Getting On Board Ruby on Rails Brian Hogan and Lillian Hillis University of Wisconsin – Eau Claire

Brian Hogan and Lillian Hillis

University of Wisconsin – Eau Claire

Getting On Board Ruby On Rails Framework is two years old New way to develop web-based applications Lots of converts from other languages What's the buzz

Framework is two years old

New way to develop web-based applications

Lots of converts from other languages

Getting On Board Ruby On Rails New web-to-database systems Migrations from existing PHP, ASP, or Perl systems An alternative to non-Enterprise J2EE systems Systems in that gap between simple scripts and complex enterprise systems When to use Rails

New web-to-database systems

Migrations from existing PHP, ASP, or Perl systems

An alternative to non-Enterprise J2EE systems

Systems in that gap between simple scripts and complex enterprise systems

Getting On Board Ruby On Rails Simple scripts Non-web projects Complex systems with legacy databases Possible to do but you will lose productivity gains When NOT to use Rails

Simple scripts

Non-web projects

Complex systems with legacy databases

Possible to do but you will lose productivity gains

Getting On Board Ruby On Rails Web-based administrative systems for administrative and academic offices Housing and Residence Life Student Health Services Music and Theater Arts Continuing Education Developed by student developers New developers every couple of years Team-based approach whenever possible How UW-Eau Claire Uses It

Web-based administrative systems for administrative and academic offices

Housing and Residence Life

Student Health Services

Music and Theater Arts

Continuing Education

Developed by student developers

New developers every couple of years

Team-based approach whenever possible

Getting On Board Ruby On Rails Rapid prototyping Built-in testing Easy to maintain and upgrade Friendly user community Easy to learn, embrace and extend It’s agile! Key Benefits

Rapid prototyping

Built-in testing

Easy to maintain and upgrade

Friendly user community

Easy to learn, embrace and extend

It’s agile!

Getting On Board Ruby On Rails Who’s Using Rails Penny Arcade AListApart Gusto Shopify Strongspace Yakima-Herald Telegram Subtopic

Penny Arcade

AListApart

Gusto

Shopify

Strongspace

Yakima-Herald Telegram

Subtopic

Getting On Board Ruby On Rails Rails and the MVC Pattern Model - View - Controller Rails follows this pattern very strictly Rails adds some extra components to this pattern

Model - View - Controller

Rails follows this pattern very strictly

Rails adds some extra components to this pattern

Getting On Board Ruby On Rails Models Provide access to database tables Contain business rules Record CRUD (Create, Read, Update, Delete) An instance represents a row in a table Grade model instance => one row from ‘grades’ table

Provide access to database tables

Contain business rules

Record CRUD (Create, Read, Update, Delete)

An instance represents a row in a table

Grade model instance => one row from ‘grades’ table

Model Models also define validations and associations with other models.

Models also define validations and associations with other models.

Getting On Board Ruby On Rails Models Provided by mboffin.com

Getting On Board Ruby On Rails Controllers Handle user requests Retrieve data from models Invoke methods on models Send views and responses to users Should contain no business logic Only flow control

Handle user requests

Retrieve data from models

Invoke methods on models

Send views and responses to users

Should contain no business logic

Only flow control

Controllers Here’s a basic controller action to display a blog post The URL would be /blog/show/1

Here’s a basic controller action to display a blog post

The URL would be /blog/show/1

Getting On Board Ruby On Rails Views The user screens or web pages of your applications Should contain no business logic Should not know about models Should contain very little presentation logic whenever possible Helpers are used for this

The user screens or web pages of your applications

Should contain no business logic

Should not know about models

Should contain very little presentation logic whenever possible

Helpers are used for this

View Views are similar to PHP or ASP pages Much more powerful Partials can be used to make our work easier

Views are similar to PHP or ASP pages

Much more powerful

Partials can be used to make our work easier

Getting On Board Ruby On Rails Rails-specific MVC components Helpers Partials Layouts

Helpers

Partials

Layouts

Getting On Board Ruby On Rails Helpers Place to put presentation logic Available to Views and controllers Rails has hundreds of built-in helpers for your views Easy to make your own

Place to put presentation logic

Available to Views and controllers

Rails has hundreds of built-in helpers for your views

Easy to make your own

Getting On Board Ruby On Rails Partials Pieces of view code that can be reused Can be applied to a collection of data! Designed to be shared across multiple views Examples Form fields for Create and Update pages Search results Tables Table rows

Pieces of view code that can be reused

Can be applied to a collection of data!

Designed to be shared across multiple views

Examples

Form fields for Create and Update pages

Search results

Tables

Table rows

Getting On Board Ruby On Rails Layouts Your templates are here. Global or controller-specific No need for header and footer separation Rails reads the template last and places your application within the content region Easy for designers to create layouts without knowing Rails

Your templates are here.

Global or controller-specific

No need for header and footer separation

Rails reads the template last and places your application within the content region

Easy for designers to create layouts without knowing Rails

Layouts Your rendered view is inserted here!

Getting On Board Ruby On Rails Migrations Database-independent schema definition Incrementally define your database Makes creation and recreation easy! I’m platform-independent!

Database-independent schema definition

Incrementally define your database

Makes creation and recreation easy!

Getting On Board Ruby On Rails Scaffolding Generation of controllers and views based on model definition Not meant for production use! Needs tweaking first

Generation of controllers and views based on model definition

Not meant for production use!

Needs tweaking first

Getting On Board Ruby On Rails Demo!

Getting On Board Ruby On Rails Scalability Rails scales horizontally When load is too high, bring up another instance of the app & load balance your traffic Simple solutions for load-balancing Apache 2.2 + mod_proxy_balance Pound Pen (Easy but no SSL support) Lighttpd + mod_proxy

Rails scales horizontally

When load is too high, bring up another instance of the app & load balance your traffic

Simple solutions for load-balancing

Apache 2.2 + mod_proxy_balance

Pound

Pen (Easy but no SSL support)

Lighttpd + mod_proxy

Getting On Board Ruby On Rails Scalability (continued) Know your current requirements “ 100 users at the same time” isn’t a good benchmark Simultaneous actions don’t happen all the time Think “requests per second” Measure your existing apps and see how Rails compares. Your database is often the first scalability problem you’ll encounter in any web application Databases can be clustered

Know your current requirements

“ 100 users at the same time” isn’t a good benchmark

Simultaneous actions don’t happen all the time

Think “requests per second”

Measure your existing apps and see how Rails compares.

Your database is often the first scalability problem you’ll encounter in any web application

Databases can be clustered

Getting On Board Ruby On Rails Performance Rails performs on par with other languages Slower on Windows Limitation of compiled Ruby on Windows My tests on similar hardware 7 req/sec to 35 req/sec on Windows 30 req/second to 150 req/second on Linux Increase load by adding more “dispatchers” and load-balancing them

Rails performs on par with other languages

Slower on Windows

Limitation of compiled Ruby on Windows

My tests on similar hardware

7 req/sec to 35 req/sec on Windows

30 req/second to 150 req/second on Linux

Increase load by adding more “dispatchers” and load-balancing them

Getting On Board Ruby On Rails Deployment Linux is the best for deployment Windows is supported IIS won’t work well, if at all Simple workarounds for this exist Shared Hosting providers supporting Rails Dreamhost (Great for personal stuff) BlueHost RailsPlayground High-availability providers RailsMachine EngineYard

Linux is the best for deployment

Windows is supported

IIS won’t work well, if at all

Simple workarounds for this exist

Shared Hosting providers supporting Rails

Dreamhost (Great for personal stuff)

BlueHost

RailsPlayground

High-availability providers

RailsMachine

EngineYard

Deployment

Getting On Board Ruby On Rails Security Security is a people problem Developers must ensure security of their code and data System admins must keep their systems up to date Rails has built-in mechanisms for preventing SQL injection and XSS Rails is as secure as any other server-side language How secure is your platform underneath the web application?

Security is a people problem

Developers must ensure security of their code and data

System admins must keep their systems up to date

Rails has built-in mechanisms for preventing SQL injection and XSS

Rails is as secure as any other server-side language

How secure is your platform underneath the web application?

Choosing a Development Language MyDecisionHelper Helps you make critical decision using a patent-pending decision engine Rails application developed by a team of five Two Rails programmers, one designer, one consultant, and one market analyst, each working less than 20 hours per week Developers are new to Rails One developer made more progress in one weekend than in 3 months with .Net! What you see didn’t exist 2 months ago!

MyDecisionHelper

Helps you make critical decision using a patent-pending decision engine

Rails application developed by a team of five

Two Rails programmers, one designer, one consultant, and one market analyst, each working less than 20 hours per week

Developers are new to Rails

One developer made more progress in one weekend than in 3 months with .Net!

What you see didn’t exist 2 months ago!

Getting On Board Ruby On Rails Resources - Books Learn to Program (Chris Pine) Agile Web Development with Rails (Dave Thomas and David Heinemeier Hansson) Ruby for Rails, Ruby techniques for Rails developers (David Black) Programming Ruby (Dave Thomas) Rails Recipes (Chad Fowler)

Learn to Program (Chris Pine)

Agile Web Development with Rails (Dave Thomas and David Heinemeier Hansson)

Ruby for Rails, Ruby techniques for Rails developers (David Black)

Programming Ruby (Dave Thomas)

Rails Recipes (Chad Fowler)

Getting On Board Ruby On Rails Resources – Web Sites www.rubyonrails.org wiki.rubyonrails.com api.rubyonrails.org www.uwec.edu/webdev/ror for additional resources

www.rubyonrails.org

wiki.rubyonrails.com

api.rubyonrails.org

www.uwec.edu/webdev/ror for additional resources

Getting On Board Ruby On Rails Resources – Mailing List groups.google.com/group/rubyonrails -talk

groups.google.com/group/rubyonrails -talk

Getting On Board Ruby On Rails Resources - Other #rubyonrails on irc.freenode.org Email Brian any time [email_address] [email_address] Contact Brian any time after the presentation

#rubyonrails on irc.freenode.org

Email Brian any time

[email_address]

[email_address]

Contact Brian any time after the presentation

Getting On Board Ruby On Rails Thanks for coming!

Getting On Board Ruby on Rails Brian Hogan [email_address] Lillian Hillis [email_address]

Brian Hogan

[email_address]