Published on May 7, 2019.

For the past several months, I've been doing an increasing amount of Web development work using PHP. In the process, I found that working with PHP was a bit odd, especially considering the large amount of work that I also do using Xojo and the Aloe Express Web server module. I had grown accustomed to Aloe's features that make evaluating, routing, and responding to HTTP requests so easy.

As a result, I developed something that I had been calling "smpl" (as in "simple") and that I'm now calling "Aloe for PHP." Aloe for PHP is a microframework. It provides core functionality for Web sites and applications so that an HTTP request can be evaluated, routed, and responded to.

If you're a Xojo developer and have used Aloe Express, then Aloe for PHP will likely be familiar to you. HTTP requests are stored in an instance of a Request class, and responding to a request is handled via an instance of a Response class. Here's an obligatory "Hello world" example using Aloe for PHP.

<?php

	require( 'aloe/framework/load.php' );
	
	$aloe_response -> content_set( 'Hello, world.' );

	$aloe_response -> return();	

?>

I've been using Aloe for PHP in various forms for nearly a year now. It's the framework that I used to develop Promo.zone, the popular promotional products search engine that I released last summer. I also used it to develop the most recent version of the Promo.zone API, as well as the recently updated Under The Crown Web site. I'm using it here on my personal site as well.

I'm planning to release Aloe for PHP under an MIT license sometime this summer. In the meantime, if you have any questions, please feel free to email me.