If you have messed with the Google Maps API, you know that the JavaScript and API keys can be a real headache. Yes, there are very complex implementations that you can use, but what if you want…just a map? If you want just a map with no dynamic interface, Google Static Maps is just for you. I will show how easy it is to use, and then spice it up with some PHP-powered enhancements.

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  • Parse ZFP (Zone Forecast Product) Data in PHP – Option 1

    In a previous article, I covered 5 Sources of Free Weather Data for your Site, but did not provide any actual code to use the data. Since then, I covered sources #1 and #2. None of these sources had any English-formed forecasts. For that, we have to go to the Zone Forecast [...]

    Published: March 3rd, 2010 by: Andrew
  • Merge Image Layers in PHP

    In a previous article, I showed how to Locate the Nearest Radar Station and Display Radar Images. A commenter, mike, pointed out the idea of merging the image layers using PHP instead of layering all the images separately using CSS. Here is how to do it.

    Published: July 17th, 2009 by: Andrew
  • Loading INI Files in PHP

    PHP parses the php.ini file for the global PHP settings, but you can create an INI file that is specific to your own PHP application. You can also load those settings into as associate array with a native PHP function. How cool is that?

    Published: April 14th, 2009 by: Andrew
  • Separating the Application & Presentation and Alternative Syntax

    One of the biggest pet peeves I have when looking at (and unfortunately – working with) other people’s PHP code is the way they integrate their code into the HTML. Many people don’t take the time to organize, and they end up with a PHP & HTML mess. I believe that it is [...]

    Published: March 18th, 2009 by: Andrew
  • Working with AJAX

    AJAX is all over the internet today, and though completely unnecessary, a website with it can function much more quickly. Data can be transferred to and from users efficiently, but a major drawback is the extra code needed and some security issues inherent. Nevertheless, for certain applications, AJAX is great to know and [...]

    Published: March 5th, 2009 by: Kurtis

Most Popular

  • Run CodeIgniter from the Command Line / SSH

    CodeIgniter has quickly become my favorite framework to use when coding applications in PHP. CodeIgniter makes it way too easy to follow the MVC approach, maintain modulated code, and to also have access to several additional helpers and libraries. But, there was one major flaw: The inability to easily access via the [...]

    Published: December 1st, 2008 by: Andrew
  • Parse Weather Forecast Data (from the NDFD) in PHP

    In a previous article, I covered 5 Sources of Free Weather Data for your Site, but did not provide any actual code to use the data. Starting with this article, I will post instructions on how to handle this data as well as sample code. For this article, we will start with the [...]

    Published: February 19th, 2009 by: Andrew
  • More Examples with Parsing NDFD Data in PHP

    I covered how to Parse Weather Forecast Data (from the NDFD) in PHP in a previous article, but due to the amount of questions I received, I decided to show some more usage techniques and examples. In this article, I will cover the time-series option as well as some methods on how to make [...]

    Published: March 3rd, 2009 by: Andrew
  • Locate the Nearest Radar Station and Display Radar Images

    Including up-to-date radar images on your website is easier than you might think. In this article, I am going to share where you can get radar images for free for US radar sites and even share some sample code that will fetch the closest radar site by lat/lon and display it on your website. Using [...]

    Published: January 2nd, 2009 by: Andrew
  • Sort Posts by Comment Count in Wordpress

    I use this technique to show the most popular posts on our homepage, and although this isn’t a core feature in Wordpress, it’s not all that hard to do. All it takes is a little PHP and a single edit to one of your Wordpress template files. I decided not to use a plugin because [...]

    Published: January 20th, 2009 by: Andrew