Benefits Of Ruby On Rails Application Development

Ruby on rails has been one of the tops most popular and advanced server-side web frameworks for a few years.

But still, some investors ask why we suggest Ruby on rails to develop their web application since all other frameworks and languages are available.

And obviously, they do not have any clue about it, it’s sure.

When you think a bit about it, it does seem there right is to ask as he/she the person who is investing to build the object and is going to use it as well.

So before I embark on the discussion of the benefits of using Ruby on Rails, let me explain first what Ruby on Rails actually is.

What is Ruby on Rails:

Ruby is a dynamic; fully object-oriented scripting language created back in 1995. Using HTML, JavaScript, and CSS developers can build an architecturally clean, and high-quality web application.

During the building of Basecamp in 2005, David Heinemeier Hansson (DHH) envisioned a controlling library over the Ruby programming language, thus originating the rails framework.

Later he made it extensible and flexible and uprooted with the open-source market.

And the framework was further improved and makes the breakthrough for web application development.

The Key principle of RoR development is “Convention over Configuration”.

It means the developer does not need to spend much time to configure the files in order to set up where are Rails comes with a set of convection that helps to speed up the development process.

From the management point of view, Ruby on rails community supports an iterative development method knows as Agile Development.

This Method encourages a collaborative and flexible approach which well appropriate for the web app development with fast-changing necessities.

Ruby on Rails Latest VersionsSource: Rubygems[.]org

Over the years Ruby on Rails has been upgrading its version (Currently: 6.0.0.beta3 – March 13, 2019) and gained a huge following.

I think this is enough for the introduction. Now Let’s see the advantages of using this framework on web application development.

Advantages of using RoR:

The RoR framework follows the 3 major designing ethics which endorse the simplicity in building a complex system.

  • MVC (Model View Controller) Architecture
  • Conventions over Configurations Model
  • DRY (Don’t Repeat Yourself)

Along with, other benefits of ruby on rails are:

Simplicity:

With simple and readable syntax helps ruby programmers to execute more in less code. So, both developers and investors can view each development and quick learning progresses on the project.

The framework has the inbuilt solutions to the variety of problems that a web developer commonly faced. In case of any customized function that you need to employ, there is a gem available in the RubyGems.

If not, still the developer can find an expert from the Ruby community who can come up with the solution.

The set rules and prototypes of RoR facilitate further web application development. So, the developer does not need to waste his/her time on searching the appropriate structure for the application.

Faster development:

The experts quote Ruby on Rails minimize 20-40% website development time as compared to the other popular frameworks.

And it can be made possible due to the object-oriented nature of Ruby such as the bend code base, modular design, wide-ranging open-source code developed by the Rails community, and a wide range of pre-built plugin solutions for feature development.

Also, the developer can access the various pre-built modules which can take standard and non-standard components from a “garage’ and integrate them into the product.

The same components can be reused as well.

Moreover, the framework offers an option of integrated testing in the process of the coding which saves both time and efforts of the developer.

Easy to maintain and update:

Well, RoR is known for its predictability and stability. The programmer can modify or change the existing codes and can add new functionality with ease.

It means, if you want to upgrade your existing application, the rails convection will help to make it possible in lesser time without any complexity. This is more valuable for bigger projects.  

Also, the substitution of the development team would not be an issue if you use RoR for your application.

Cost-effective:

For investors, Ruby on Rails is the perfect saving prospects. As I already have mentioned above, the development process is up to 20-40% lesser developed under the Ruby platform. As a result, it will cut your cost.

As it is an open-source platform, it can be used by any individual or corporation. And supports open-source Linux and many free web servers. So, you do not need to buy any license.

And seeing as the entire development procedure and code updates are executed faster, investors lean to spend fewer budgets on the development of their web applications.

Quality product:

By the help of high-quality libraries, the developer built a hassle-free web application instead of writing boilerplate code each time.

It leads to concentrate on determining the application development and building a better product for you.

Same time, RoR also endorses testing automation, which helps to deliver better-performing software.

Being friendly to web designers in terms of structuring, RoR also facilitates web apps and sites more appealing.

Fit to every Industry:

From the years, the community of Ruby has been focusing on web development.

However, the use of RoR for various purposes has grown like e-commerce, content management system, mobile application backend, Fintech, market place social networks, etc.

Industries are using RoR platform.Source: Valuecoders Image

While the framework is flexible and can easily configure to any form of business and products, the demand for use of RoR has also has been increased among business owners. You might be thinking about how you can hire a Ruby on Rail developer and how much it may cost.

Industries can use these benefits at most:

Ruby on Rails is the best option to choose for the long term and dynamic projects. If you plan to build a general-purpose app or you need a business-critical solution, Ruby programming is the better option for you too.

Here I have mentioned some other industries that can get the most benefit out of Ruby on Rails:

  •     Social Media and Networking
  •     Beauty & Fashion Website Design
  •     Blogs & Widgets
  •     eCommerce Application Development
  •     Real Estate
  •     Healthcare
  •     Sports & Fitness
  •     Retail
  •     CRM

Conclusion

The overall conclusion is, it is excellent over time and performance which can absorb the changes, easy to collaborate, and can produce the best quality product for you.

As a web development company, Andolasoft has been working on Ruby on Rails framework from the last 11+ years and more than 250+ Rails projects have been delivered successfully.

Want to build your application on Ruby on Rail?Let’s Discuss!

4 Simple Steps To Implement “Delayed Job” In Rails

Here in this article, I going to tell you the best way to implement “delayed job” in rails

“delayed_job” is a ruby gem used to execute tasks as a background process in Rails environment, increasing page rendering speed.

Delayed::Job (or DJ) allows you to move jobs into the background for asynchronous processing.

Why you need a background process and is it really that important!

Let’s consider a scenario where a mailing application needs to send emails to a huge list of recipients. In such cases it is obvious that the processing time is too long, annoying the users.

Here are some of key points to consider:

  • Incredibly quick & easy to get rolling
  • No addition to your “stack”, runs just fine with Active Record
  • Good choice for beginners while migrating code from foreground to the background

Hence, it’s only wise to move the long running tasks as a background process by using “delayed_job” gem.

Detailed steps to integrate delayed job in a Rails application

Step# 1

  • Add gem to the Gemfile
  • “delayed_job” supports multiple back-ends for storing the job queue
  • To use “delayed_job” with Active Record, use gem ‘delayed_job_active_record’
  • To use “delayed_job” with Mongoid, use gem ‘delayed_job_mongoid’

Example

/Gemfile.rb

  • gem ‘delayed_job_active_record’, ‘4.0.3’
  • Run “bundle install” to install the “delayed_job” gem

Step# 2

  • Generate the related file for the Job run
  • Generate related files required to run the background job by running the following command
    • rails g delayed_job:active_record

It adds following files to the application

  • A Script named “delayed_job” inside “/bin” folder to run the jobs which are in queue.
  • Migration file to create a table to store the job with other information such as priority, attempts, handler, last_error, run_at, locked_at, failed_at, locked_by, queue.

Run the migration file by using the following command

  • rails db:migrate

Set the queue_adapter in config/application.rb

  • config.active_job.queue_adapter = :delayed_job

If you are using the protected_attributes gem, it must appear before delayed_job in your gemfile. If your jobs are failing with:

  • Setup Delayed::Job config in an initializer (config/initializers/delayed_job_config.rb)
    • Delayed::Worker.destroy_failed_jobs = false
    • Delayed::Worker.sleep_delay = 60
    • Delayed::Worker.max_attempts = 3
    • Delayed::Worker.max_run_time = 5.minutes
    • Delayed::Worker.read_ahead = 10
    • Delayed::Worker.default_queue_name = ‘default’
    • Delayed::Worker.delay_jobs = !Rails.env.test?
    • Delayed::Worker.raise_signal_exceptions = :term
    • Delayed::Worker.logger = Logger.new(File.join(Rails.root, ‘log’, ‘delayed_job.log’))

Step# 3

  • Replace script/delayed_job with bin/delayed_job
  • Start up the jobs process

There are two ways to do this.

  • If application is in development mode, we would use the below rake task instead.
    • rake jobs:work
  • If application is in production mode, then it is preferred to use the “delayed_job” script. This demonizes the job process and allows multiple background processes to be spawned.

To use this, pursue the following steps

  • Add gem “daemons” to your Gemfile
  • Run bundle install
  • Make sure you’ve run rails generate delayed_job
  • If you want to just run all available jobs and exit you can use rake jobs:workoff
  • Work off queues by setting the QUEUE or QUEUES environment variable.
    • QUEUE=tracking rake jobs:work
    • QUEUES=mailers,tasks rake jobs:work

Step# 4

  • Add task to run in background
  • In Controller just call .delay.method(params) on any object and it will be processed in the background.

Example:

UsersController before adding to background job

[code language=”html”]
class UsersController < ApplicationController
def send_email
User.find_each(is_subscribed: true) do |user|
NewsMailer.newsletter_mail(user).deliver
flash[:notice] = "Mail delivered"
redirect_to root_path
end
end
end
[/code]

 
UsersController after adding to background job

[code language=”html”]
class UsersController < ApplicationController
def send_email
User.find_each(is_subscribed: true) do |user|
# add .delay method to add it to background process. In case of mail sending remove the .deliver method to make it work.
NewsMailer.delay.newsletter_mail(user)
flash[:notice] = "Mail delivered"
redirect_to root_path
end
end
end
[/code]

Advantages of implementing above steps:

  • No more waiting for a response, after clicking a link to do a big stuff.
  • Just call .delay.method(params) on any object and it processes in the background.
  • Job objects are serialized to yaml and stored in the delayed_jobs table, so they can be restored by the job runner later.
  • It automatically retries on failure. If a method throws an exception it’s caught and the method reruns later. The method retries up to 25 times at increasingly longer intervals until it passes.
  • “delayed_job” gem maintains log by creating a log file “/log/delayed_job.log”

I am sure this article will give you a clear idea about the way to implement “delayed job” in rails. You can share your thoughts with comments if I have missed anything or if you want to know more.

Do you work on or use Ruby on Rails? Let’s Discuss!

How To Implement Event Calendar In Rails App

Event calendar is a way to show multiple, overlapping events across calendar days and rows. This is an interface to add events, edit events, & destroy event. In Rails there is a gem/plugin “event_calendar” to implement it just like Google calendar.

The following steps demonstrate the implementation of event_calendar in both Rails 2.3.x and Rails3.x environment.

Step#1 –

Installing the gem/plugin

  • In rails 2.3.x

Install the required plugin from below path

script/plugin install git://github.com/elevation/event_calendar.git

Generate the necessary static file and example

script/generate event_calendar
  • In rails 3.x

Install the required gems

gem 'event-calendar', :require => 'event_calendar'

Run “bundle install

You can also use as a Plugin, to install plugin

rails plugin install git://github.com/elevation/event_calendar.git

Generate the necessary static file for the event calendar

rails generate event_calendar

Step#2

Include the necessary style sheet & java-script into your layout/view

<%= stylesheet_link_tag "dialog","fullcalendar","jquery-ui","style" %>
<%= javascript_include_tag "jrails1/fullcalendar.js","jrails1/jquery-
ui.js","jrails1/gcal.js","jrails1/jrails.js","jrails1/jquery.validate.js"%>

Step#3

Create a migration file to add necessary columns as follows

class CreateEvents < ActiveRecord::Migration
def self.up
create_table :events do |t|
t.string :name
t.datetime :start_at
t.datetime :end_at
t.timestamps
end
end
def self.down
drop_table :events
end
end

Step#4

Add the necessary paths to the “config/routes” file

  • In Rails 2.3.x
map.calendar '/calendar/:year/:month', :controller => 'calendar', :action => 'index',
 
:requirements => {:year => /d{4}/, :month => /d{1,2}/}, :year => nil, :month => nil
  • In Rails3.x
match '/calendar(/:year(/:month))' => 'calendar#index', :as => :calendar, :constraints => {:year => /d{4}/, :month => /d{1,2}/}

Step#5

Change the Event model to add the calendar as follows

class Event < ActiveRecord::Base
has_event_calendar
end

Step#6

Modify the Calendar controller as follows

class CalendarController < ApplicationController
def index
@month = (params[:month] || Time.zone.now.month).to_i
@year = (params[:year] || Time.zone.now.year).to_i
@shown_month = Date.civil(@year, @month)
@event_strips = Event.event_strips_for_month(@shown_month)
end
end

Step#7

You can also override the events method in helpers/calendar_helper.rb

module CalendarHelper
def month_link(month_date)
link_to(I18n.localize(month_date, :format => "%B"), {:month => month_date.month, :year => month_date.year})
end
# custom options for this calendar
def event_calendar_options
{
:year => @year,
:month => @month,
:event_strips => @event_strips,
:month_name_text => I18n.localize(@shown_month, :format => "%B %Y"),
:previous_month_text => "<< " + month_link(@shown_month.prev_month),
:next_month_text => month_link(@shown_month.next_month) + " >>"
}
end
def event_calendar
calendar event_calendar_options do |args|
event = args[:event]
%(<a href="/events/#{event.id}" title="#{h(event.name)}">#{h(event.name)}</a>)
end
end
end

Step#8

Add the following code to display the calendar in the view file

<%= event_calendar %>

See Also: Security Checks you must do before Rails App release

I hope it helps you. Planning anything in Ruby on Rails? Get in touch with Andolasoft experts. Feel free to give your valuable feedback.

How To Generate Barcode Using Barby Gem In Rails 2.3.8

A barcode is a series of vertical black lines with white spaces in between. This series of lines and spaces can be read by a device that can decode them. This would be a barcode reader.

In Ruby on Rails there is a gem called “barby” which generates the barcode with various format.

Here is an example to create barcode using barby & Rails 2.3.8.

Step#1

Include the barby gems in your config/environment.rb file

config.gem'barby'
config.gem 'barby-chunky_png'
config.gem 'png''RubyInline'

Install the gems by running the commandrake gems:install. Restart the Rails server.

You might face problem to start the server after the gems installed.Comment out the gems “png” & “RubyInline” in the “config/environment.rb” to get the server started.

Step#2

Create a folder named “Barcodes” to store the barcode images in your “Public” folder.

Step#3

Add the below lines of code in your controller

require'barby'
'barby/outputter/png_outputter'

Step#4

The following method will generate the barcode images and store in the “/public/Barcodes” path. Place this method inside the controller.

The “symbology” is the format in which the barcode will be generated. Default is “Code128B”, If you want to generate in different format you can set the “symbology” according to it.

def generate_barcodes(data) # check to see if we don't already have this barcode image uri = CGI.escape(symbology) + '_' + CGI.escape(data) + '.jpg' fname = RAILS_ROOT + '/public/Barcodes/' + uri #fname = '/var/www/html/arc_cloud/arcdevelopment/' + uri
 
# if the barcode image doesn't already exist then generate and save it
if ! File.exists?(fname)
 
str = 'Barby::'+symbology+'.new("'+data+'")'
 
begin
barcode = eval str
rescue Exception => exc
barcode = Barby::Code128B.new(data) # fall back to Code128 type B
end
 
File.open(fname, 'w') do |f|
f.write barcode.to_jpg
end
 
end
uri
end

Step#5

Following lines of code will call to generate your dynamic barcode
generate_barcodes(@item_id)

Step#6

To show the Barcode images call the following lines of code

<img src="/Barcodes/<%= @job_info.job_number %>.jpg" >