How to run php programs on local computer - SOLVED

[joe at actionline.com]

Thanks again to Brian, Matt, and everyone else who helped me.
Finally have apache and php working on my local system.

# /etc/init.d/apache2 start .. worked
# apachectl start ............ also worked
$ a2enmod php5 ............... also worked with this result:
"Module php5 already enabled"

Also found 'dpkg' equivalents to rpm -q tools here:
- - http://inai.de/linux/adm_pack.php ... including:

$ dpkg-query -W | grep php
libapache2-mod-php5     5.3.10-1ubuntu3.6
php5-cli        	5.3.10-1ubuntu3.6
php5-common     	5.3.10-1ubuntu3.6

$ dpkg-query -W | grep libapache2
libapache2-mod-php5     5.3.10-1ubuntu3.6

----------
>> Is it possible to run php without apache?
>> If so, how can I do that?

Brian replied:
> Technically yes, but they would essentially be shell scripts.
> If you are running software that you were previously sending
> over to a host to be served up, you will definitely need to
> install a web server.

Matt replied:
> Run your distro's equivalent of "rpm -qa | grep php"?
> That only works for Redhat-derived things, and won't work for Mint.