Year-End Review and Goals for 2015

It's hard to believe that another year has passed. I hoped to have more accomplished, but there were a few unexpected twists throughout 2014 keeping me busy. Nevertheless, let's take a look at how my 2014 goals turned out and see what's coming up for the new year.

2014 Review

• Learn how to use prepared statements / binding in MySQL –
  I've been reviewing posts on PHPFreaks.com to get a sense of how people are using prepared statements. I also built a few prepared statements with MySQLi. However, it hasn't gone much further than that. I'm a little hesitant on moving forward since I haven't figured out how these queries will work with my error logging function. Once that's working, I'll start the upgrade process.
• Build first AJAX script – I watched an introductory video on Lynda.com. But that's about as far as I got. Hopefully, I'll be able to find the time necessary to experiment with AJAX in 2015.
• Incorporate portfolio entries – A portfolio post titled "Lessons Learned: Management Program for the Plan Preparations Guide" was written back in September. The original plan was to release these posts separate from the normal schedule, but that didn't quite work out due to my personal obligations getting in the way. Hopefully you'll still find the portfolio posts beneficial since they'll be focused on what was learned.

  Note that I haven't quite decided on whether I still want to create a special section for the portfolio posts. For now, I'll just concentrate on writing more posts.

• Continue reading PHP/MySQL book – My goal was to read through a book titled "PHP and MySQL Web Development". I read through the first few chapters, but I've been reluctant to continue. One reason for waiting is that the shiny fifth edition was slated to be released in 2014. Note that I have the third edition which was published in 2005. With how often the release date changed, I'm not sure when the new book is coming out.
• Increase presence on PHPFreaks – My goal was to increase my presence on PHPFreaks.com. I was hoping to allocate some time where I wouldn't be distracted by work or personal projects. I was doing okay for a little while, but I ended up falling back into old habits. Note that I don't plan to pursue this goal any further.

2015 Goals

• Get MySQL prepared statements to work with error logging function – My goal is to take the information I learned so far about prepared statements and figure out how they will work with my error logging function. Basically, I need to find a way to log the entire query…including the information that is added later through binding.
• Build first AJAX script – I have worked on a number of projects that could benefit from AJAX. For example, I developed a spotlight section for one website which is basically a news feed. AJAX could be employed to pull the information in dynamically.
• Continue reading PHP/MySQL book – My experience with PHP and MySQL has been somewhat piecemeal. I've been mostly learning just enough to get a project done and meet my deadlines. However, I want to know what functions PHP has available so that I don't re-invent the wheel. I also want to expand my knowledge of what MySQL can do.

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• Year-End Review and Goals for 2014