Ajax: Creating Web Pages with Asynchronous JavaScript and XML

Chapter 13. Traveling with Ruby on Rails

Mention the subject of Ajax, and within five minutes somebody will bring up Ruby on Rails. Just as with Ajax, Ruby on Rails has become a winning phrase in corporate buzzword bingo. It is kind of sad that both topics have been relegated to buzzwords, with managers wielding them interchangeably, like they’re some kind of weapons. Unfortunately, managers are just as likely to hurt themselves as somebody else, which just goes to show that it is a good idea to know what the tools are before attempting to use them.

In this chapter, we cover some of the history of Ruby on Rails, followed by what it is and how to install it on a system running Windows XP. From there, we examine how to start developing, using Ruby ...