Posted by Steve on 09/12/07 13:22

> Have you ever tried to build PHP with mysql support if you don't have
> mysql on the system? It doesn't work. The build will fail.
>
> And have you tried building PHP with mysql support on another system, then
> load it on a system which doesn't have mysql? That doesn't work, either.
> PHP won't load.

you're missing the point entirely! think of how most people install php on a
windows system. they use the windows binary installed. that means php is
pre-compiled on a system that meets all the requirements of your first
statement...1) compiled mysql support into php on a 2) system that has mysql
on said system. however even though support is compiled into the .exe, the
use of mysql on a target system where mysql isn't installed will bark when
you try to use it.

what i'm saying is that this exactly parallels ".net support enabled". php
does NOT do/provide any additional features to ensure that third party
applications are installed, nor should it. php either has the extensions
compiled in or loads them when executed. these extensions/modules determine
whether support is enabled/disabled which has nothing to do with the
existence of the actual third-party application on a target system...the
question pondered by the op.

>> while php may very well provide mysql libraries, it certainly has no
>> relationship to microsoft such that it would warrant providing the .net
>> framework especially given how bulky it is and the frequency at which it
>> is updated and outdated.
>>
>
> Check again. PHP does not supply mysql libraries any longer.

again, you're missing the point. it used to as a module but now is compiled
in...which was not my point anyway, which i was careful to point out when
following the "by your argument" line of comparison. whether a compiled
feature of php or a loadable module, it is the code that provided the
support to use external tools such as .net and this support is *completely*
independent of whether that external tool is actually installed on a target
system.

>>> PHP cannot integrate with something which does not exist. But
>>> obviously, since the extension is experimental, they still have some
>>> bugs to work out.
>>
>> yes, which is what i was trying to state...i just didn't go into the
>> 'experimental' part of it. if i need to use .net developed source in php,
>> i just compile it to a standard COM object and use php's COM function to
>> consume it. works for me.
>
> I just don't use OS-specific code. Works for me.

i'm glad you've got that leeway. as for me, i build what my
paycheck-provider asks. ;^)

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