Talks
Speakers
Events
Topics
Search
Sign in
Search
Home
Talks
Speakers
Events
Topics
Leaderboard
Use
Analytics
Sign in
search talks for
⏎
Suggest modification to this talk
Title
Description
Type. Context. by Sam Phippen Every language has at least one big idea behind it. In Ruby we cherish the powers of abstraction in the language and the conventions of Rails. Experienced Ruby programmers lean on these ideas without a thought. Imagine my surprise when I changed jobs, stopped programming Ruby full time, and those ideas were nowhere around. This talk is the antidote to the “x language is cool talk”. It’s a talk where you’ll learn about the ideas behind a couple of current ‘hot’ languages. You’ll learn how new languages change the way you program. We’ll find some gaps in Ruby and bring some neat stuff back. Sam Phippen is an Engineer at DigitalOcean, RSpec core team member, and all round Ruby aficionado. You may know him for being English, but he lives in New York City now. He’s sad that he can’t hug every cat.
Date
Summarized using AI?
If this talk's summary was generated by AI, please check this box. A "Summarized using AI" badge will be displayed in the summary tab to indicate that the summary was generated using AI.
Show "Summarized using AI" badge on summary page
Summary
Markdown supported
In the talk "Type. Context" at RubyNation 2017, Sam Phippen discusses the evolution of programming languages, particularly Ruby and Rails, and how they adapt to changing industry contexts. He begins by reflecting on the complications of software startup environments in the past, emphasizing how infrastructure and application deployment have been revolutionized, particularly by platforms like DigitalOcean. Phippen notes the comfort Ruby developers find in their language, especially with the Rails framework, which provides rapid application development capabilities. Key points discussed include: - **Evolution of Software Development**: Phippen highlights how programming practices and technologies have evolved, noting the shift from heavy XML configurations to streamlined frameworks that alleviate server management burdens. - **Comfort Zone of Ruby**: The speaker explains the ease Ruby programmers experience due to the proliferation of Rails applications across diverse industries, allowing for a seamless transition into various contexts. - **Community and Code Quality**: Phippen emphasizes the community's focus on best practices, such as test-driven development (TDD), and the ongoing effort to write clean, maintainable code. However, he acknowledges many applications can devolve into complex codebases, sometimes due to business pressures. - **Challenges in Scaling**: The discussion opens up considerations about the scalability of Ruby, citing concerns that while certain companies have succeeded with Rails, many face challenges in maintaining growth. - **Learning from Other Languages**: Phippen introduces observations from Go, especially its error handling and context object, highlighting how these features could improve the Ruby framework's robustness. Overall, Phippen advocates for the Ruby and Rails communities to embrace adaptability in their frameworks to remain relevant in the fast-evolving technology landscape. He concludes by suggesting that incorporating successful strategies from other programming languages, such as clearer error handling and effective data passing mechanisms, could significantly enhance Ruby's applicability in larger, more complex software systems.
Suggest modifications
Cancel
