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What is PHP-GTK?
PHP-GTK is the Cinderella of the PHP world. Most people dismiss it as an impractical curiosity trying to fit in where it doesn't belong. It is a desktop application extension stuck in a web developer's language. After all, most PHP developers make their money building websites. To all of these “Wicked Step-Sisters” I say, don't be so quick to judge. Take a moment to look beneath the surface and glimpse at PHP-GTK's true potential. At one point, PHP was strictly a web server module. It allowed a developer to create dynamic, database driven websites with relative ease. The syntax was easy to learn and it could be combined with inline HTML to create a powerful web application more greater ease than with Java or Perl. This combination of simplicity and power attracted a lot of attention. As the PHP community grew larger and stronger so did PHP itself.
When the With interactive command line capabilities in place, the next logical step was to improve upon the simple text based user interface and create a graphical user interface (GUI). Enter PHP-GTK. PHP-GTK provided the tools needed to take CLI scripts to the next level. PHP-GTK is the result of an evolutionary progression, not a Frankenstein monster created from spare parts.
In many ways, Gtk+ is like HTML. Just as HTML tells a web browser where to place buttons, text, and other elements within the browser, Gtk+ tells the operating system where to place buttons, text, and other elements within the user's computer screen. As a Gtk+ wrapper, PHP-GTK lets you create and control these elements using PHP code instead of the native C code. PHP-GTK takes something that would appear foreign to most PHP developers and make it more comfortable.
With other applications the need may be more subtle. Many developers have used PEAR to install and upgrade PHP packages. But not all these developers are aware that PEAR has a PHP-GTK frontend for managing packages (try running: Aside from providing a different presentation, PHP-GTK has another advantage over “regular” PHP. It is run client side. Any time that a problem calls for code to be executed on the user's computer, PHP-GTK can be used. For example, managing an MP3 library would be difficult via a web based solution. With PHP-GTK the MP3s on the user's system can be quickly organized and inspected without having to transfer files to a remote server. Even though PHP-GTK runs client side, that doesn't mean that it cannot communicate with a remote server. In fact, moving data processing away from the server using a PHP-GTK application can be a good way to save on server side resources. Think of reporting systems for a moment. Often times creating a report consists of collecting a large amount of data from a database, crunching some numbers for a while and formatting the output as a graph, table or maybe even a spreadsheet. The number crunching can be very resource intensive. Instead of doing this processing on a web server, which is designed to better handle remote customer requests, it can be done client side where resources are more plentiful. Displaying the results in PHP-GTK is no more difficult, and in most cases easier, than it is with HTML. Another advantage of PHP-GTK is that the user does not have to initiate all actions. Web based solutions are request driven. This means that the user makes a request and the server responds. PHP-GTK applications on the other hand are event driven. This means that the application can react to more than just user requests. The application can process or transmit data in the background and inform the user when it is done.
So now you know the “why” and the “what” of PHP-GTK. In the next issue we will begin to tackle the “how”. We'll start slowly with some simple windows and a button or two and eventually work our way up to a full blown application. In the mean time, here is a list of resources to get you started with PHP-GTK:
Scott Mattocks is a LAMP Developer for OnForce.com. He is also the author of “Pro PHP-GTK” (Apress 2006). Scott has been working with PHP-GTK several years. Not only has Scott been working with PHP and PHP-GTK, but he has also been contributing back to the community in many ways. Scott spent many hours to help improve the first set of documentation for PHP-GTK and is listed as one of the authors for the PHP-GTK 2 documentation. He has also contributed several PHP-GTK classes to PEAR and has added code to more traditional PEAR packages such as PHPUnit and Console_Getargs.
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