Hello Ruby on Rails – Learning to Love Rails

Scaling to the top…

It was like a first date.

We sat at a table sipping our coffee. As the conversation progressed naturally I experienced all kinds of “aha” moments. With each one I found myself liking Ruby on Rails more than I had to begin with.

There was the moment I realized that I didn’t have to create my app from scratch. A simple one line terminal command could create the entire app skeleton.

Then there was the moment I realized that controllers and methods were also a matter of one terminal command.

Sure, the app isn’t going to literally take my thoughts and implement them, at least not yet. However the knowledge that a lot of the functionality that I would have to build is already there… makes me feel fuzzy inside.

Learning Ruby The Hard Way

A number of weeks ago I wrote a post about how we were learning Ruby on Rails “the hard way.” Basically we learned how a lot of the behind the scenes stuff works, Rails now does a lot of that preliminary stuff “automagically.”

I still stand by my original thoughts in that post a few weeks ago. I really believe that we (the entire class) are better off for having learned how things work before having them “just work” for us.

Because of this background information, we are better situated to trouble shoot little nagging problems that come up based on how the “behind the scenes stuff” works.

A Second Date With Ruby on Rails

The cool thing is that for the remainder of my time here at The Iron Yard, we will be working pretty much exclusively with Rails.

Why is that cool? Because it’s like a second date. Matter of fact its like all of the subsequent dates that slowly build the foundation of a relationship.

With each new app we build, we will get to know more and more about the ins and outs of Rails. Not only how it works but why it works as well.

Thinking About Personal Projects

One thing I’ve been thinking about some is what kind of app I would like to build “on the side.”

I’ve always used WordPress for my personal projects. I’ll definitely keep that up. However I really want to build something personal and potentially profitable with Rails.

Maybe now is to soon to be thinking long term. In fact I’m sure it is. But at least a part of why I originally decided to choose to attend The Iron Yard, was to learn how to build apps that could be part of some personal business model.

Here are a few reasons why I really want to start working on a personal project.

One of the biggest reasons is that it “will matter.” So far the apps we have been building are quite simple. For learning purposes that’s really helpful. It allows us to create one app one day, make a few changes to it over the next few days and then create a new app that does something different.

Another reason that I want to work on a personal project is that it will be something I am personally invested in. If the success of what I am building is going to reflect on me… well, the stakes are a bit higher. That’s not to say that I am not invested in what I am learning on a daily basis, the things I am learning and building here are things I am invested in… because if I don’t learn them here, well my future doesn’t look terribly bright in the Ruby on Rails development world.

But for now I’m focused on what I’m learning. Any kinds of personal projects are just thoughts and ideas right now. Thoughts and ideas that I will continue to think and maybe scratching some notes down about…

The End of All Things Rails

One thing I am quite certain of. By the end of this class the world better watch out as we (the class) unleash our collective wisdom about app building using Ruby on Rails on the world around us. [And no, I don’t mean because we will be introducing errors to every project we work on.]

The reason I say that is this…

… as I continue to learn and grow in my Ruby on Rails knowledge, I get to watch a bunch of other talented people do the same. The things that we are creating right now, the things that we are doing with the knowledge we already have… Well, lets just say that its really interesting to look through the github accounts of my fellow students. They are doing some really interest things!