Should you use PHP Laravel for Freelance?

Summary

The speaker addresses a question about learning Laravel for freelance work after mastering PHP, MySQL, and WordPress. They recommend learning Laravel post-fundamentals, as it speeds up development with structured, less buggy code and eases team collaboration. Laravel's built-in features and popularity make it suitable for most projects, enhancing developer skills by exposing them to experienced community practices. The speaker also mentions other PHP frameworks and the importance of frameworks in various programming languages, concluding that learning Laravel will likely benefit any freelancer.

Takeaways

• 📚 Learning Laravel after mastering PHP, MySQL, MySQL CRUD, and WordPress is a logical next step for an aspiring freelancer.
• 🔧 A framework like Laravel provides boilerplate code to speed up the development process and is less buggy due to community contributions.
• 🛠 Laravel is advantageous for team projects as it allows for easier onboarding of experienced developers who are already familiar with the framework.
• 🚀 Laravel isn't just for large projects; it can be used for a wide range of applications, including small business or non-profit websites.
• 💡 Using Laravel can improve a developer's coding skills by exposing them to the structured and efficient coding practices of experienced developers.
• 🌐 Laravel incorporates features from other successful frameworks, making it a refined and robust choice for web development.
• 🛑 While Laravel is versatile, it's not suitable for every project, such as those better suited for WordPress integration.
• 🌟 Learning Laravel can enhance a freelancer's portfolio, making them more attractive to potential clients looking for modern web development skills.
• 🔄 Laravel offers built-in capabilities like authentication layers and cron jobs, reducing the need for custom code development.
• 🔑 PHP has several frameworks, but Laravel stands out as the most popular for its comprehensive features and community support.
• 🌍 Other programming languages also have their frameworks, such as Django and Flask for Python, and Spring Boot for Java, emphasizing the importance of frameworks in modern development.

Q & A

What is the primary purpose of learning Laravel after becoming proficient with PHP, MySQL, and WordPress?

Laravel is worth learning as it provides a structured framework that speeds up development, reduces bugs, and makes it easier to bring new team members on board due to its popularity and standardized structure.

What does the speaker consider the 'fundamentals' of the web stack for an aspiring freelancer?

The fundamentals include HTML5, CSS3, JavaScript, PHP, MySQL, the mysqli library, CRUD operations, and basic knowledge of WordPress.

Why are code frameworks beneficial in web development?

Frameworks provide boilerplate code, which speeds up the development process, and because many developers work on them, they tend to be less buggy. They also facilitate easier collaboration by standardizing the code structure.

Can Laravel be used for small-scale projects or is it reserved for larger projects only?

Laravel can be used for a wide range of projects, not just large ones. It's suitable for most projects where the advantages of a framework would be beneficial, which the speaker estimates to be around 95-98% of the time.

What is one advantage of using Laravel mentioned in the script that can improve a developer's skills?

By learning Laravel, developers get to see how some of the most experienced developers in the community structure and write code, which can improve their own coding skills.

Is Laravel the only PHP framework available for developers?

No, Laravel is not the only PHP framework. Other frameworks include Symfony, CodeIgniter, and CakePHP, but Laravel is the most popular for good reasons.

What are some other programming languages and their corresponding web frameworks mentioned in the script?

The script mentions Python with Django and Flask, Java with Struts and Spring, .NET with the .NET Framework, and JavaScript/Node.js with Express.

What is the speaker's opinion on the necessity of learning a framework like Laravel for a freelancer?

The speaker believes that learning a framework like Laravel is beneficial for freelancers as it makes them better coders and increases the likelihood of using it in production code for projects with some level of complexity.

What is the relationship between Laravel and WordPress according to the script?

While Laravel and WordPress serve different purposes, they can be integrated depending on the project's needs. However, for typical WordPress projects, Laravel might not be necessary.

What additional advice does the speaker give for those interested in learning more about software development?

The speaker suggests checking out their Solo Learn courses and their mentoring program/boot camp, which can teach coding, job acquisition, freelancing, business startup, and financial success in a short period.