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Rails and Node and Client-Side MVC Oh My

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Re: Rails and Node and Client-Side MVC Oh My

#11

Post by [deleted] »

scubasteve wrote: post #10
xaritas wrote: post #6

Writing web apps involves wrangling a lot of warty technologies. If you try to grapple with them all simultaneously, it's going to feel like a quagmire. You should try to limit the number of unknowns and leverage the thing you know, Python, in order to start getting some positive reinforcement from success as soon as possible. So do the Django tutorial: https://docs.djangoproject.com/en/dev/intro/tutorial01/ Then exp…

Thanks for the feedback. I do agree that Django will probably be the best way to get into web app development. I do have some Ruby experience, so I might go back and tackle Sinatra first then Rails. But you make a very good point. The first time I looked at the Django project docs they didn't seem very friendly, but I think with the extra time I have now this might not be such a bad idea.

[deleted]

Re: Rails and Node and Client-Side MVC Oh My

#13

Post by scubasteve »

gdi2290 wrote: post #12

go to hackreactor.com

I would absolutely love to try out hackreactor.com or devbootcamp. The problem is moving and leaving my job, which is something I'm not willing to do right now. I am taking a look at bloc.io, but I want to try the book route again before I drop $5k.

Re: Rails and Node and Client-Side MVC Oh My

#14

Post by hkarthik »

scubasteve wrote: post #5
hkarthik wrote: post #4

My suggestion would be to go with Sinatra over Rails initially. You could potentially go with Node/Express instead, but picking up async javascript simultaneously may be a bit of a burden. Actually if you know Python, Flask may be the best place to start. Picking up a heavyweight framework like Rails while simultaneously trying to understand web development is probably going to be very overwhelming. I'd only recommen…

This is fantastic advice. I've never thought about looking into Sinatra first. I'll definitely be checking out resources for this. Anything you'd recommend before I start my search?

It maybe a bit outdated, but you can check out the net tuts tutorial here: http://net.tutsplus.com/tutorials/ruby/singing-with-sinatra/

To understand Sinatra, it's best to start with understanding Rack. Railscasts Pro has a good video on it. http://railscasts.com/episodes/317-rack-app-from-scratch

Re: Rails and Node and Client-Side MVC Oh My

#15

Post by scubasteve »

kohanz wrote: post #8
scubasteve wrote: post #3

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Thanks for the response! I think one of the best lines of advice I've seen online was on Quora: "The language and technologies you learn are not the most important bit when it comes to becoming a programmer. When friends ask me whether they should learn Ruby or Python I respond by asking "Which language do more of your friends know?"" I think that's what keeps bringing me back to Rails, the support around it. I have…

I was very impressed with Hartl's tutorial. Having tried many tutorials (for other technologies in the past), his was one of the best-written and most engaging. The fact that I completed it, including all the extra assignments, is a testament to how engaging it really is. I can't say I've had a mentor yet, other than StackOverflow and random blog postings. I still consider myself a Rails n00b, but building a function…

I'm completely okay with moving from where I am to "complete n00b" :). I've always heard great things about Hartl's book, just never had the chance to sit through and keep going through it more than 1 chapter a week. Did you go through all the videos as well? Did you tackle TDD and git along the way?

Re: Rails and Node and Client-Side MVC Oh My

#16

Post by scubasteve »

hkarthik wrote: post #14
scubasteve wrote: post #5

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is fantastic advice. I've never thought about looking into Sinatra first. I'll definitely be checking out resources for this. Anything you'd recommend before I start my search?

It maybe a bit outdated, but you can check out the net tuts tutorial here: http://net.tutsplus.com/tutorials/ruby/singing-with-sinatra/ To understand Sinatra, it's best to start with understanding Rack. Railscasts Pro has a good video on it. http://railscasts.com/episodes/317-rack-app-from-scratch

Looks like a good time to join railscasts. Might have to look into Padrino now. Thanks for the info. From a quick search, I couldn't find anything more recent than 2 years old for Sinatra, so net tuts might have to do. Thanks again.

Re: Rails and Node and Client-Side MVC Oh My

#17

Post by jayrobin »

scubasteve wrote: post #9
jayrobin wrote: post #7

I was in a sort of similar position a few months back and did the EDX.org Software as a Service course with the end goal of learning Rails. I was able to complete the set work and pass with a good grade, but Rails never really clicked for me (I think partially because Ruby felt so different to what I was used to). I put it to the side for a while, then recently decided to try again. This time I spent a little time ge…

I think that's the biggest key, to implement what you learn. I think now I have a good idea of smaller projects I want to work on, with a bigger project in mind. This was a great motivator. I never felt like I could finish a small app after chapter 3. I'll definitely have to go back and think through it this time around. Thanks!

When I say a 'basic, one-page app' I just mean a controller serving static content (i.e. not even any models), which is the main topic of Hartl ch3. The point was really to try creating anything from scratch - starting with a newly generated rails project, creating the controller, setting up the routes, developing the page, all the way to actually deploying it on Heroku. It may not be pretty and it may be just a single page, but it was a fantastic feeling to actually build something of my own from nothing in Rails and see it live.

Re: Rails and Node and Client-Side MVC Oh My

#18

Post by kohanz »

scubasteve wrote: post #15
kohanz wrote: post #8

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I was very impressed with Hartl's tutorial. Having tried many tutorials (for other technologies in the past), his was one of the best-written and most engaging. The fact that I completed it, including all the extra assignments, is a testament to how engaging it really is. I can't say I've had a mentor yet, other than StackOverflow and random blog postings. I still consider myself a Rails n00b, but building a function…

I'm completely okay with moving from where I am to "complete n00b" :). I've always heard great things about Hartl's book, just never had the chance to sit through and keep going through it more than 1 chapter a week. Did you go through all the videos as well? Did you tackle TDD and git along the way?

I only did the online version of the "book", so I don't know if we're talking about the same thing. I wasn't aware of there being videos, so no, I haven't seen those, but I have viewed numerous Railscasts since completing Hartl's initial introduction and those are invaluable too.

During the tutorial, I faithfully followed almost everything presented, including the extra work (e.g. using Postgres instead of MySQL so that the dev environment matches production more closely). This included TDD and Git. Git has been fairly painless because I have used Mercurial before and they are quite similar.

With my side project, that I started right after completing the tutorial, I initially used TDD extensively, for the basics of the model, but once the foundation was laid, I can't say that I have kept my test coverage up. I assume my story is not uncommon in that respect.

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