WampServer

In between the successful installation of Wampserver and the start to use it there are some settings that any user must / should consider.
Many (new) users are no doubt not aware of them and (if they are) how to handle them? I am one of those that lack knowledge.

The necessary information may be available at odd places around on the internet. Some new users will never find them others will eventually find them when it is too late.

To minimize this risk I suggest that a new section ("Settings: After installation / before use" ) is inserted in the allready indispensable [wampserver.aviatechno.net] dashboard.

I am aware of four settings (there may be more):

1 MySQL storage engine

2 MySQL charahcter sets and collation

3 phpMyAdmin browser

4 phpMyAdmin / MySQL password

Re MySQL storage engine:
Since MySQL 5.5 the recommended storage engine has been "InnoDB" for most users. My MySQL 5.7.21 was downloaded a few days ago with "MyISAM" as storage engine.
Which basic settings do I have to set in My.ini to switch to InnoDB??
Is this enough??
;default-storage-engine=MYISAM
default-storage-engine=InnoDB

Re MySQL charahcter sets and collation:
MySQL is installed with "latin1_swedish_c1". Fine enough, but most users will need another local charachter set to cater for their needs.
Which basic settings do I have to set where to switch to the language / collation that I want for my individual use of MySQL??

Re: phpMyAdmin browser:
During installation users can select a browser to use for phpMyAdmin. MS-Explorer is the default.
Which string do i have to insert (c://.....exe. or whatever) to select another browser??
Which data do I have to enter to select MS-Edge as my browser??
Where / how can I change the browser if need should be later??

Re phpMyAdmin / MySQL password:
phpMyAdmin / MySQL is installed with blank password. Fine enough, but it is wery unsafe to use MySQL without a password.
Where can I insert the password, that I want to protect my Databases??

Hi,

After installation, there is a document that outlines the use of Wampserver:
wamp/instructions_for_use.pdf

It is not part of my role to be a teacher. Users of any server (Wamp, Xamp, EasyPHP, IIS and others) should be aware that when installing a server (a web server, a database server, PHP language and SQL queries), they are taking on different roles:

- Network administrator
- Web server administrator
- Database Administrator
- Developer
- Analyst
- Programmer.
- etc.

All the necessary documentation exists (Apache, PHP, MySQL, MariaDB, PhpMyAdmin, etc.) and is even indicated by links in Wampserver.
It is the users' responsibility to consult these documents and to learn, try and correct them according to these documents.

Our parents spent hours and hours teaching us to go to the potty when we were in our infancy, because knowing how to use the toilet is an essential skill in society.
Our teachers have spent months and years teaching us to read, write and count.
In secondary school, we spent many months learning one or more foreign languages.
By majority, even after hours of accompanied driving, it took at least twenty hours of training to "know" how to drive a car.
I spent four years of apprenticeship before practicing my profession, then five years at the Conservatoire National des Arts et Métiers (National Conservatory of Arts and Crafts) to perfect my knowledge and skills.
Nevertheless, popular belief would have us all be computer wizards at a stroke of a magic wand.
As long as we do not firmly explain that computing (yes, it is very general but...) is like reading, writing, counting, like a language or a culture: you have to learn and practice for a long time to "use" it correctly, everyone will think they are a computer scientist from the moment they use Facebook, Twitter, Youtube, Google, and at 2% of the possibilities, Word, Excel or Powerpoint.

The popular belief is also that everything should arrive immediately, ready, without any effort.
Well NO, you have to make an effort and spend time learning. If users don't want to do it, it's their problem, but in no way it's mine.

One last tip: "default-storage-engine=MYISAM" in my.ini does not mean that you are not allowed to create tables with the InnoDB engine.

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