A few years ago, some people felt Ruby was no longer a relevant language to learn and implement. This was due to its age (the language is more than 14 years old), its scalability issues and web apps developed with Ruby on Rails (Rails) framework being slow. However, this is no longer the case and the language is even maturing and being updated over time to address current market needs.
Ruby is a programming language that is easy to learn and implement. It is a procedural and functional development language. It was designed to combine scripting with object-oriented programming from its inception. Rails is a Ruby framework that excels in web app development. It is recommended for companies who want to extend their web presence or leverage web apps for customers. Ruby development outsourcing companies offer an easy way to do this today.
Why Choose a Scripting, Compiled Language to Begin With?
What makes Ruby stand out as a language is the fact it can easily be written through a script, but at the same time it can be used as a compiled language for other tasks. Scripting languages tend to be written in plain text with no compiler required, thus they are generally referred to as interpreted. Compiled languages need a compiler that tests the machine code before runtime. By combining these almost opposite programming methodologies, Ruby can truly be used in a multipurpose way.
Ruby by itself is often referred to as a scripting language because it can be used to create scripts or scripted programs that do specific tasks like system administration. However, it can also be used for standalone apps alongside compilers. This coding flexibility makes Ruby a great language to learn or use within a company’s software database. The Ruby on Rails framework works best for web apps.
Web apps created in Rails would generally not just be scripting tasks. However, individual Ruby programs doing small or specific tasks related to system administration, for instance, can be run as scripts.
The real reason to use Ruby and the Rails framework for web development is related to its ease of use and flexibility.
How Ruby on Rails Excels in Today’s Web Development
Ruby on Rails is particularly well suited for creating web apps and for web development because it simplifies repetitive tasks. It provides developers a structure for their code. The framework also encourages collaboration with other developers on projects and within the Rails community as a whole. It truly offers a flexible approach to development.
There is a vast collection of code available for any developer getting started with Rails. It is open source and offers a rapid application development (RAD) approach to coding because it can rapidly accommodate changes.
There are two different methodologies defining Ruby on Rails development: convention over configuration and RESTful application design.
The former refers to programmers not having to configure files before set-up as Rails comes with its own conventions. The latter refers to the software architecture having a strong focus on a client-server configuration. This encourages a logical structure and applications that can be configured as APIs.
Web development has to be flexible and quick to implement as web apps are often updated or revised to suit the clients’ needs. With Rails, this is possible.
Effective Collaboration & Self Documentation
Ruby on Rails comes with the perk of offering a good way for developers to collaborate on projects. The code is both readable and self-documented, thus one developer can read recent changes that another developer had made and follow that structure. There is less need to document changes in ongoing development.
Another one of Rail’s perks for collaborative development and good productivity is that it has been designed with testing in mind. Thus, Rail’s approach to testing is that it offers a skeletal testing code as developers work on apps. Such testing is useful to make sure changes adhere to the overall functionality and design of the app as well as to simulate browser requests.
Conclusion
For anyone that wants to leverage web apps within a relatively quick output time, Rails is very relevant today and will be for the foreseeable future. It is an open-source Ruby framework that will continue to grow with its community. It is particularly useful for larger teams due to its collaborative and self-documenting nature. To top this off, it offers an easy and flexible way to implement changes in code making it particularly well suited to the ever-changing nature of web development.
Some things to keep in mind, however, is that apps may not compete in speed to those coded in Java or C, without additional work or support (like the use of JRuby). Some hosts may not even support Rails-developed web apps. However, for the majority of tasks, Rails excels and can even speed up development and there is a wide range of web hosting services available. Overall, Rails comes highly recommended and should be included within any modern development portfolio.
