means I’ve basically written my own web server when all I really need is basic templates.”

You might try to work with GO when making web applications and have entire html document embedded in your code: [caption id="attachment_827" align="alignleft" width="652"] From Google App Engine Docs: https://cloud.google.com/appengine/docs/go/gettingstarted/handlingforms[/caption]

To be fair, programming languages allow for much flexibility in use of web architecture, to place your web application on, and probably one could have include files for html sections. Although GO was designed for very large scale system applications to take advantage of modern multi threaded processors allowing parallel processes when programming for a large environment with multiple servers. Maybe you would use GO If you were trying to create the next scripting language alternative to PHP.

Academic computer science majors will have gripes about using PHP but many small businesses will contend “it gets the job done!”.  If the next phase of your project is complex and starts to require zend framework..you are much better off using python and a framework. For applications with few views or using a existing open source content management system as a base to create your solution. PHP is just fine.

No matter what you use. Isolate the fundamental problem/idea and code for your problem or find suitable open source work to use as code base. Most Open source projects have Common features you can build on top of as development progresses. Most importantly, get your product in front of people and ask for feedback. You can place icing on your work later.

Creator of PHP thought of and designed PHP language as a template engine and is very surprised by what PHP has become.

References

"PHP in 2018" (https://youtu.be/umxGUWYmiSw)

Article thumb graphic by Softpedia (http://linux.softpedia.com/get/Internet/HTTP-WWW-/PHP-52-7504.shtml)

Life is too short and who knows in a few years we all will be living in a new reality (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tnEO2ysnO6Q) and some more food for thought about the possible new reality (http://www.tubeislam.com/video/10294/hq-preservation-of-the-environment-in-islam-part-5).