The first thing that interests me is that they claim to have some contribution by Google and Microsoft. Of course, this sounds great, and I think it is something that is necessary for a framework to survive. But, could it also be a threat? Is CakePHP a less commercial framework and more open? I can do with CakePHP whatever I want. There are lots of great components and I can easily integrate or write other solutions. Zend framework 1.5 has support for OpenID and LDAP and supports APIs of YouTube, Flickr and Amazon. From their Press release:
* Forms – Zend Framework now supports forms, including Ajax usage patterns that make building and using web-based forms much easier.
* Layout and view – Layout support and view enhancements make it easier than ever to implement a consistent look and feel throughout PHP applications and save developers time by keeping web application views componentized.
* LDAP authentication – Zend Framework now comes with enterprise-ready authentication through support for LDAP technology.
* Lucene search engine – Now it is possible to implement advanced queries using wildcards, date ranges, and fuzzy searches from within a Zend Framework application.
* Extended Ajax support – Zend Framework’s server-side support for Ajax with action helpers to automate Ajax detection and responses now make programming using JavaScript & PHP much easier.
* UTF-8 character sets in Adobe PDF creation – Zend Framework’s PDF support has been enhanced to enable non-Latin character sets such as Kanji, Cyrillic, and many others.
* Google GData web services – Significant enhancements to Google Data services now make it easier than ever to build web applications that leverage the Google application network. New in Zend Framework 1.5 is support for upload and write capabilities to Google YouTube.
I think we will see a new kind of war, like we had in the past with our browsers. Now, CakePHP and Zend will both try to innovate (or copy) and get the largest market share. Maybe, some others will get into this war too, but these two will be mainstream. I think this will result in better frameworks which will be ready for Web 3.0. They are not right now, but I predict and their future improvements will focus on Web 3.0 stuff to make the Semantic Web reachable for Web developers like me.
Follow Zend framework and CakePHP on Google Trends (blue is CakePHP, red is Zend Framework):
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CakePHP has one major advantage: You can use Zend Framework components in a CakePHP application.
BeantwoordenVerwijderenHey, didn't know that, but you got a point. 1-0 :)
BeantwoordenVerwijderenFunny, I just answered a post the other day that I think is very relevant to this discussion: http://coding-aloud.blogspot.com/2008/03/how-zendframework-is-losing-wrong-war.html
BeantwoordenVerwijderenFirst off, I have to admit that I don't like the overuse of the word "war" to characterize anything that isn't, well, war. Secondly, we at Zend don't really see Cake as competition, per se. We think that Cake is great, and certainly it has a different strategy for taking on web dev problems than we do. Ultimately, I think there is room for both ZF and Cake in what is now a colossal PHP community. Choices are great, and the only aspect of 'competition' that I hope applies to the relationship between Cake and ZF is that we can learn from each and feel some motivation for making each product as good and up-to-date as it can be.
As far as the Semantic Web goes, I'm a fan. It's a matter of resources at Zend, and that's not entirely my call, but I'll try addressing SW technologies with the help of our community.
As for using Cake with ZF. Awesome! I love to hear about cases where people are using ZF with other frameworks. That's the whole reason we went with a use-at-will architecture expressed in components. If you guys know of a site that is using both, I'd love to hear about it. It might make for a good case study.
In any case, best of luck with whatever framework you're using! :)
,Wil
@wil,
BeantwoordenVerwijderenThanks for your reaction. I also read the article you mentioned, and your reaction overthere. Things are becoming more and more clear right now, and my opinion about the war is changing. Also with the point that Richard made.
I am already working on an article that will combine the power of CakePHP with Zend in a few minutes.
@Richard@Home:
BeantwoordenVerwijderenZend Framework has one major advantage: You can use Zend Framework components in ANY application.
Your competitor's agility is -not- to your advantage.
@all
Comparing Cake and Zend frameworks is a bit like comparing apples and oranges, as they say. CakePHP is a monolithic, all-or-nothing, do-as-I-say-and-nobody-gets-hurt kind of framework, while Zend is more of a diverse, use-at-will component library. I prefer the freedom of Zend's library approach, and others prefer the simplicity of being told what to do. It's all personal preference.
As Wil alluded to, Cake and Zend aren't exactly driving at the same goal. They may fill the same need at some point, but not in the same way. I use and study both frameworks, anyway.
Happy coding =)