I am trying to test some code locally and I need help getting a local mail server to test my PHP code that uses the mail();. If you know how to do this I would really appreciate the help! Thanks!

I want to run PHP on my computer, mostly just so I can test it and learn it in a hands-on way. I’m not planning on turning my computer into a server; I just need the practice so I can pursue web development as a career.

I will be getting my own dedicated server soon and while I have a functional knowledge of the concepts of Linux, I don’t know everything. Will my server be reasonably secure if I am sure to keep everything updated and patched (assume there are no PHP scripts vulnerable to SQL injection etc.)

I mean i want to turn my computer to a server, so i can run .php files easily. I can do that for .asp files but i don’t know anything for .php files.

Are there better server side languages than php, and which is easiest to learn?