ok let me tell you wat i know . HTML is in which all the layout and styling (actually css) are done . PHP is a server side scripting language ie , it does the processing (in server) of data input and gives output ., database is a mechanism for managing data easily (in tables) .. Php and database can be used together to make webpages in html more powerful . Suppose you want to create a login system : you can get login details from user through a form in html page compare it with data available in database and login user if necessary match found (the comparison of data is done with php scripting). This is a simple example how php , database , html can be brought together to make powerful websites and webpages . And its 100% possible to create forums,chat ,& more with php mysql , html . Am a newbie and Tats what i know so far , hope tis would help . Meanwhile pls checkout tis www.itfolks.tk