Question

I am trying to implement a realtime chat application using PHP . Is it possible to do it without using a persistent data storage like database or file . Basically what I need is a mediator written in PHP who

1. accepts messages from client browsers
2. Broadcasts the message to other clients
3. Forgets the message

Answer 1

You will want to use Sockets. This article will cover exactly what you want to do: http://devzone.zend.com/209/writing-socket-servers-in-php/