The Digital Press

PHP, originally released 30 years ago as "Personal Home Page Tools," revolutionized web development by making server-side scripting accessible and easy to use. It began as a templating system embedded in HTML but quickly evolved into a widely adopted scripting language powering much of the web.

Why it matters: PHP made web programming accessible to many, inspiring a generation of developers and enabling dynamic websites.

The big picture: PHP started as a simple templating tool, unintentionally becoming a core technology for web development worldwide.

The other side: Despite criticisms, PHP was never designed as a general-purpose language but excelled in its original templating role.

Commenters say: Many share nostalgic memories of PHP as their first programming experience and appreciate its lasting impact on web development.