What are the potential pitfalls of using PHP for real-time chat functionality, and how can they be mitigated?

Potential pitfall: PHP is not inherently designed for real-time functionality, so using it for chat can result in high server load and slow performance. To mitigate this, consider using a more suitable technology like Node.js or WebSockets for real-time chat functionality.

// Example code snippet using WebSockets for real-time chat functionality
// This code requires a WebSocket server to be set up separately

// Create a new WebSocket connection
$socket = new WebSocket("ws://localhost:8080");

// Send a message to the WebSocket server
$socket->send("Hello, world!");

// Receive messages from the WebSocket server
$message = $socket->receive();
echo $message;