This post originated from an RSS feed registered with Ruby Buzz by Norman Richards. Original Post: Straight talk about rails Feed Title: Norman Richards Feed URL: http://members.capmac.org/~orb/blog.cgi/tech/ruby?flav=rss Feed Description: peace, love and burritos Latest Ruby Buzz Posts Latest Ruby Buzz Posts by Norman Richards Latest Posts From Norman Richards

I'm not ashamed to say that I'm not a fan of Ruby on Rails. I think it's a step backwards in web framework design, but the thing that's turned my off the most is the unapologetic fanboyism around it that seems to inhibit critical thinking skills in otherwise bright developers.

However, I've always maintained that Rails might actually start being an interesting platform when the fanboy mentality breaks down and you start seeing public criticism of it from within the community. You still don't see much of that, so I was quite surprised to hear the honest talk about the weaknesses of Rails in episode 92 of Drunk and Retired.

I'm not mentioning it to cackle with I-told-you-so glee. The point isn't that Rails has problem points, but that you are starting to hear people admit that the Rails-lifestyle isn't all fun and games. That's the point at which you can truly examine Rails for it's technical merits and weaknesses and make an unemotional decision about whether or not it is suitable for a given project.