What is laravel and how to learn?

Introduction to Laravel: The PHP Framework for Web Artisans

Laravel has quickly become one of the most popular PHP frameworks, beloved by developers for its elegant syntax, robust features, and ability to streamline complex web application development. Whether you're a beginner or a seasoned developer, Laravel offers a suite of tools and capabilities that make web development more enjoyable, efficient, and secure. Let’s dive into why Laravel has captured the attention of so many developers and how it can benefit your next project.

What is Laravel?

Laravel is an open-source PHP framework created by Taylor Otwell in 2011. It’s designed with simplicity, elegance, and developer happiness in mind. Following the MVC (Model-View-Controller) architectural pattern, Laravel provides a well-organized structure that makes web development smoother, cleaner, and more intuitive.

Some of the primary goals of Laravel are to simplify common tasks such as routing, authentication, sessions, and caching while offering a stable platform for scaling applications. With Laravel, you get a range of built-in functionalities out-of-the-box, along with a powerful ecosystem of extensions and packages.

Key Features of Laravel

1. Eloquent ORM: Eloquent ORM (Object-Relational Mapping) is one of the standout features in Laravel. It allows developers to interact with databases using simple, readable syntax, treating each database table as a model class. With Eloquent, you can manage relationships between data, retrieve related data with ease, and leverage a fluent query builder that can handle complex SQL queries.
2. Blade Templating Engine: Blade is Laravel's lightweight and powerful templating engine. It enables developers to create clean and dynamic templates with minimal effort. Blade allows you to use plain PHP code in your views while also providing convenient short-codes for common tasks, making it both flexible and fast.
3. Routing System: Laravel offers a simple and effective way to manage routes in your application. With its expressive syntax, Laravel’s routing system allows you to define routes and closures, grouping them by middleware or other common attributes. Additionally, the built-in route caching feature significantly boosts the performance of large applications.
4. Built-in Authentication and Authorization: Implementing user authentication can be complex, but Laravel has simplified this process significantly. With just a few commands, you can have a fully-functioning authentication system. Laravel also provides powerful authorization capabilities that enable role-based permissions and resource-based access control.
5. Task Scheduling: Laravel includes a scheduler, which makes it easy to automate tasks and manage scheduled jobs. For example, you can set up a command to send daily emails or delete old records from your database, helping keep your application lean and organized.
6. Robust Security: Security is a priority for Laravel, with built-in protection against common vulnerabilities like SQL injection, cross-site request forgery (CSRF), and cross-site scripting (XSS). Laravel also offers an intuitive password hashing system, as well as encryption, to keep user data safe and secure.
7. Laravel Artisan: Artisan is Laravel’s command-line interface (CLI) and is immensely helpful for developers. With Artisan, you can automate tasks, create boilerplate code, manage database migrations, seed data, and much more. It’s a valuable tool that speeds up development and minimizes repetitive tasks.
8. Powerful Ecosystem: Laravel’s ecosystem includes various tools and services, such as:

• Laravel Horizon: For managing and monitoring queues.
• Laravel Telescope: For debugging and monitoring applications.
• Laravel Nova: A beautiful administration panel builder.
• Laravel Sanctum: For managing API authentication for single-page applications and mobile applications.

Laravel Workflow

Laravel follows a standardized workflow that makes developing web applications faster and more organized:

1. Define Your Routes: Start by defining your routes in Laravel’s routes/web.php file. You can quickly set up controllers and views to match your routes for a streamlined request-response lifecycle.
2. Create Controllers and Models: Laravel organizes code through MVC architecture. Models represent data, Controllers handle business logic, and Views present the data to the user. Use Artisan commands to create controllers and models effortlessly.
3. Use Migrations for Database Management: Migrations allow developers to version control their database. You can easily add, modify, or delete tables using migration files, which helps maintain a consistent database structure across different environments.
4. Implement Business Logic with Middleware: Middleware in Laravel acts as a filter that sits between the request and the response. It allows you to handle tasks like authentication checks, logging, and request validation in a structured way.

Advantages of Using Laravel

1. Productivity: Laravel simplifies repetitive tasks and eliminates boilerplate code, helping developers focus on what truly matters.
2. Community Support: With a large and active community, Laravel has a rich ecosystem of packages, tools, and tutorials that make learning and problem-solving much easier.
3. Scalability: Laravel’s modular design allows for scaling applications, making it a viable choice for both small projects and enterprise-level applications.
4. Testing: Laravel is built with testing in mind, with support for PHPUnit out-of-the-box, enabling developers to write and run tests effortlessly.

Learning Laravel is easier than ever, thanks to a wealth of resources available online. Here are some of the best places to get started with Laravel, from beginner-friendly tutorials to advanced deep dives.

1. Laravel Official Documentation

1. URL: laravel.com/docs
2. The Laravel documentation is one of the best starting points for beginners and intermediate developers. It’s comprehensive, well-organized, and covers everything from installation to advanced features. The documentation is regularly updated to reflect changes in the latest Laravel versions, making it a reliable resource.

2. Laracasts

1. URL: laracasts.com
2. Laracasts is considered the go-to resource for Laravel and PHP tutorials. Created by Jeffrey Way, Laracasts offers high-quality video tutorials on all aspects of Laravel development, from the basics to advanced techniques. It also covers related topics like Vue.js, PHP testing, and general software development best practices. Although it’s a paid resource, it’s well worth the investment for serious learners.

3. YouTube Channels

Several YouTube channels offer free Laravel tutorials:

1. Traversy Media: Brad Traversy has a popular series on Laravel that’s beginner-friendly and easy to follow.
2. Academind: This channel provides high-quality Laravel tutorials with a focus on real-world projects.
3. Code with Dary: Great for intermediate Laravel tutorials, including API development and advanced features.

4. Devscriptschool.com

1. URL: Devscriptschool.com
2. Since Devscript School covers tutorials on PHP, Laravel, and related web development technologies, this could be an excellent resource for Laravel learners. Adding Laravel-specific series, sample projects, or beginner to advanced tutorials would draw in developers looking for well-structured guidance on Laravel.

5. Books

Laravel Up & Running by Matt Stauffer: This book is a detailed, beginner-friendly resource that provides a deep dive into Laravel’s features and best practices. It’s regularly updated to reflect changes in the Laravel framework, making it one of the best guides in book format.

6. Laravel Daily

1. URL: laraveldaily.com
2. Laravel Daily is a blog with articles, tips, and tutorials aimed at Laravel developers. They also have a YouTube channel with practical, real-world tutorials on building Laravel applications.

7. FreeCodeCamp

1. URL: freecodecamp.org
2. FreeCodeCamp has a comprehensive free tutorial on Laravel that’s ideal for beginners. It’s project-based, so you’ll get hands-on experience building a Laravel application while learning the fundamentals.

8. Laravel Community and Forums

1. Laravel.io: A community forum where developers ask questions, share projects, and discuss Laravel.
2. Stack Overflow: There’s a large Laravel community on Stack Overflow. You can find solutions to common problems or ask questions of your own.
3. Reddit - r/laravel: A great place to keep up with the latest Laravel news and get help from other developers.

9. Online Courses (Udemy, Coursera, Pluralsight)

Platforms like Udemy and Coursera offer Laravel courses tailored to different skill levels. Many of these courses are project-based, making it easy to practice and retain the concepts.

Popular Udemy Courses:

• "PHP with Laravel for Beginners" by Edwin Diaz
• "Master Laravel 9 for Beginners & Intermediate" by Kati Frantz

Laravel is an ideal choice for developers who want to build modern, high-performing web applications with PHP. Its expressive syntax, range of built-in tools, and strong community support make it an excellent framework for projects of all sizes. Whether you're building a simple blog or a complex e-commerce platform, Laravel has the flexibility and power to handle it all.

So, if you’re considering PHP for your next project, give Laravel a try—it might just become your new favorite tool.