Let's define "web development". A "web application" can mean a lot of things. My loose definition is any web page that DOES something. If the page content is altered based on user input, that's a web application.
Understand there is client-side and server-side coding. Which end of the transaction you choose to do the programming is based on a few factors. For example, if you simply want a user to enter 2 numbers into two text boxes, click an "Add" button and see the mathematical result, you could easily do this in client-side script. There would be no reason to do this server-side, although you could.
On the other hand, if you want to interact with a database or retrieve content from a third-party website, you'll need to use server-side script.
By far, the most common language used for client-side scripting is Javascript. Understand that Javascript is NOT a scripting subset of Java. The two programming languages are not even related except they share a C-like structure that many languages do. With IE on Windows, you can also use VBScript for client-side script. You can also use Java Server Applets that run on the client. (Again, Java is not Javascript.)
Your server-side programming language choices are much more varied. Some of the most popular in alphabetical order include:
- ASP (VBScript or JScript)<<
- ASP.NET (VB.NET, C#, etc.)<<
- Cold Fusion<<
- JSP (Java)<<
- PERL (CGI - style)<<
- PHP <<
ASP and ASP.NET are not really "languages" themselves. Instead, they are an architecture in which you use languages such as VBScript in ASP or C# in ASP.NET to program web apps. This is similar to CGI in that CGI is not a programming language. It is an architecture in which you can use languages such as PERL to do web dev.
Now for my quick opinions on what you should use. You may think you want to pick your language based on the "best" language or the "fastest and/or most efficient" language or the "most powerful" language. I'd argue, you want to go with what you think is most likely to land you jobs and make you money. Which one will give you the best return on your investment for the long haul?
"Classic"
ASP, as it's now called since ASP.NET hit the scene, is Microsoft's "old" way of doing webdev. This means that it will be increasingly difficult to get support from Microsoft for ASP and VBScript. You'll start to see the amount of online code examples drying up. I really liked ASP, and I felt Microsoft abandoned me when they launched ASP.NET. Classic ASP is actually more like PHP than it is like ASP.NET.
ASP.NET. What do I like about ASP.NET? You get to use "real" programming languages such as VB.NET and C# to do web dev. So the language you learn lets you write not only web apps but full desktop apps, too. Actually there are a LOT of languages supported within the .NET architecture, so you can use Python, Cobol, and many others. However, I tried to apply my ASP experience to ASP.NET and found that just about NONE of it applied! I'm not kidding. Microsoft really confused web dev with .NET in my opinion.
Cold Fusion. Huh? Never heard of it? It's almost like that now. I don't know anybody using it. But I'm sure it has some fans out there. I never used it, but I believe it was very easy to use with nice features for quickly building data-driven web apps.
JSP is the Java way to do web dev. It has some of the same advantages I mentioned with ASP.NET. Personally, I'd pick Java over .NET..but of course we already established that I don't like .NET
I've had JSP programmers tell me that setting up the server environment for JSP can be a daunting task. I don't really know. Java is definitely a great language, very popular, and since it is not a Microsoft language, it does not stand the chance that it will be abandoned in 8 months for the next "great" thing. You can make lots of money as a Java programmer....so return on investment is probably one of the best.
CGI (using PERL or otherwise) is "old school". I don't know of any advantages or reasons to keep using CGI when we have the newer integrated web development methods. It was great, but we have better methods now that offer better performance.
PHP is what I use now. I started web dev about 10 yrs ago doing CGI with the PL/B language. Then I moved to ASP/VBScript and SQL Server for many years. When Bill launched .NET, I reviewed ASP.NET, then quickly moved to PHP and MySQL! PHP won me over VERY quickly. I also enjoy that I can use PHP for all my shell scripting needs. PHP is a very popular webdev language and well supported. Oracle announced last year they are now including PHP in their products. PHP, unlike ASP/ASP.NET can be used on UNIX, LINUX, and Windows platforms.
Troy's Conclusions: If your goal is quickest path to powerful webdev with a language that will reward you for many years to come, PHP is an excellent choice. If your goal is powerful webdev, ability to also develop desktop applications, and to make as much money as possible, Java will reward you well.
DISCLAIMER: Opinions are like....well you know.
