Comments on: Is Ruby on Rails only for the “smart people”?

By: Jon Kruger

Jon Kruger — Fri, 06 Aug 2010 17:33:23 +0000

I know people have their preferences and what they’re good at. I don’t think that’s being irresponsible. Plus, Ruby can’t do everything that .NET can (e.g. thick client apps). Maybe there’s something else out there that makes you more productive.

I think my point is if there is something out there that might make me that much more productive, I’m almost obligated as a professional developer to really consider it, regardless of my preferences or experience.

By: mgroves

mgroves — Fri, 06 Aug 2010 17:16:32 +0000

What if I’ve tried it out a little bit, recognize its strengths and weaknesses, and I just don’t feel comfortable using it? Does that mean I’m doing something wrong?

By: Tim

Tim — Thu, 05 Aug 2010 19:35:16 +0000

Currently reading “The Passionate Programmer” by Chad Fowler. My favorite line in the book so far…

“You don’t win a race by setting out not to lose.”

By: RoR for the Smart People, Mongo 1.6 Released… « Just Another Geek

RoR for the Smart People, Mongo 1.6 Released… « Just Another Geek — Thu, 05 Aug 2010 17:21:27 +0000

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By: Dan Martin

Dan Martin — Thu, 05 Aug 2010 16:48:34 +0000

I agree with everything Andy said. Also, I don’t know if there really has to be too much time invested to learn new things. There are enough well written books, blog posts, etc to get you up and running pretty quickly on new technologies.

By: Andy Vulhop

Andy Vulhop — Thu, 05 Aug 2010 15:19:54 +0000

Great post, but one minor mistake:

Now if you want to see a productivity hit, take any developer and have him do WebForms.

There, I fixed it for you. ;-)

On a serious note, I think you hit the nail on the head. Yes, it’s going to be harder to learn something new than to keep plodding along with your normal 9-5 grind. This much is obvious. However, you will be a better professional if you continue to better yourself.

Imagine a doctor telling his peers he refuses to learn any new techniques because they are too hard. I don’t know about you, but I won’t let that guy listen to my cough, let alone take care of me when I’m in serious need.