> Would I use PHP if I was starting out today? Unlikely, but I know PHP inside out and can wield it to my wicked ends with ease so won't be dropping it anytime soon.
So just out of curiosity, if you hypothetically did start learning web development today from scratch, what would you spend time learning instead of PHP?
When I started I struggled with browser inconsistencies. Over the years Javascript has come a long way and whilst I'm not 100% sold on node.js, I like the idea of using the same language across front and backend so likely would have gone down that road.
If after 20 years of PHP experience you arrived at "not 100% sold on node.js" as your most likely alternative, that to me more than anything else signals a strong, ongoing vote for PHP :)
There is plenty to dislike about javascript but modern versions are really quite nice. We're about to ship our first node backend having been largely a django shop up until now. There is loads to miss about django and python, but it is so nice to not have the context switching between languages and paradigms. It may not be for everyone, but if you're doing modern web, I think the starting point has become javascript everywhere, and then moving away from that on a use-case basis.
Piggybacking to say that if you're just starting out, I'd recommend choosing _anything_, as in, your choice of programming language ecosystem is ancillary to learning the broader technologies and patterns common to web applications. Know somebody who knows PHP you can bug? Use PHP. Find the idea of writing Python exciting? Use Python. Really like the tutorial / book you found for Ruby? Use Ruby. It doesn't matter.
So just out of curiosity, if you hypothetically did start learning web development today from scratch, what would you spend time learning instead of PHP?