NYCPHP Meetup

[Daniel Krook]

> Anyone here ever pitch PHP to a Java house?
> 
> I have a fairly large client who?s interest may be waning 
> due to their current Java setup.  They are listening, but 
> not necessarily intently.  I?ve been doing my reading, but
> my time is very short.  I?m finding a lot about 
> scalability, but for the most part, the articles are short
> and the discussions are generally my-language-can-kick-
> your-language?s-ass-cuz-I-said-so, and you?re-all-
> children-use-C-or-perl.  I need to get off the playground 
> and actually prove to this client that php is a viable option.
> 
> Current site is running Struts, using customs Java for 
> model and controller and JSP for the view
> F5 Labs Big IP load balancer
> 8 Machines running Apache 2 in worker MPM mode (which I?ve
> read that PHP doesn?t quite love)
> Resin 2.1
> Oracle 9i db
> 
> A good friend mentioned that he usually argues that the 
> development time is preferable with PHP. Anyone here have 
> resources to share or a good general direction to walk in 
> with this argument?


Mark,

You could take the following three-pronged approach to a situation like 
this; after you've honestly evaluated the client's needs and decided that 
PHP would suit them better than Java.

* Establish PHP's corporate credibility
Point out that IBM has partnered with Zend Technologies to provide support 
for PHP.  Better yet, plan to attend and let them know about NYPHP's 
upcoming June meeting with members of the IBM Software Group: 
http://nyphp.org/ 
You might also have them take a look at SourceLabs: http://sourcelabs.com/

* Show how PHP's features are enterprise ready
Pick some case studies from Zend about PHP's application in the 
enterprise:  http://www.zend.com/company/customers.php
 
* Show examples of a migration path
To keep their J2EE developers comfortable, show them that their existing 
Java knowledge translates nicely to PHP5.   They might be interested in 
reading about the ZNF (PHP5 reimplementation of Struts) which I found out 
about today: http://znf.zeronotice.com/ or phpPatterns from Harry Fuecks: 
http://www.sitepoint.com/articlelist/210
Of course, they can even choose to run PHP and J2EE side by side to take 
advantage of each platforms relative advantage. :)
http://ibm.com/developerworks/websphere/techjournal/0505_krook/0505_krook.html





Daniel Krook, Advisory IT Specialist 
Application Development, Production Services - Tools, ibm.com

Personal: http://info.krook.org/
BluePages: http://bluepages.redirect.webahead.ibm.com/
BlogPages: http://blogpages.redirect.webahead.ibm.com/