Ruby - a gem of a language - has lately been taking the programming world by storm. If you're a techie, you've probably at least heard of it, perhaps due to Rails, or perhaps due to the rantings of a Java programmer with an inferiority complex. However you've encountered it, it would behoove you to learn about it, because it really does put the fun back in to programming, and happy programmers make for more and better code.
Ruby has actually been around for quite awhile - I first encountered it 5 years ago, and have been hooked ever since. In the intervening years, I've built up quite a set of resources for the language, and hopefully I can help point you at the good stuff.
Getting Ruby
Want to give Ruby a spin? Here's how to get some.
- For Windows
- Here you'll find a link to the one-click Ruby installer for Windows - it's a cinch to grab it, click it, and get coding.
- For (Generic) Unix
- This is the download page on the main Ruby site where you can grab that universal distribution medium - the tarball. configure/make and get going!
- For OS X
- This is how I personally get Ruby - MacPorts is an excellent package management system for OS X, and is great not just for installing Ruby, but also for all your open-source software needs on OS X.
Once you have MacPorts installed, getting ruby is as simple as `sudo port install ruby`. Try it, you'll like it!
Learning Ruby
Now you've got it - what does it do? These resources get you up and running in no time.
- Programming Ruby, 1st Edition
- "Programming Ruby: The Pragmatic Programmer's Guide" is the book that introduced Ruby to the English-speaking world. While it's highly recommended that you buy a copy of the 2nd edition (see the link below), this is a free online version of the 1st edition, which will set you well on your way to enjoying Ruby.
A bit of trivia: Programming Ruby is known as "The Pickaxe" in the Ruby community because of the pickaxe picture on the front of the print edition. - Learn To Program Using Ruby
- Don't know how to program? Check out Chris Pine's most excellent tutorial that uses Ruby to walk you through from knowing nothing to being able to make the computer do your bidding.
Chris has turned this online tutorial in to an excellent book under the Pragmatic Bookshelf imprint - see below! - Ruby Mailing Lists
- You're getting started, so you're sure to have questions. One of the best things about the Ruby community is its incredible helpfulness - we've occasionally been criticized for being too nice to trolls! Here you'll find instructions for signing up for the various Ruby mailing lists - ruby-talk is what I'd suggest for beginners. It's a bit like drinking from a fire hose - a threaded mail reader is a must - but it's extremely insightful, all questions are welcome, and matz himself (the creator of Ruby) regularly posts.
- Ruby Forum
- If mailing lists aren't your thing, and web forums are more your style, you should check out the Ruby Forum. This spiffy piece of technology has a two-way link with the main Ruby mailing lists, so you can follow all the conversations in Ruby-land right from your web browser, and anything you post will get in front of even those of us Ruby fans who eschew web forum interfaces.
- The Poignant Guide to Ruby
- You just have to see this one for yourself. Highly recommended!
Ruby's Godfather
When I first got in to Ruby, Dave Thomas was one of the top posters on ruby-talk. These days he's too busy publishing books about using Ruby to contribute much to ruby-talk, but we don't mind. I call him the Godfather of Ruby because the book he co-authored with Andy Hunt, "Programming Ruby", is single-handedly responsible for most everyone outside of Japan learning about and falling in love with Ruby.
Fetching RSS feed... please stand byRuby Books on Amazon
Here's the best of the Ruby books currently available - buy them all!
Programming Ruby: The Pragmatic Programmers' Guide, Second Edition
Avg. Customer Rating: 
Amazon Price: $29.67 (as of 12/11/2009) 
Learn to Program (Pragmatic Programmers)
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Amazon Price: $14.96 (as of 12/11/2009)
Agile Web Development with Rails: A Pragmatic Guide (Pragmatic Programmers)
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Amazon Price: (as of 12/11/2009)
Mind Bender - _why on Ruby
_why is Ruby's resident mad genius - you just have to read him to understand (see the Poignant Guide above, for example). Redhanded is his blog that brings use all kinds of wacky and wild Ruby happenings right in to our living rooms. Best shut the blinds - if the neighbors find out, who knows what they'll say?
Fetching RSS feed... please stand byRuby Reference
Once you've got the basics of Ruby down, you'll want some reference, and that's exactly what we have here - both online references, and how to use some of the off-line ones.
- ruby-doc.org
- ruby-doc is the place for all of your Ruby documentation needs - do have a look around. My personal favorite is this next link:
- Standard Library Documentation
- I use this link constantly - it provides docs for the standard Ruby library, generated right from the code to guarantee freshness. Do look around - you might just discover a cool library. It's hard not to!
- Using ri
- ri is extremely handy, especially when you're alone with your laptop in that cafe with the flaky wi-fi, and you'd like to lookup reference material. Fire up a command line, and away you go!
Getting Ruby - Part 2
You've got Ruby installed, you've learned a bit about it, and you're ready to get cranking. But wait - there's more! One of the best parts of using Ruby is the superb set of libraries available for it. Here's how to hook find and install them.
- The Ruby Application Archive
- The RAA is one of the main locations for finding the libraries and applications available for and written in Ruby.
- Ruby Forge
- The RAA is just a listing - it doesn't provide hosting for Ruby projects. That's Ruby Forge's role, and it does a great job at it. One function of that is that it's also a great place to find and download cool new Ruby projects.
- Get RubyGems
- RubyGems is the de facto Ruby package installation and management facility. If you're using the Windows one-click installer, it should already be installed. If not, download this package, run setup.rb, and manually downloading and installing Ruby libraries will be (mostly) a thing of the past. To learn how to use RubyGems, check out:
- The RubyGems User Guide
- Everything you need to know to get RubyGems doing your bidding.
Digging Deeper
Now you have a good grasp on the basics - where to go from here?
- RubyGarden
- RubyGarden is the Ruby community's wiki - please feel free to both read and contribute! Oh, and don't miss the RubyFun page.
- Ruby Code & Style
- Artima hosts this Ruby 'zine - look here to find great articles vetted by some of the top names in the Ruby world.
- Ruby Weekly News
- ruby-talk generates too much traffic for you, eh? Well, check out Ruby Weekly News, a most excellent resource put together by Tim Sutherland. It summarizes ruby-talk traffic in to a weekly batch of insightful quotes, new releases and funny quotes. Thanks Tim!
A Word from your Host
Ruby isn't just a language for me - it's a passion. I hope this lens helps you catch some of my passion, and perhaps discover your own in this little gem of a language.I'd love any feedback you have on the lens - just drop me an email at nathaniel@talbott.ws.
Also be on the lookout for some more Ruby-related lenses... I hear there's this popular thing called Rails that might be lense worthy...
by ntalbott
Entrepeneur, programmer, Ruby hacker, father, Christian. Email me at nathaniel@talbott.ws. You can find my occasional musings on my blog. (more)
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