Pro PHP Programming

Welcome to yet another book on the great programming language of PHP. This book is unique in that it focuses on higher-end materials and more advanced, cutting-edge topics. We have kept it as modern as possible with the fast-paced world of the Internet. We take the reader from an intermediate level to a more advanced level of this great programming language.

Origins of PHP

PHP began as a project led and designed by Mr. Rasmus Lerdorf. In June 1995, he released version 1.0 of Personal Home Page Tools (its original product name). It was a small collection of functions that helped to automate the creation and maintenance of simple home pages on the then-burgeoning Internet. 

Since then, PHP has grown by leaps and bounds to where it is today at version 5.3.4 (at the time of writing). PHP was one of the first web development programming languages to be open source from the outset. Lerdorf was visionary enough to see the need and the potential for a tool and language that could grow with this vein of the Internet community and expand far beyond it as well.

What Is PHP?

So then, what exactly is PHP? What does it look like and “feel” like in its current version? Well, in its

simplest terms, PHP is merely an HTML markup generator. If you look at the source code of a PHP generated a web page, you will see only HTML tags; maybe some JavaScript as well, but no raw PHP code. Of course, that is an overly simplistic view of the language that has captured between 35 and 59 percent (depending on the source) of the languages in use for web development. 

Whatever number you settle on, PHP is the single most popular web development language on the market today. When I use the term “on the market,” you also have to appreciate that PHP is free. Yes, free! It is an open-source product, so in reality, there isn’t an actual market for it. So it has done very well in terms of popularity and range of use for a product that is led and steered by no one entity or personality.

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Android Studio New Media Fundamentals

About The Book

Welcome to Android Studio New Media Fundamentals. This book will take you through the foundation of new media principles and concepts so that you have a firm foundation regarding what Android Studio and the Android OS offer in the area of new media support. New media, sometimes referred to as rich media or multimedia, spans a number of professional artist occupations, which is why a multimedia producer has to be good at producing all forms of new media.

This book seeks to enhance your knowledge of new media fundamentals and how they apply to Android Studio so that you can make Android apps that are more stimulating to the senses and thus more popular! In this chapter, you’ll take a look at the different forms of new media supported by the Android OS and how they can help your applications stand apart from the competition.

You will also install professional-quality, open-source software applications for each of the new media genres, so that you will be able to produce new media content for Android applications. This book makes the assumption that you’re already up to speed on Android Studio and the feature set you have downloaded and installed it, and you are busy programming Android applications.

I wrote this book to bolster your knowledge of the new media portion of the Android Studio equation so that you will be able to add custom multimedia assets to your Android application instead of using the canned UI components that come with the operating system. Throughout the rest of the book, there are two chapters per new media type (genre) to get you up to speed on the fundamentals and to learn how these new media types are supported in Android Studio; you’ll also learn about the principles of data footprint optimization.

This book does not cover Android Studio, at least not directly; I assume that you have already downloaded and installed Android Studio and that you know the basics. I have an Android Apps for Absolute Beginners (Apress, 2014) title that covers these topics if you need that foundational knowledge.

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Android Programming for Beginners

Android Programming for Beginners

What this book covers

Chapter 1, The First App, sets up your Android development environment, and then it helps you build and deploy your first simple app to an emulator and a real Android device.

Chapter 2, Java – First Contact, teaches some absolute beginner Java coding as well as shows you how to implement your first user interface design.

Chapter 3, Exploring Android Studio, gets to grips with the tools of the trade of professional Android developers with a fast tour around Android Studio.

Chapter 4, Designing Layouts, focuses on building user interfaces by exploring the layouts and widgets that make up an Android app as well as build some apps that demo our new skills.

Chapter 5, Real-World Layouts, takes user interfaces a step further by designing and implementing some apps with layouts more like what you would see on professional Android apps.

Chapter 6, The Life and Times of an Android App, explores how the Android operating the system works under the surface by building apps that demonstrate the Android lifecycle and how we make it work for us.

Chapter 7, Coding in Java Part 1 – Variables, Decisions, and Loops, gives you the first major glimpse of Java, the native language of Android, and the way we will be bringing our apps to life. Zero previous coding experience is assumed.

Chapter 8, Coding in Java Part 2 – Methods, discusses that methods are one of the key building blocks of all the apps we will make in this book. In this chapter, we will build a few working mini-apps to explore how to use methods.

Chapter 9, Object-Oriented Programming, states that OOP is the way that all modern programming is done, especially Java. This chapter holds the key to using all the advanced and exciting features contained in Android.

Chapter 10, Everything's a Class, will bring together everything we have seen in all the other chapters so far. By the end of this chapter, our design and Java skills will be as one and we will be well placed to start building apps with more advanced features.

Chapter 11, Widget Mania, covers the use of our new OOP, Java, and UI knowledge that we will be able to use and interact with many of the user interfaces features available on Android.

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What you need for this book

Any recent and free version of Eclipse or Android Studio running on any of the major operating systems can use the code in this book. Android Studio is the recommended development tool, and at the time of publication, the minimum system requirements were as follows: Windows

• Microsoft® Windows® 8/7/Vista/2003 (32 or 64 bit)

• 2 GB RAM minimum; however, 4 GB RAM is recommended

• 400 MB hard disk space

• At least 1 GB for Android SDK, emulator system images, and caches

• 1280 x 800 minimum screen resolution

• Java Development Kit (JDK) 7

• Optional for the accelerated emulator: Intel® processor with support for Intel®

VT-x, Intel® EM64T (Intel® 64), and Execute Disable (XD) Bit functionality

Mac OS X

• Mac® OS X® 10.8.5 or a higher version, up to 10.9 (Mavericks)

• 2 GB RAM minimum; however, 4 GB RAM is recommended

• 400 MB hard disk space

• At least 1 GB for the Android SDK, emulator system images, and caches

• 1280 x 800 minimum screen resolution

• Java Runtime Environment (JRE) 6

• Java Development Kit (JDK) 7

• Optional for the accelerated emulator: Intel® processor with support for Intel® VT-x, Intel® EM64T (Intel® 64), and Execute Disable (XD) Bit functionality On a Mac OS, run Android Studio with Java Runtime Environment (JRE) 6 for optimized font rendering. You can then configure your project to use the Java Development Kit (JDK) 6 or JDK 7.

Linux

• A GNOME or KDE desktop

• GNU C Library (glibc) 2.15 or later

• 2 GB RAM minimum; however, 4 GB RAM is recommended

• 400 MB hard disk space

• At least 1 GB for the Android SDK, emulator system images, and caches

• 1280 x 800 minimum screen resolution

• Oracle® Java Development Kit (JDK) 7

Agile Android By Godfrey Nolan

Agile Android

About This eBook

For a while now, Agile development has been problematic for Android developers. There have been a number of ways to test the user interface (UI), such as Robotium or Monkey Runner, but before Android Studio 1.1, unit testing was hard to use, hard to configure, and quite challenging to implement on the Android platform.

Google would argue, no doubt, that in the past you could use JUnit3-style unit testing. But for anyone from classic Java development, this was a dramatic backward step in time. 

Developers would stumble along hacking together a JUnit4 development environment using a number of third-party

tools. More likely than not they would simply give up as the ever-increasing series of mutually incompatible library dependencies would finally wear them down. Because there simply wasn’t the toolbox for the Android developer, Agile development on the mobile platform was immature and reminiscent of Java development in the early 2000s.

Thankfully all this has changed - Android now supports JUnit4 and Android developers can now return to unit testing. It’s early days yet in the world of Android JUnit4 testing world and the documentation is thin on the ground, so in this book, we’re going to show practical ways to get your unit testing up to and running using Android Studio.

We’ll also look at how this can be complemented by other UI-specific Android testing libraries such as Espresso to create a complete Agile testing framework for Android developers.

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Advanced Excel Essentials For Free Download

Advanced Excel Essentials

I set out to write a book on the essentials of Excel development—that is, a book that concisely presents many of the development principles and practices I’ve discovered through my work and consulting experience. 

But whether on purpose or by accident, this book has become something considerably more than that. Indeed, another name for this book could be A Contrarian’s Guide To Excel Development. You see, this book will push back against the wisdom of other terrific Excel books, including my favorite book, Professional Excel Development

(Addison-Wesley 2005). To be sure, the information in those books is terrific, and whatever merits this book might achieve, it will likely never come close to the impact of Professional Excel Development.

At the same time, much of the information in these books, I believe, is somewhat dated. For instance, let’s take the case of Hungarian Notation. Hungarian Notation is a variable naming convention encouraged by virtually all Excel development books. Even if you’ve never heard of Hungarian Notation, you’ve likely seen and used it, if you’ve ever looked at or learned from example code. It basically says a variable’s name should start with a prefix of the variable’s type. For instance, lblCaption, intCounter, and strTitle are all examples of Hungarian Notation: the lbl in lblCaption tells us we’re working with a Label object; the int in intCounter tells us we’re working with an integer type, and the str in strTitle tell us we’re working with a string type. If you’ve done any VBA coding before, this is likely not new information.

You might not know this, however: most modern languages have all but abandoned Hungarian Notation. Microsoft’s .NET style guidelines, for instance, even discourage its use. More than a decade has passed since Microsoft last recommended Hungarian Notation. I argue that it’s time for a more modern naming style, which I introduce in Chapter 2.

But this book is concerned with more than just naming conventions. I argue that we should change the way we think about development. Previous books have placed significant emphasis on user interface with ActiveX objects and User Forms. This book will eschew these bloated controls; rather, this book will show you how to develop complex interactivity using the spreadsheet as your canvas. You’ll see that it’s easier and provides for more control and flexibility compared to conventional methods from other books. In addition, I’ll place less emphasis on code and a stronger emphasis on formulas (Chapters 3, 4, and 5). Many books have narrowly defined the principles of advanced Excel in terms of VBA code. But formulas can be powerful.

And often they can be used in place of VBA code. You might be surprised by how much interactivity you can create without writing a single line of code. And how much quicker your spreadsheet runs because of it. 

This book is divided into two parts. Part I (Chapters 1-5) deals with concepts that are likely already familiar to you. Specifically they concern VBA code and formulas—but I present these concepts in new ways. Part II makes up the last four chapters of the book (Chapters 6-9). These chapters apply concepts from Part I to a real-world example product I built in my consulting experience. Futhermore, in Part II, you’ll learn how to input form data without making your spreadsheet bloated. You’ll also apply some data analytics used in the field of management science. 

However, if you learn anything from my book, it should be that the process of development never stops. The most important skill you’ll need is creativity. Just as I saw different ways to approach a problem than my predecessors, so too should you analyze what’s being presented to you. Undoubtedly, you’ll find even better approaches than I did. I don’t expect everyone to agree with my approaches, but what’s important is that you understand them, so you can see what works, what doesn’t, and why. Because you won’t become an advanced Excel developer through rote

memorization of the material presented herein;

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Android Phones For Dummies - 4th Edition

Introduction

It may be a smartphone, but it makes you feel dumb. Don’t worry: You aren’t
alone. As technology leaps ahead, it often leaves mortal humans behind. You
paid good money for your phone — why not use all of its features?
This book makes the complex subject of Android phones understandable. It’s
done with avuncular care and gentle handholding. The information is friendly
and informative, without being intimidating. And yes, ample humor is sprinkled
throughout the text to keep the mood light.

About This Book

I implore you: Do not read this book from cover to cover. This book is a reference.
It’s designed to be used as you need it. Lookup a topic in the table of contents or
the index. Find something about your phone that vexes you or something you’re
curious about. After getting the answer, get on with your life.
Every chapter in this book is written as its own self-contained unit, covering a
specific Android phone topic. The chapters are further divided into sections representing
tasks you perform with the phone or explaining how to get something
done. Sample sections in this book include
Every section explains a topic as though it’s the first one you read in this book.
Nothing is assumed, and everything is cross-referenced. Technical terms and
topics, when they come up, are safely shoved to the side, where they’re easily
avoided. The idea here isn’t to learn anything. This book’s philosophy is to help
you look it up, figure it out, and move on.

How to Use This Book

This book follows a few conventions for using your phone, so pay attention!
The main way to interact with an Android phone is by using its touchscreen,
which is the glassy part of the phone as it’s facing you. The physical buttons on
the phone are called keys. These items are discussed and explained in Part I of
this book.
Various ways are available to touch the screen, which is described in Chapter 3.
Chapter 4 covers typing text on an Android phone, which involves using
something called the onscreen keyboard. When you tire of typing, you can dictate
your text. It’s all explained in Chapter 4.
This book directs you to do things on your phone by following numbered steps.
Every step involves a specific activity, such as touching something on the screen;
for example:

1. Choose Downloads.

This step directs you to tap the text or item on the screen labeled Downloads. You
might also be told to do this:

1. Tap Downloads.

Because this book covers a variety of phones, alternative commands may be listed.
One of them is bound to match something on your phone, or at least be close to
what you see:

1. Tap the My Downloads action or the Downloads action.

Various phone settings can be enabled or disabled, as indicated by a master
control, which looks like the On/Off toggle shown in the margin. Slide the button
to the right to activate the switch, turning on a phone feature. Slide the button to
the left to turn off the feature.

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Beginning Programming with C For Dummies

Introduction

St ay 'Hello. world' to Beginning Programming with C For Dummies. a book that transforms you from a well-meaning. caring human being Into an admired element of the underground nerd subculture. the programmer. Oh. yes. that's a good thing. When you learn to code in C you become the ultimate master of a number of electronic ginos. You can craft your own programs. dictating to computers. tablets. and cell phones your very whims and desires. And the electronics dutifully obey. Given the Information offered In this book, you can pass that programming class. Impress your friends. be admired by Hollywood. or even start your own software company. Yes. reaming to program Is a worthy investment of your time. This book helps make learning how to program understandable and enjoyable. You don't need any programming experience — you don't even need to buy a new software. You just need the desire to program in C and the ability to have fun while doing so.

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Is the C Language Relevant? 

An argument surfaces every few years that learning C is a road to nowhere. Newer, better programming languages exist, and It's far better to learn them than to waste time reaming C.
Poppycock.
In away. C is the Latin of computer languages. Just about every Johnny!, come-lately programming language uses C syntax. C keywords and even certain functions find their way into other popular languages, from C• • to Java to Python to whatever the latest, trendy language could be.
My point is that once you learn C programming. all those other programming languages come easy. In fact, many of the books that teach those other languages often assume that you know a little C before you start out. That can be frustrating for any beginner — but not when you already know C.
Despite what the pundits and poobahs say. C is still relevant. Programming for microcontrollers. operating systems. and major software packages Is still done using good or C. You are not wasting your time.

The C Programming For

Dummies Approach

As a programmer, I’ve toiled through many, many programming books. I
know what I really don’t like to see, and, lamentably, I see it often — that is,
where the author writes pages-long code or simply boasts about what he
knows, impressing his fellow nerds and not really teaching anything. Too
much of that type of training exists, which is probably why you’ve picked up
this book.
My approach here is simple: Short programs. To-the-point demonstrations.
Lots of examples. Plenty of exercises.
The best way to learn something is by doing it. Each concept presented in
this book is coupled with the sample code. The listings are short enough that you
can quickly type them in — and I recommend that you do so. You can then
build and run the code to see how things work. This immediate feedback is
not only gratifying it’s also a marvelous learning tool.
Sample programs are followed by exercises you can try on your own, testing
your skills and expanding your knowledge. Suggested answers to the exercises
can be found on this book’s companion website

How This Book Works

This book teaches the C programming language. It starts out by assuming
that you know little to nothing about programming, and it finishes by covering
some of the more advanced C operations.
To program in C, you need a computer. This book makes no assumptions
about the computer you select: It can be a Windows PC, a Macintosh, or a
Linux system. Central to all systems, and to programming in this book, is to
set up and use the Code:: Blocks integrated development environment or IDE.
Steps to do so are offered in Chapter 1.
This book also wastes no time, getting you started immediately in Chapter 1.
Nothing is introduced without a full explanation first, although due to the
nature of programming, I’ve made a few exceptions; they’re carefully noted in
the text. Otherwise, the book flows from front to back, which is how you can
best read this book.