If I had three wishes for new features in Ruby in Steel that aren't currently on its road map, they would be refactoring support, better test integration than the current simple front end for "rake," and support for TextMate-compatible bundles.
A visual overview of Ruby In Steel is available here. You may also watch 10 short screencasts right here.
Aptana RadRails 1.0
When I reviewed RadRails 0.7 in 2006, I said that "all serious Rails developers should consider it for their toolkits." At the time, RadRails lacked debugging and refactoring capabilities. I'm happy to say that its refactoring is now excellent. In addition, its debugging is now sufficient for the purpose, thanks to the ruby-debug-ide gem.
My biggest gripe about RadRails in 2006 was the lack of documentation, which has since been remedied. In addition to a combined help file for RadRails and Aptana Studio, Aptana offers a number of videos, and a book by an independent author has just been published about using RadRails, titled AptanaRadRails: An IDE for Rails Development.
A full table of Aptana RadRails features is available. I would take the comparison columns that list NetBeans and 3rdRail features in this table with a grain of salt; a quick check found several features incorrectly listed as missing in NetBeans and 3rdRail. I don't think the table was current when I viewed it.
The two major RadRails features that are turned on in the Professional edition are profiling and JSON editing. Other features of the Professional edition include FTPS and SFTP access to remote sites, Internet Explorer JavaScript debugging, early access to new builds, and priority support.
I encountered two minor problems with Aptana RadRails 1.0. First, it still doesn't have a visible soft word-wrap display option, which is a general Eclipse issue. Second, it generates .RHTML files for new views on Rails 2 projects that should have .HTML.ERB files.
The second problem will be addressed in a future update to RadRails, according to Aptana. The word-wrap problem has a work-around, in the form of an Eclipse Monkey script.
I was initially concerned when the free open source RadRails project became part of Aptana. In fact, Aptana RadRails is a stronger product than RadRails could have become by itself. The combination of RadRails' Ruby and Rails support and Aptana's JavaScript support into two compatible Eclipse views makes Aptana RadRails a strong choice for people developing AJAX applications on Rails.
On the other hand, if you need any of the Professional features of Aptana RadRails and find the modest license cost a problem, you might want to look at NetBeans as a completely free alternative.
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Computerworld Live Podcast #97: The Future of Enterprise Networking 25/07/2008 09:45:36
This week CW Live chats with Mark Thompson, global sales and marketing manager for HP ProCurve, on the future of the enterprise networking. Mark discusses the trends we can expect to see in the near future and how the right infrastructure can ensure your enterprise network is secure. - +
Computerworld Live Podcast #96: Security at the Edge 11/06/2008 09:22:22
CW Live speaks with Amol Mitra, HP ProCurve Director of Marketing for Asia Pacific and Japan. Today's topic: how enterprises are starting to shift away from simply controlling security via server logins, firewalls and moving to more adaptive security frameworks. - +
Data Management Edition #10: Multi-Petascale Systems 02/05/2008 09:12:33
This week we look at sustainability and the development of multicore technologies to build multi-petascale systems. - +
IT Security Edition #11: How to poison the Storm botnet 01/05/2008 08:51:55
This week CW Live presents a case study on how to poison the notorious Storm botnet . Plus we take a look at Cisco's plans for Ironport. - +
IT Security Edition #10: Cyber-battles fought and won 24/04/2008 11:09:47
Vendors bow to end user pressure to improve product security, and we take a look at the latest concepts shaping the cyber-battlefield of the future.
Sterling Commerce Speeds Long-Distance Delivery of Large Files 2008-12-03 09:28:00+11
FrontRange Solutions launches HEAT Plus Mobile to reduce help desk costs and improve service management productivity 2008-12-02 15:15:00+11
AARNet Helps to Advance Indigenous Health 2008-12-02 12:44:00+11
Orbis selects Telstra International as its data centre partner for the UK, Europe and Middle East Region 2008-12-02 11:23:00+11
ComOps Deploys Corporate Performance Reporting Solution For Healthcare Test Manufacturer 2008-12-02 10:09:00+11
How to improve employee productivity in small and medium businesses
U.S. businesses lose 5.4 billion productive hours through employees searching for information annually. Avoid the same inefficiencies occurring in your business. Read on to discover the productivity issues facing SMBs and how the Oracle Application Express (APEX) can improve employee productivity and enhance development efficiencies.
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