Difference Between PHP and .NET
Key Difference – PHP vs .NET
PHP is used in big applications like YouTube, Facebook and Wikipedia. The .NET framework consists of technologies such as ASP.NET, ADO.NET, WPF, WCF, LINQ, winforms and Entity Framework. They are useful in building desktop, mobile, and web applications. PHP can make the website dynamic, so it is possible to change page content according to various conditions. The key difference between PHP and .NET is that PHP is a server-side scripting language and .NET is a software framework build by Microsoft to run mainly in Windows. A software framework provides a standard way to build and deploy applications.
CONTENTS
1. Overview and Key Difference
2. What is PHP
3. What is .NET
4. Similarities Between PHP and .NET
5. Side by Side Comparison – PHP vs .NET in Tabular Form
6. Summary
What is PHP?
PHP is an open source, and it is one of the most commonly used scripting languages that is mainly used for web application development. PHP scripts are embedded in HTML. PHP executes on the server, so it is a server-side language. Eclipse, NetBeans and Zend studio are some of the Integrated Development Environments (IDE) used for PHP development. There are PHP frameworks such as Zend, Yii, Symfony, and Code Igniter. PHP is simple and flexible and users can create efficient and secure applications. PHP has content management systems such as Joomla, WordPress and Magento.
Server-side language such as PHP communicates with the database to store and manage data. That is done using Structured Query Language (SQL). PHP blocks starts with <?php and ends with ?>. PHP variables start with “$”. e.g. $value = 5; User does not need to write the data type. PHP automatically converts the variable to the correct data type. PHP files ends with .php extension.
What is .NET?
.NET is a framework developed by Microsoft. There are some related technologies. Some of them are ASP.NET, Silverlight, Windows Presentation Foundation etc.
The .NET framework includes many components. Common Language Runtime (CLR) manages code execution at runtime and also does thread and memory management. Base class libraries provide object-oriented collections, I/O etc. ADO.NET is used in accessing relational databases and it also supports to work with XML..NET framework supports multiple languages such as C#, Visual Basic, Visual C++ and Python. The Common Language Specification provides basic rules for language integration because of this multi-programming language support. The programs (C#, VB etc.) are compiled into a managed module which consists of Microsoft Intermediate Language (MSIL). MSIL is a low-level set of instructions which is comprehensible by Common Language Runtime (CLR).
The Integrated Development Environment for .NET related software development is Visual Studio. It has different editions such as community, express and enterprise edition. The main reason for the .NET popularity is because of the development environment. Visual Studio improves productivity, and it is easier to do testing and debugging.
What are the Similarities Between PHP and .NET?
- Both consist of features to build rich applications.
- Both have large community support and documentation.
- Both can use procedural and object-oriented programming concepts.
What is the Difference Between PHP and .NET?
PHP vs .NET | |
| PHP is server-side scripting language, mainly used for web development. | .NET is a software framework developed by Microsoft to build a variety of applications to run mainly in Windows. |
| Language Support | |
| PHP is a simple scripting language. | .NET provides multi-language support. Can be used with C#, Visual Basic, Python etc. |
| Developer | |
| Zend technologies develop PHP. | Microsoft develops .net. |
| Language Features | |
| PHP is not advanced as C#.NET. | C#, the most commonly used .NET language, is more advanced than PHP. It provides delegates, Lambda expressions, and Language Integrated Query (LINQ). Other than C# it is also used by JavaScript, Visual Basic etc. |
| Commonly Used Database | |
| PHP is mostly using MySQL, but other databases can also be used. | .NET is mostly used with Microsoft SQL server, but other databases can also be used. |
| Design and Implementation | |
| PHP applications are not easy and efficient to design and implement as .NET applications. | .NET applications are easy and efficient for design and implementation. It also provides a good IDE which is Visual Studio IDE. |
| Platform Compatibility | |
| PHP applications are cross-platform and can be executed in Linux, Unix, Windows, Solaris. | .NET applications are related to windows but can run on Linux etc. using different installed components. e.g. ASP Apache is used to run ASP.NET applications in Linux. |
| Web Development | |
| PHP language is mainly using for web development. Frameworks can also be used to add new features and to increase robustness. | ASP.NET (Active Server Pages) is the web technology in .NET framework. Need Internet Information Server (IIS) to run ASP.NET applications. |
| Learning and Comprehensibility | |
| PHP is easier to learn than .NET technologies. | .NET technologies are harder than PHP. |
Summary – PHP vs .NET
This article discussed the difference between PHP and.NET. The difference between PHP and .NET is that PHP is a server-side scripting language and .NET is a software framework build by Microsoft to run mainly in Windows. .NET applications are more fast and robust than PHP applications. Nevertheless, using PHP or .NET depends on the application to develop.
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Reference:
1.Haim Michael, Lecturer, Consultant & Developer at Life Michael Follow. “PHP, Java EE & .NET Comparison.” LinkedIn SlideShare, 14 June 2015. Available here
2.prasadmarigmailcom. YouTube, YouTube, 15 Mar. 2009, www.youtube.com/watch?v=ypY6AtKbcaI.
3.“Software framework.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 1 Jan. 2018. Available here
4.Deo Shao, Lecturer at the University of Dodoma Follow. “Server Scripting Language -PHP.” LinkedIn SlideShare, 20 July 2014. Available here
Image Courtesy:
1.’Antu php’By Fabián Alexis, (CC BY-SA 3.0) via Commons Wikimedia
2.’Microsoft .NET logo’By Microsoft, (Public Domain) via Commons Wikimedia
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