PHP, or hypertext preprocessor, is an open-source server-side scripting language. It’s extremely popular, too — almost 80% of all websites were using PHP as of October 2018. The major reason for its wide popularity is that it is actually an open source programming language that means it is free to use. It supports MS SQL, MySQL and Oracle databases without any sort of trouble.

A PHP framework provides a basic structure for streamlining the development of web apps. We use them because they speed up the development process. In our last year edition, we already mentioned the top PHP trends but technology always has something new or different to offer. Apart from Laravel, CodeIgniter, Yii, Zend, Cake PHP and Symfony which are as popular as anything can be in the PHP world here are a few PHP trends to look out for this coming year.

Phalcon

A full-stack PHP framework that employs the MVC web architecture design pattern, Phalcon was originally written in C and C++ and released in 2012. Since it’s delivered as a C-extension, you don’t have to worry about learning the C programming language. Phalcon is easy to install and suitable for creating highly configurable web applications that are in line with enterprise development guidelines. Key features include increased execution speed, asset management, a universal autoloader, and top security and caching. Unlike other frameworks, Phalcon optimizes performance due to its efficient memory utilization. If you’re looking to create a blazing fast website, give Phalcon a try. On the negative side, Phalcon developers are a bit slow to patch bugs, which may not jive with today’s need for high levels of security.

FuelPHP

FuelPHP is a flexible, full-stack PHP framework first released in 2011. Apart from supporting the MVC design pattern, it has its own version called the hierarchical model view controller (HMVC). With HMVC, unlike with MVC, content doesn’t need to duplicate to show on multiple pages. As a result, it consumes less time and memory. FuelPHP helps developers deliver end-to-end web solutions that are diverse in size and complexities. Key features include HMVC implementation, RESTful implementation, a URL routing system, vulnerability protection, and a caching system. It extends its security approach beyond ordinary security measures, making it a great option if security is crucial for your project. Because FuelPHP is relatively new, it offers less support and may present a steeper learning curve.

PHPixie

Introduced in 2012 and just like FuelPHP, PHPixie implements the HMVC design pattern. Its goal was to create a high-performance framework for read-only websites. It’s easy to get started with PHPixie, which is suitable for social networking websites, customized web applications, and web app development services.

Key features include HMVC architecture, standard ORM (object-relational mapping), input validation, authorization capabilities, authentication, and caching. PHPixie is built using independent components. For this reason, you can use it without the framework itself. Note that PHPixie has relatively few modules. Besides that, it lacks support for components independently made from the dependencies. Since it’s relatively new, it’s less popular and has a smaller community of users than other frameworks.

Slim

Slim   is another popular PHP micro-framework that helps developers quickly create simple but powerful web applications and APIs. Just like PHPixie, Slim is easy to learn. PHP developers use Slim to develop RESTful APIs and web services. Key features include URL routing, session, and cookie encryption, client-side HTTP caching, and more.  It’s the best framework for a small web application that doesn’t necessarily require a full-stack PHP framework. In addition, active maintenance and friendly documentation make Slim super user-friendly.

Fat free

Just as the name suggests, Fat free is free of fats. This is one of the most popular and trending PHP micro frameworks that comes with a number of packages. It comes with features, such as data validation, CSS compression, unit testing, image processing, Open ID and others. It supports both SQL and NoSQL databases, supporting the development of web apps with ease.

Aura

It is a set of decoupling libraries that can be used for developing basic apps. These self-contained libraries can be easily integrated with any projects and the best part of these libraries is that they have no dependencies. All the libraries are flexible, compliant and well documented.

PHP programming language helps you to develop web applications that are complex, reliable and faster. Based on your business requirements, hosting plans, experience level, app needs, and development timeframes, although there are a large variety of PHP frameworks to choose from it is important to have a clear understanding of what actually your business needs on the basis of the latest PHP trends.

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Why Netflix Broke Itself: Was It Success Rewritten Through Platform Engineering?

By : Sampada

Published on Nov 13, 2024

App development Platform Engineering

Let’s take a trip back in time—2008. Netflix was nothing like the media juggernaut it is today. Back then, they were a DVD-rental-by-mail service trying to go digital. But here’s the kicker: they hit a major pitfall. The internet was booming, and people were binge-watching shows like never before, but Netflix’s infrastructure couldn’t handle the load. Their single, massive system—what techies call a “monolith”—was creaking under pressure. Slow load times and buffering wheels plagued the experience, a nightmare for any platform or app development company trying to scale

That’s when Netflix decided to do something wild—they broke their monolith into smaller pieces. It was microservices, the tech equivalent of turning one giant pizza into bite-sized slices. Instead of one colossal system doing everything from streaming to recommendations, each piece of Netflix’s architecture became a specialist—one service handled streaming, another handled recommendations, another managed user data, and so on.

But microservices alone weren’t enough. What if one slice of pizza burns? Would the rest of the meal be ruined? Netflix wasn’t about to let a burnt crust take down the whole operation. That’s when they introduced the Circuit Breaker Pattern—just like a home electrical circuit that prevents a total blackout when one fuse blows. Their famous Hystrix tool allowed services to fail without taking down the entire platform.

Fast-forward to today: Netflix isn’t just serving you movie marathons, it’s a digital powerhouse, an icon in platform engineering; it’s deploying new code thousands of times per day without breaking a sweat. They handle 208 million subscribers streaming over 1 billion hours of content every week. Trends in Platform engineering transformed Netflix into an application dev platform with self-service capabilities, supporting app developers and fostering a culture of continuous deployment.

Did Netflix bring order to chaos?

Netflix didn’t just solve its own problem. They blazed the trail for a movement: platform engineering. Now, every company wants a piece of that action. What Netflix did was essentially build an internal platform that developers could innovate without dealing with infrastructure headaches, a dream scenario for any application developer or app development company seeking seamless workflows.

And it’s not just for the big players like Netflix anymore. Across industries, companies are using platform engineering to create Internal Developer Platforms (IDPs)—one-stop shops for mobile application developers to create, test, and deploy apps without waiting on traditional IT. According to Gartner, 80% of organizations will adopt platform engineering by 2025 because it makes everything faster and more efficient, a game-changer for any mobile app developer or development software firm.

All anybody has to do is to make sure the tools are actually connected and working together. To make the most of it. That’s where modern trends like self-service platforms and composable architectures come in. You build, you scale, you innovate.achieving what mobile app dev and web-based development needs And all without breaking a sweat.

Is Mantra Labs Redefining Platform Engineering?

We didn’t just learn from Netflix’s playbook; we’re writing our own chapters in platform engineering. One example of this? Our work with one of India’s leading private-sector general insurance companies.

Their existing DevOps system was like Netflix’s old monolith: complex, clunky, and slowing them down. Multiple teams, diverse workflows, and a lack of standardization were crippling their ability to innovate. Worse yet, they were stuck in a ticket-driven approach, which led to reactive fixes rather than proactive growth. Observability gaps meant they were often solving the wrong problems, without any real insight into what was happening under the hood.

That’s where Mantra Labs stepped in. Mantra Labs brought in the pillars of platform engineering:

Standardization: We unified their workflows, creating a single source of truth for teams across the board.

Customization: Our tailored platform engineering approach addressed the unique demands of their various application development teams.

Traceability: With better observability tools, they could now track their workflows, giving them real-time insights into system health and potential bottlenecks—an essential feature for web and app development and agile software development.

We didn’t just slap a band-aid on the problem; we overhauled their entire infrastructure. By centralizing infrastructure management and removing the ticket-driven chaos, we gave them a self-service platform—where teams could deploy new code without waiting in line. The results? Faster workflows, better adoption of tools, and an infrastructure ready for future growth.

But we didn’t stop there. We solved the critical observability gaps—providing real-time data that helped the insurance giant avoid potential pitfalls before they happened. With our approach, they no longer had to “hope” that things would go right. They could see it happening in real-time which is a major advantage in cross-platform mobile application development and cloud-based web hosting.

The Future of Platform Engineering: What’s Next?

As we look forward, platform engineering will continue to drive innovation, enabling companies to build scalable, resilient systems that adapt to future challenges—whether it’s AI-driven automation or self-healing platforms.

If you’re ready to make the leap into platform engineering, Mantra Labs is here to guide you. Whether you’re aiming for smoother workflows, enhanced observability, or scalable infrastructure, we’ve got the tools and expertise to get you there.

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