What is the easiest way to practise using PHP and mySQL?

[xumeng12]

I want to start using PHP and mySQL to help me with my work. Does anyone know if and how I can set up somewhere locally on my computer or something where i can test my pages and database as if it were live on a web server?
Thanks

[djlebarron]

http://www.webdevforums.com/showthread.php?30165-Setting-up-a-Local-(WAMP)-Web-Server
If you are using a Mac:
http://www.mamp.info/en/index.html
If you are running a Linux system, here's a link that might lead you to what you need. It also lists some of the choices available for Windows and Mac.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_AMP_packages
You can also install all of the components (Apache, MySQL, PHP, phpMyAdmin) separately and then configure them to work together, but it can be a pain compared to the bundled packages. Been there.