So far I've coded two example/just-for-fun server side apps: one, in PHP, would rely on Apache for handling multiple simultaneous requests, and the other, in Java Standard Edition -using sockets-, could only interact with one client at a time, and if I wanted more, I should implement threading (I didn't - too lazy).
Now I want to get involved in a more serious project. This API lets me choose either PHP or Java Enterprise Edition, which I have never used. It seems to require to install and configure an actual server before running anything.
So do you have to implement concurrency yourself for your J2EE program or that's what Glassfish/etc do? Am I doing a wrong assumption if I say 'you don't have to implement request/response threading in PHP'?
ps - English is not my first language. If there's any particularly ambiguous statement please tell me.
from a developer point of view, you must understand concurrency. But in general you do not have to deal with it in an explicit way. The apache php module and the Java EE application server provide concurrent requests for you.
But: If you never implemented a Java EE application before, don't do it in a 'customer' project without other Java EE-skilled colleagues. The learning curve is far too steep. If it is for yourself to learn sth. I would recommend using Java EE.
So if you have a tight timeline and a customer in your neck, start with php. For small projects there may be more drawbacks in a Java EE application.