iTechGuides is reader-supported. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Learn more
Web development did not move in a straight line from PHP to jQuery to React. The tools address different parts of an application: PHP runs on the server, jQuery helped developers work with browser-side JavaScript, and React organizes user interfaces into components. Their histories show changing ways to build web experiences—not a universal sequence in which each tool made the previous one obsolete.
What changed—and what did not
Early dynamic sites commonly relied on server-side code to generate pages and interact with data. As browsers became more capable, JavaScript libraries such as jQuery made it easier to select and update elements in the page. React later introduced a component-based approach in which the interface is described in terms of data and React updates what is displayed as that data changes.
These are different architectural layers, not three versions of the same tool. PHP can generate HTML on a server; jQuery can add browser behavior to a page; React can render an interface in a browser or on a server. A project can combine server-generated pages with JavaScript interactivity, and React can be added to only part of an existing page.
What’s actually slowing this PC down?
Pick the symptom - the matching free tool is one click away.
| Technology | Primary role | Historical marker |
|---|---|---|
| PHP | Server-side language for dynamic web development, including work with databases. | Started as CGI scripts in 1994; PHP 3.0 was announced in 1998. |
| jQuery | JavaScript library associated with browser-side development. | Announced in January 2006; its first stable 1.0 release followed in August 2006. |
| React | Library for composing user interfaces from components. | Open-sourced in May 2013. |
How PHP grew from scripts into a broader language
The PHP manual traces the project’s beginnings to 1994, when Rasmus Lerdorf created CGI binaries to track visits to his online resume. In June 1995, he released the source for PHP Tools, allowing others to use and contribute to it. The project then grew beyond that original purpose.
#1 Best Overall
Andi Gutmans and Zeev Suraski began a rewrite in 1997, and PHP 3.0 was announced in June 1998 as the successor to PHP/FI 2.0. Subsequent releases brought major engine and language changes: PHP 4, released in May 2000, was based on the Zend Engine and included HTTP sessions; PHP 5, released in July 2004, introduced the Zend Engine 2.0 and a new object model. PHP 7 followed in 2015 with Zend Engine 3.0, and PHP 8.0 arrived in 2020 with features including named arguments and union types.
This timeline is a reason not to reduce PHP to an old page-templating technique. The language continued to evolve through substantial engine and language updates. The dates mark project milestones; they do not, on their own, establish how widely a version or feature was adopted. PHP’s official history provides the release details.
Rank #2
- HTML CSS Design and Build Web Sites
- Comes with secure packaging
- It can be a gift option
Why jQuery mattered in the browser
jQuery’s official history dates its public announcement to January 14, 2006, and records the first stable 1.0 release on August 26 of that year. Its early timeline emphasizes JavaScript selectors, reflecting a practical browser-side concern: finding elements in a page and working with them through JavaScript.
That role differed from PHP’s. PHP could produce a page on the server; jQuery could operate on the page in a visitor’s browser. A site could therefore use both: server code to deliver content and browser-side JavaScript to respond to user actions. The project timeline records releases and related work, but it does not establish that jQuery disappeared or provide a present-day usage comparison. See the jQuery project history.
Rank #3
What React changed about building interfaces
React was open-sourced on May 29, 2013, according to its official versions page. Its central organizing idea is the component: an interface is composed from units that receive data, and React updates the displayed UI when that data changes. Rather than treating each interaction only as a sequence of direct changes to individual page elements, developers can describe the UI in terms of the data and state it should reflect. React’s documentation describes the library and its component model.
This is a change in how interface code is structured, not a replacement for every server-side responsibility. React does not, by itself, turn the server-side work PHP performs into a browser interface library. Nor does its arrival mean every modern site must be a client-only single-page application.
Rank #4
- Brand: Wiley
- Set of 2 Volumes
- A handy two-book set that uniquely combines related technologies Highly visual format and accessible language makes these books highly effective learning tools Perfect for beginning web designers and front-end developers
Why modern React is not limited to client-only apps
React’s browser APIs include createRoot, which renders components into a browser DOM node. Its client documentation also describes hydration: connecting React to HTML that has already been rendered so the page can become interactive. React’s server APIs can render components to HTML as well.
Do these 3 things before closing this tab:
1Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitches2Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errors3Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteThose options make the old shorthand—server pages first, then fully client-rendered apps—too simple. An application can deliver server-rendered HTML and use React on the client for interactivity; React can also power separate portions of a page instead of taking over the whole site. The appropriate approach depends on the application, rather than on a rule that one rendering model replaced another. See React’s documentation for createRoot, client APIs, and server APIs.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.How to read the timeline without turning it into a replacement story
- PHP addressed server-side application work. Its history runs from CGI beginnings to successive engine generations and language features.
- jQuery addressed browser-side JavaScript work. Its 2006 launch belongs to a different layer from PHP’s server-side role.
- React organized UI code around components and changing data. Its rendering APIs span the browser and server.
- The dates are milestones, not proof of a handoff. They do not show that each tool caused the next architectural shift or that one became universally dominant.
No comparable current adoption figures for PHP, jQuery, and React are established by these project histories and documentation pages. Historical PHP usage estimates should not be treated as current numbers or used as a cross-tool market comparison.
Quick Recap
Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon at the time of purchase will apply.
