posted on Monday, March 20th, 2006
Comparison Chart
Zend, Cake, Symfony, Seagull
WACT, Prado, PHP On Trax, ZooP
eZ Components, CodeIgniter
PHP frameworks are the latest hot topic in the PHP community, and new frameworks are being released daily. With over 40 frameworks available http://www.phpwact.org/php/mvc_frameworks it's difficult to decide which framework works best for you, especially as each framework offers different functionality.
In this article we will look at ten popular frameworks, and compare them to each other. First I will give you a general chart which gives you a quick overview of all the frameworks, and after that we'll go through each framework and discuss it in short.
Indicates whether the framework comes with inbuilt support for a Model-View-Controller setup.
Indicates whether the framework supports multiple databases without having to change anything.
Indicates whether the framework supports an object-record mapper, usually an implementation of ActiveRecord.
Indicates whether the framework includes other database objects, like a TableGateWay.
Indicates whether the framework has an inbuilt template engine.
Indicates whether the framework includes a caching object or some way other way of caching.
Indicates whether the framework has an inbuilt validation or filtering component.
Indicates whether the framework comes with inbuilt support for Ajax.
Indicates whether the framework has an inbuilt module for handling user authentication.
Indicates whether the framework has other modules, like an RSS feed parser, PDF module or anything else (useful).
As you can see from the chart the Symfony Project seems like a very extensive framework, and it even includes a full-blown ORM, called Propel, which is another open source project and probably one of the best ORM solutions for PHP. Symfony also includes Creole for the database abstraction layer and Mojavi for the Model-View-Controller model layer. Because it simply re-uses these other projects, instead of re-writing them, this framework probably has the most extensive functionality, and this is clearly shown in the chart.
The only two downsides to this framework is that fact that it can't be run on PHP4, but this is pretty logical considering it needs much of PHP5's new features, and that it's so complicated. Most of the tasks, like paging, are much more complicated in Symfony than in other frameworks, and simplicity definitely doesn't describe this framework.
The ZooP Framework is really feature-packed, and as the chart clearly shows, it supports almost anything, except for an ORM layer. What's even more surprising is that it runs on PHP4, which is really exceptional considering all the functionality it offers.
Another thing ZooP offers is inbuilt GUI controls, making it very easy to create forms quickly. It supports most of the basic form elements, and that advantage of using GUI controls over regular HTML is that you can tightly integrate validation logic with the GUI controls.
The Seagull framework seems like a pretty good framework, and it comes with quite a lot of features. Another positive thing is that it runs on PHP4 as well, which is a really good thing in my book, as I still use PHP4 and most web hosts don't support PHP5 yet.
Unfortunately Seagull doesn't come with any Ajax support, which is a bit of a shame, but a simple Google search returns a tutorial on adding Ajax support yourself, and it's likely it will be added in the future.
CakePHP is mostly an advanced MVC framework, with a few extra modules added on top. It can handle most of the database stuff for you, and it includes support for Ajax and data validation. It also has a unique user authentication module called 'Access Lists', which can be used to give different users access to different parts of your CakePHP website.
This framework seems quite thorough and ready for use, although the CakePHP website is extremely confusing. There doesn't seem to be a stable version yet, which is a bit surprising since it's been in development for months now, but I guess it's probably possible to use the beta version on a production website as well.
*'the CakePHP website is extremely confusing'*
Couldn't agree more. And it is still true as of 2007.01.26.
documented on: 2007.01.26
Hi to all.
I tried Zend, CakePhP 0r PhPCake ( I always get those mixed up ) and Of Course Symfony.
Winner: Symfony. Second Winner: PhPCake. Complex and Difficult to use: Zend ( even though with excellent PHP code )
My experience with PHP: 8 years of Linux, Unix, Win
My decision comes as I was looking to port a very complex, custom built application into Zend. I previously worked with Symfony and looked at PhPCake way back. After spending 2 weeks with Zend I decided it was extremely time-consuming despite being written in excellent PHP Code…I prefer a quick-to-deploy app than one that has superb PHP code and takes months.
Very complex. Don't let the "Simplicity" in the heading fool you. It is a time-drencher. It also doesnt auto-generate anything like Symfony or PhPCake do. It is like learning a new library and new ways of coding. If you have 2 months to spend on doing just that - go ahead. I have been coding for years and still had to spend a very significant amount of time to learn the "entirely rewritten" library of PHP. While Zend is excellent PHP Code - it is amazingly complex which defies the reason for learning PHP in the first place.
I was lured to Zend because of the sponsorship of the company ( Zend ) and the involvement of so many developers but at the end even that was not good enough to persuade me to stick with it.
When they introduce "generators" like with PHP Cake or Symfony and create a more "rigit" structure of the directories than I might come back.
I really like the idea of typing a command and having a lot of work being done….developing an application should be expedited by the framework and this is what Symfony does. It is actually quite simple after you get it installed and play with the code. It gives you structure to adhere to ( something good for the abstract thinkers like myself ).
Still uses PHP 4 code. This was a turn-off. But their generators are nice and the future looks pretty good. Symfony is PHPCake on stereoids ( good thing ) so I still prefer SYmfony.
If you have 2 months of your life to devote to Zend - go with Zend, but if you want speed and structure - go with Symfony / PhPCake.
If you think Symfony is difficult - it is everyone's initial feeling…once you install it and tinker with the code - it is actually pretty simple.
Thanks
documented on: 26 April 2008, mama