Web development is a fast-growing and increasingly popular field. When thinking about building an application, the question of the best technology to use in that case always comes up. You want to be able to quickly turn your ideas into working software. You look for something that will make the development process smooth and efficient. My recommendation is Ruby on Rails.
Ruby on Rails (RoR) is a web application framework written in the Ruby programming language. Its innovative approach strongly influenced web development. Since its release in 2004, it has been used to build hundreds of thousands of applications, such as the immensely popular Basecamp, GitHub, Shopify, Airbnb, SoundCloud or Zendesk.
Ruby on Rails is based on the model-view-controller (MVC) design pattern. It provides default structures for a database, a web server and views. Choosing RoR equips you with everything you need to build a fully functional application.
What I think differentiates Ruby on Rails from other languages is its design philosophy, which makes rapid development a reality. Furthermore, it has a mature framework, so the codebase is stable and offers proper tooling for easier development and maintenance. Finally, RoR has a strong community promoting collaboration and knowledge sharing.
A crucial part of Ruby on Rails design philosophy is convention over configuration. It aims to limit decisions a developer has to make by defining sets of conventions. These conventions serve as guidelines for developers, showing them the best way to approach many aspects of web development. This design paradigm helps to optimize programming work. It eliminates boilerplate code and makes setting up a new Rails application fast and easy. What is more, it increases productivity and efficiency as the developers can focus on what is important – application logic and delivering quality features.
Developing web applications is all about addressing constantly evolving user needs. It requires prototyping and sometimes pivoting, so the ability to adjust quickly is key. The challenge lies not only in the pace – the quality of delivered software is also important. Rails gives you access to many tools for easier changes and maintenance.
Ruby on Rails promotes the use of web standards, good engineering practices and design patterns. It can be easily integrated with frontend frameworks. It has an agnostic database and provides background processing. Another important aspect is testing. It plays a big role in writing reliable software. Ruby developers utilize advanced testing techniques, like mocking and stubbing. They are strong advocates of Test-Driven Development and Behavior-Driven Development.
Ruby on Rails community is strong and supportive. The internet is full of learning resources and local groups of users foster collaboration. Developers eagerly share their knowledge and help each other.
What is more, there are a lot of gems (libraries) available. They address common problems you may face when developing an application (for example, authentication or authorization). RoR community properly maintains them, provides enhancements and documentation.
As you can see, Ruby has many advantages that make this technology worth implementing in many software projects, especially those related to web apps development. I was involved in a number of RoR projects and I can ensure you that it simply works. And the clients are happy with the end results!
Read more:
- E- commerce: New state of the game 2020 (report)
- 5 reasons why you will find qualified Ruby developers in Poland
