Marcus Muller wrote: > Not trolling here, but genuinely trying to figure out what to use for a > project I'd like to create. I'm very new to programming (some intro > classes at university) and am debating between learning asp.net versus > ruby on rails to create the project.
Unless you use Mono, ASP.NET locks you into Windows. That's a huge strike against it right there -- Windows is not a suitable platform for serious server-side development in the 21st century. > > I'd very much prefer to learn ruby, Then do! Ruby is a fantastically well designed language, and Rails is an equally well designed application framework. > but it seems like the asp.net IDE is > better for someone new to web programming like myself. Don't choose a language based only on IDE. Rails is not well suited to conventional IDEs, since it's deliberately designed for ease of use and minimal configuration (I just use KomodoEdit and a bunch of terminal windows). I'd almost go so far as to say that if a framework *needs* an IDE, something is wrong with the design of the framework. > The ability to > use a wysiwyg design view in visual studio is a big plus to me since I > don't know how to seriously code pages, buttons, drop downs, tree menus, > and other stuff. Hold it. Stop right there. If you don't know HTML, you have no business coding Web applications yet. Learn HTML well before you even *think* about doing any server-side programming. > Sure, I could learn this given some time, but I > actually have limited time and would prefer not to attack all of this > from the ground up. Sorry, it doesn't work that way. The Web is built with HTML. If you're going to work on the Web, you have to be completely comfortable creating HTML code. If you rely on a pretty drag-and-drop interface builder without understanding the HTML it is generating for you, you will wind up with bad HTML -- computers are just not smart enough to do it for you. > > I tried loading textmate and, while I appreciate how great it would be > if I knew what I was doing, there seems to be less "hand-holding" for > someone like myself. I was pretty daunted by the big blank page in the > middle! Welcome to creative work of any sort. (I'm a composer as well as a programmer. The big blank page of staff paper is still daunting after 30 years of composition.) > My first impression of Visual studio was that it seems to > provide more support and have more tools I can use like properties > dialogs, the wysiwyg design view, etc. Don't rely on stuff like that. They should be tools (to help with things you already understand, but that are tedious), not crutches (to prevent you from having to think or learn). > There was just more I could > immediately relate to as opposed to textmate. > > I assume I'm missing something here and am looking for help. Is there a > good integrated IDE that allows me to code RoR and also do wysiwyg > design to cut corners on the web design aspects of things? Well, you can use any WYSIWYG HTML editor you like. But only do that once your HTML is good enough that you are absolutely *sure* that you understand the HTML being generated. *Do not* rely on automatic tools to save you from learning -- they won't. If you use them without understanding what is being automated, you will simply wind up in a heap of trouble without really understanding how you got there or what to do to get out. Please don't choose a language based on the presence of idiot-proof IDEs and cute WYSIWYG editors. Those aren't the things that will matter after 3 months of learning. Language design, however, will be with you every step of the way -- that's what you should be looking at. > > Thanks in advance. > > msm Best, -- Marnen Laibow-Koser http://www.marnen.org [email protected] -- Posted via http://www.ruby-forum.com/. --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Ruby on Rails: Talk" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/rubyonrails-talk?hl=en -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
