Hi!
I am new to RoR. I am working my way through Agile Web Dev w/ Rails in
an effort to take over as web developer for a current RoR app.
This site is currently deployed on TextDrive and is not taking
advantage of several of the more useful (IMO) advantages of Ruby on
Rails and TextDrive. Specifically, db migration, Subversion and
following the TextDrive instructions for setting up and using RoR and
Subversion.
Now, my client is talking about moving hosting over to GoDaddy.com.
They don’t have Subversion or Capistrano, but their tech support is
significantly more accessible than TextDrive.
This app does not need multiple servers and the developer team consists
of ME, so, is Subversion and Capistrano worth staying with TextDrive?
Am I completely off-base?
I have also tried to get on the IRC RoR channel, but no one ever
responds to my questions. Still haven’t figured out if I am doing
something wrong connecting or if I am being inadvertantly rude.
Thanks in advance for any advice!
Jee
Personally, I don’t use Capistrano yet. It’s something I’ve wanted to
start using, but all of my deployments are limited to one server
apiece. I sometimes use Makefiles for ad-hoc maintenance when Cap
seems like cognitive overload. I’m sure if I learned it it would be
fine, but for now I stick with what I know.
However, you would be well served to use Subversion. It has saved me
countless hours of rework and debugging. The big advantage of SVN for
small or one-person teams is not concurrency but versioning. You can
ask it things like “what code changed between yesterday at 9 PM and
now?”.
I would caution against GoDaddy. TxD has a proven track record with
RoR support, and it seems like GoDaddy is just now jumping on the
bandwagon.
As for IRC, you need to register your nick before the group can see
your posts. See below:
Now, my client is talking about moving hosting over to GoDaddy.com.
They don’t have Subversion or Capistrano, but their tech support is
significantly more accessible than TextDrive.
This app does not need multiple servers and the developer team consists
of ME, so, is Subversion and Capistrano worth staying with TextDrive?
Am I completely off-base?
Some
You absolutely NEED subsversion. No question about it. Do it. Now.
Yes, the first week will be painful, and then you’ll wonder how you ever
did anything with out it. Even if you are the only one. It doesn’t
matter. Yes yes yes.
Capistrano… not as necessary. It’s nice, but it’s not nessary. Not
like subversion…
Thanks, knowing that they are not a requirement seems like a simple
thing, but it is surprising how hard it is to find the simple things
stated plainly!
Jee
You absolutely NEED subsversion. No question about it. Do it. Now.
Yes, the first week will be painful, and then you’ll wonder how you ever
did anything with out it. Even if you are the only one. It doesn’t
matter. Yes yes yes.
Well, you need version control. Subversion is one good choice.
To the OP:
Understanding how version control works is a great skill to have.
Even if you have to spend some time reading about and setting up your
own Subversion or CVS server, it will be well worth it. Take the time
to learn both the server set-up and the way that the files are
versioned and tagged and you’ll gain a lot.
As a tool, version control is critical. I will not work without it,
even for personal projects.
Both svn and cap make life soooooooooooooooooo much easier. In fact,
without svn life is a nightmare. Cap makes the tedious process of
deployment (and probably a lot else) a cinch.
Well, looks like I plan to stay with TxD. Thanks so much for the
clarification, Brad and Phillip!
I have another question as well:
I am re-creating this site in order to really know what I am doing.
The previous developer, for whatever reasons, started with the ‘depot’
code from Agile Web Dev w/ Rails, but did not follow the guidelines
that I am learning. I suspect he just grabbed the code rather than
actually going through the tutorial. I was told he was learning RoR
too. As a result, the directory structure he set up on TxD is very
different from both TxD’s guidelines and Agile Web Dev.
I would like to start over with a clean slate, but don’t want to lose
the original app until I have it re-created. Is it possible to
download the original app and deploy it on my PC?
My initial attempt at this certainly didn’t work. I can’t seem to find
any information on how to make this work which makes me wonder if I am
trying to do something unrealistic.
Hey now. I love SVN as much as the next guy now that I’m using it, but I
went for years without it. Got a lot done, too, even cooperating with a
couple other people. And yes, I’d call myself a developer.
Erik wrote:
A developer that is unsure whether or not source code control is
necessary… Are you SURE you’re a developer?
–
Lance I.
Web Applications Developer
RBS Interactive [email protected]
Thanks, Lance!
I have been coding websites for years, but since I do all my work other
than this RoR project in notepad, I am able to take care of those issues
by hand as well.
Jee
I’ve known for years that if you didn’t have the right shoes, music,
clothes, and hair then you couldn’t be one of the cool kids. Now you
have to use subversion too? It just gets harder and harder to keep up
with.
Not necessarily Subversion… but come on, you HAVE to have source
control for even the smallest development efforts. Anyone who does
otherwise is likely to be unknowingly wasting a lot of time trying to
manage their code changes.
This forum is not affiliated to the Ruby language, Ruby on Rails framework, nor any Ruby applications discussed here.
