More discussion:

What's New in PHP 8.5

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=45989469

I still view PHP as the best tool for the job for modern sites that do not need fancy javascript.

Faster and more secure than Python, impossibly easier to use for web than Go, Perl or Rust [even among those that know how], much more secure, easier to compartmentalize, faster and more reliable than JS (node et al).

It is just so easy and straightforward to get useful stuff done, and done quite well.

Especially as a lot of the stuff we used to need JS for can now be shifted into CSS (for better or worse).

But the marketing around PHP stinks, and it's hard for me to find young excited programmers to join the team.

Not sure what needs to be done to turn this ship around.