I don’t know if it’s due to over-exposure to programming memes but I certainly believed that no one was starting new PHP projects in 2023 (or 2020, or 2018, or 2012…). I was under the impression we only still discussed it at all because WordPress is still around.
Would a PHP evangelist like to disabuse me of my notions and make an argument for using PHP for projects such as Kbin in this day and age?
Large parts of my particular departments .gov.uk stack are PHP. All modern (8.1+) using established frameworks and to be honest, it’s a joy. It’s quick to write, easy to understand and very easy to test. The write, run, debug cycle is also essentially instant; although I really enjoy using Go (another bit of the stack) being able to quickly iterate changes is something I absolutely miss when I’m using it.
Laravel + Livewire is some sort of dark voodoo magic. I can write only PHP and have a functioning SPA with push updates and all sorts.
Have to admit I have more good experiences with .gov.uk portals than bad. Hope we can continue to streamline more government services online. I’ll say a little thanks to PHP + Laravel whenever a .gov.uk service works for me again.
The gov.uk portals are by far one of the best any government has to offer. Speaking from personal experience.