Product Description

Rails is a full-stack, open source web framework that enables you to create full-featured, sophisticated web-based applications, but with a twist... A full Rails application probably has less total code than the XML you'd need to configure the same application in other frameworks. With this book you'll learn how to use ActiveRecord to connect business objects and database tables. No more painful object-relational mapping. Just create your business objects and let Rails do the rest. You'll learn how to use the Action Pack framework to route incoming requests and render pages using easy-to-write templates and components. See how to exploit the Rails service frameworks to send emails, implement web services, and create dynamic, user-centric web-pages using built-in Javascript and Ajax support. There are extensive chapters on testing, deployment, and scaling. You'll see how easy it is to install Rails using your web server of choice (such as Apache or lighttpd) or using its own included web server. You'll be writing applications that work with your favorite database (MySQL, Oracle, Postgres, and more) in no time at all. You'll create a complete online store application in the extended tutorial section, so you'll see how a full Rails application is developed---iteratively and rapidly. Rails strives to honor the Pragmatic Programmer's "DRY Principle" by avoiding the extra work of configuration files and code annotations. You can develop in real-time: make a change, and watch it work immediately. Forget XML. Everything in Rails, from templates to control flow to business logic, is written in Ruby, the language of choice for programmers who like to get the job done well (and leave work on time for a change). Rails is the framework of choice for the new generation of Web 2.0 developers. Agile Web Development with Rails is the book for that generation, written by Dave Thomas (Pragmatic Programmer and author of Programming Ruby) and David Heinemeier Hansson, who created Rails.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #348110 in Books
• Published on: 2005-06-15
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 558 pages

Review
"It's early days for the language so it's no surprise there's only a handful of books out there. Yet it's hard to see why you would need anything more than Agile Web Development with Rails. Programming books, in particular, rarely seem to answer queries straight away, but this one tackles the myths surrounding Rails straight off, and in plain English. But don't panic, it's not a Dummies guide - it will teach you how to use Rails to eliminate tedious web app configuration and, crucially, how to integrate it into AJAX." .NET, December 2005

From the Publisher
Join the revolution. See how easy it is use Rails: the new full-stack, open-source web framework. Rails enables you to create full-featured, sophisticated web-based applications with less total code than the XML you'd need to configure the same application in other frameworks.

About the Author
Dave Thomas and Andy Hunt have more than 50 years combined experience, developing software for clients around the world. For the last 10 years they've been working together as The Pragmatic Programmers, helping clients write software and improve their development processes. They are authors of the best-selling The Pragmatic Programmer, and have written several other books. They speak at conferences globally, and are editors of IEEE Software's "Construction" column. Mike Clarkis a consultant, author, speaker, and programmer. He is the author of Pragmatic Project Automation (The Pragmatic Bookshelf, 2004), editor of PragmaticAutomation.com, a frequent speaker at software development conferences, and the creator of several popular open source tools. Mike helps teams build better software faster through his company, Clarkware Consulting.

Customer Reviews

Rails is changing the industry
If you're a good Rails developer with experience, you won't lack for work nowadays (I am looking for people all the time it seems). This book has everything you need to become a good Rails developer. The experience bit is left as a reader exercise.

The cute thing about this book is how it was developed. A few months ago it was released in a "beta" PDF form and sold to early adopters. The beta readers sent back lots of corrections, suggestions, and so forth.. and, wow, the book has undergone radical changes. It's precise, it's correct, and it's totally "canon" on the standards of developing in Ruby on Rails. It ought to be though, the developer of Rails is a co-author!

I'm not going to go into what Rails is, or even what it does, as you shouldn't be here unless you know. If you need more information, go to the official Rails site which goes into it all in detail. But, this book is ace. You will not be wasting your money here if you want to be involved in the next massive thing in Web development. Put down your PHP books, and get involved in the exciting world of Rails.. your bank manager will thank you.

Great - but buy version 2
Books on programming are often poor, using pointless examples and making unrealistic assumptions about your familiarity with the environment you're working in. This book is different. You work through the book developing a very satisfying, fully-featured application in a short time in such a way that you learn all that's important about using RoR in an agile manner.

If you run into a problem then the publisher's site has a comments/errata board and very comprehensive downloadable examples of the solution you're trying to develop at every stage. I've not tested it but I'm sure the authors would respond personally if you needed them to.

However, RoR is fast-moving. The second edition is in beta and it's very good indeed, making more use of things like Rake database migration and Ajax. I'd wait for that (or buy the beta now) if I were you.

Then you can review it yourself and give it six stars.

Truely the definitive and complete guide to Rails.
Great read, excellently written, even covering the more advanced topics very efficiently and clearly. This book IS the bible for rails, look no further.