Ruby on Rails is now mature, having been released 18 years earlier. Ruby on Rails is still in use, even though it was once called the "white knight" of web application development. However, questions are being asked about its relevance and popularity. We'll answer all of these interesting questions in this article.
- Ruby on Rails: is it dead or alive?
- Why Ruby on Rails before 2023?
- When is the best time for Ruby on Rails to be switched?
What are Ruby and Rails?
What is Ruby and Rails? You need to know. You should be familiar with Ruby, one popular programming language. Ruby was made in the mid-1990s. Ruby, like C or Java, is a general-purpose language. However, it's best known for web programming. Rails, on the other hand, is a library that extends the Ruby programming language. David Heinemeier created this library, which he named "Ruby on Rails." It is often called just "rails."
What is Ruby on Rails?
Ruby on Rails is a software built on Ruby. It is technically defined as a RubyGem package library, which can be installed via the command-line interface of your operating system. Ruby on Rails, an open-source framework for web development, offers Ruby developers a faster way to create code. It's a collection of code libraries that offer ready-made solutions for repetitive tasks such as developing forms, menus, or tables on a website.
The Ruby programming language is combined with JavaScript, HTML, and CSS in order to create web applications that run on a server. Ruby on Rails, because it runs on a web server, is classified as a backend web application development platform. Ruby on Rails works like PHP on Laravel, Symfony, or Python on Django. Ruby on Rails is a popular language among developers because of its compactness and elegance. It's designed to help agile development, delivering productivity and flexibility to development teams.
Ruby on Rails Popularity
Is Ruby on Rails Dead? This question is often asked, as it is so old. Ruby on Rails, however, is a mature technology that makes sense for certain applications, especially when you consider the constant changes in market technology. Over 390,300 sites use Ruby on Rails. There are 252,210 domains.
Is Ruby Still Alive in 2023?
Rails 7 was released in its first alpha a year before. The community was able to turn their thoughts into action, completing a full stack of web development and taking on both front-end developers and back-end development challenges. We will use statistics to determine if Ruby on Rails is still alive or dead. Releases do not reflect the entire software development process.
Ruby is ranked 14th, with 6.37% of professional and experienced developers using it. Ruby is ranked among the TOP 20 Programming Languages. This index takes into account all these factors, including the number of developers, third-party vendors, and courses related to a specific technology.
Statistics show that Ruby on Rails is the most popular choice for app development services in 2023. Ruby is still relevant as RoR provides solutions to business problems, and it's the basic technology for MVPs and Content Management Systems. Ruby is also used in dynamic websites, eCommerce and booking, and social networks, as it's a powerful tool. As the competition between technologies increases, we must consider many factors when choosing a technology stack. Ruby is notorious for its low performance and scalability problems. Many world-famous businesses use Ruby for their applications.
Why is Ruby on Rails the Best Ecommerce Framework?
What makes Ruby on Rails unique from other web technologies and why? Original key features include:
Cost Effectiveness
Both companies and individuals can use Rails. This technology is compatible with many free databases and web servers, so it has a positive impact on the financial side. Ruby on Rails is an efficient way to increase the efficiency of a project, be it a website or eCommerce platform.
Fast Development
This allows startups to be productive under pressure. Ruby on Rails applications all share the same structure. This can be useful for integrating new engineers into projects. Rails has also become a favorite among entrepreneurs due to its ability for rapid web development. With a framework, you can quickly build an MVP and then move on to the beta release. Other solutions, such as.NET or Java Spring, don't provide the same level of rapid development.
Flexible
Ruby on Rails allows you to create an ecommerce application that can be modified and combined easily later. Use 150K predefined packages (gems) to implement changes or add new functionality. RoR's flexibility lets you quickly build an MVP to test your assumptions. RoR allows you to easily adapt and make changes in any situation.
Safety
Sales transactions may contain sensitive data such as email addresses, shipping addresses, payment details, and bank card numbers. Customers should be concerned about security when making online purchases via their PCs, laptops, and tablets. Businesses can use the RoR to ensure that transactions and personal data are secure. The RoR allows cookies to be signed and encrypted and also includes placeholders for SQL Injection.
Ruby on Rails provides online retailers with a variety of gems that can help protect them from fraud. Brakeman is one gem that can be used to detect security vulnerabilities. Some gems can be used to verify or protect payment information.
Reliability
To improve the reliability of a program, regular updates are necessary. It is important to minimize and eliminate any possible problems or instabilities. Customers who are unhappy with unreliable products will often abandon them. If they are thoroughly tested before release, Ruby on Rails has a high chance of being reliable.
Cyber Infrastructure Inc. tests eCommerce products to make sure that bugs have been eliminated and to see if the heavy load generated by thousands of transactions won't become a barrier to product success. Scalability is a key factor in web app development.
Scalability
Scalability, an attribute of eCommerce Ruby on Rails, allows it to process many requests from multiple users. The system can be tailored to meet the needs of a growing business. If necessary, it is possible to scale an eCommerce app up to handle more traffic. Automation and ready-to-use blocks can help speed up the process. Payment gateways or checkout settings don't require developer time. Popular Frameworks are eCommerce platforms that come with all the major features. This allows you to create an online store without having to start from scratch.
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Ruby Benefits and Drawbacks
We'll look at Ruby and its problems without exaggeration. Then we'll discuss how to fix them. All Ruby on Rails reviews are usually characterized by three complaints:
- This article will explain how to optimize your RoR application in order to solve this problem.
- The decline in popularity. Finding seasoned Ruby on Rails developers can be difficult because it is a lengthy learning process. The popularity of Ruby on Rails is declining more because of the development and spread of other technologies, such as Lavarel Django or Node.js.
- Ruby on Rails is not without its disadvantages. It is used by thousands of companies around the globe to power their core technologies.
- Why is Ruby on Rails appealing to these companies so much? There are many advantages, but we will only highlight five.
Fast Development
Ruby on Rails is a powerful tool for developing products quickly. This is due to the syntax and ready-to-use solutions (called gems) which number 174 319. Ruby on Rails makes sense for startups and MVPs because timing is crucial. Even a small error or delay can lead to failure. Ruby on Rails continues to be used by businesses to develop new products and improve existing solutions.
High Security
Enterprise security is threatened by social engineering, phishing, and other forms of social engineering. Cybersecurity issues can lead to reputational damage and financial losses. Ruby on Rails can help you minimize the risks of cross-site scripting, cross-site request spoofing, SQL injection, and clickjacking. This requires a team capable of safeguarding RoR applications.
Use Simplicity
Ruby on Rails lets programmers solve complex tasks using fewer lines. According to The Rails, the main pillar of RoR is programmer satisfaction. RoR developers are capable of switching projects very quickly without being distracted by lengthy onboarding. Ruby on Rails is known for its ease of use and maintenance.
A Strong and Cohesive Community
Ruby on Rails is a technology that has united the community. They are constantly working to improve the framework. The core team is composed of Rails contributors who have been working on Rails since 2003. Over 6,000 engineers have contributed to RoR in order to solve problems, introduce features, and accelerate releases. RoR is maturing due to its strong community. Forums, lessons, and educational material can help RoR developers find solutions to difficult problems.
Business Logic is Easy to Implement and Compatible with Other Technologies
Ruby on Rails includes modules and controllers. RoR developers can create web applications that have sophisticated business logic. Ruby on Rails APIs, gems, and other tools help achieve this. The RoR framework can be easily integrated with front-end development frameworks. We'll return to the two main benefits of RoR: speed and cost-effectiveness.
Ruby: What can it be Used For?
Ruby is strong in the following areas:
- Web Applications (specially developed for startups and MVPs) Web Applications.
- Ruby is an option for supporting mobile applications' backends.
- Ruby is an extremely powerful technology. It can be used for online shops as well as modules like customer relationship management, payment systems, inventory, and marketing.
- Ruby is an excellent core technology for static site generators.
- Ruby is an excellent tool for DevOps. Heroku, Puppet Vagrant, and Chef are great tools for automation and DevOps.
- Ruby can be used for handling requests on web servers.
- Ruby is very useful for processing data. Python is useful for parsing, analyzing, and storing data. However, it also comes in handy if we need to transform or validate data.
- Ruby can be used to do complex research, analyze data and extract it.
Any solution you create with Ruby should prioritize security, regardless of whether it is edTech applications, edTech solutions, or fintech. Ruby's security is one of its biggest advantages. This is important.
RoR Security
Ruby on Rails has proven to be a safe and secure framework. The protection against cross-site scripting can be achieved by screening malicious components in an automatic mode. RoR uses a variety of methods to reduce risks. Rails, for instance, can mark each line as HTML_safe. Special code constructs can be used to ensure data output security.
Ruby on Rails is able to handle cross-site attacks using token authentication. Also, it's important to adhere to the security recommendations that are specific for DELETE and POST queries. RoR is vulnerable to a mass assignment vulnerability. It allows attackers the ability to create or change records, as well as alter database columns. ROR developers with experience can minimize risks.
Ruby on Rails is a risk-averse environment and syntax. However, your Ruby on Rails application, be it an online store, static site generator, or other product, will only be secure if the people involved in its development anticipate and manage potential risks. RoR is not only highly secure, but it also has other benefits. Compare it to Django before making a decision. Laravel. Node.js and other competing technologies.
Read More: The Benefits Of Using Ruby On Rails For Your Startup
Ruby Alternatives
Hotwire is a Ruby-based powerful framework for developing web-based applications. We are now seeing more Ruby-powered full-stack apps. Ruby is still a good choice over other languages. Compare Ruby to its competitors.
Ruby/Rails vs. Javascript/Node.Js
JavaScript is faster than Ruby. JS has low latency, and it supports asynchronous programming. You don't have to wait for the function to be executed. Ruby is an interpreted language. Its CPU processing and interpretation make it less powerful.
Ruby and JavaScript both have diverse, strong communities. RoR developers choose gems, while JS developers have the option of modules or packages. Ruby has a friendly community with meetups, conferences, and other events. Ruby also has podcasts. Security flaws are more common in JS than in the client. Both technologies are cost-effective, but Ruby is better for building MVPs and startups. JS is a technology that's highly sought after. The Stack Overflow community recognized it as the most popular language for the tenth year in a row.
Node.js is a JavaScript runtime environment that allows you to create server-side Javascript code. Node.js allows you to manage multiple operations at once and share code with a backend or browser. One example is incoming requests. Node.js can be used to create real-time applications such as chat rooms and games.
Node.js is rated lower than Ruby because of the use of npm. This may have vulnerabilities that were not detected before usage. Node.js is faster, but Ruby still has the potential to be a good option for these tasks:
- Full Stack web application development.
- Ecommerce Projects.
- Prototyping.
- Crawling and scraping the internet.
- Social networks development.
Ruby/Rails and PHP/Laravel
PHP has been around the corner for more than 25 years. The community is large, and it's a very versatile language. It was geared towards Web Development Tasks such as authentication and routing sessions. Compare the power of PHP and Ruby frameworks.
PHP has faster performance than Ruby. Ruby on Rails is the fastest framework, despite how fast Laravel is. The basic principles are the same. Laravel has proven its effectiveness in enterprise-level apps. Ruby has a much larger and more active community.
Ruby/Rails and Python/Django
Since AI has entered its next phase of development, Python, which is a multipurpose language used to program general-purpose applications, has gained popularity. Python was introduced in 1987 and is now the gold standard when it comes to building Machine learning algorithms. It is important to note the differences between Python and Ruby.
- Ruby is used in functional programming, web design, and many other areas of programming. Python is used in AI and other academic branches.
- Ruby is 100% OOP while Python is only partially.
- Declaring variables is different from using them.
Django is a Python-based backend framework that's used to create web applications. It does not allow full-stack development like Ruby on Rails. Both frameworks are similar in performance. Both Ruby and Python are well-established communities. Ruby on Rails applications are still relevant in 2023 despite rapid advances in technology. Shopify is an example. Shopify is SaaS that uses Ruby on Rails. Over 800,000 businesses have built online stores with its help.
Shopify is, simply put, one of the most popular eCommerce platforms. It is a competitor to Spree and Solidus. You need to weigh the pros and cons when deciding whether to create an online store from scratch or to use CMS like Shopify, Solidus, or Spree. We will not convince you that RoR is the best solution.
This is because business needs are driving everything: Development companies want to implement efficient payment processing or warehouse management solutions. This article explains the advantages of Ruby on Rails for eCommerce development teams. Also, you'll find the answer to which eCommerce platforms use Ruby on Rails.
Let's take a look at some market statistics before we continue. There are between 12M to 24M eCommerce sites, according to the figures. Reports reveal irreversible changes in the retail industry, as illustrated by the following statistics:
- Global eCommerce retail sales are estimated at 8.1 trillion US Dollars.
- By 2023 or 2026, Ecommerce will account for 22% of all retail sales worldwide.
eCommerce will continue to grow in the coming years. Ruby on Rails and PHP are both good options if you want to create an online store. With RoR, you can validate and test ideas quickly. RoR solutions that are fully stocked can make the development of eCommerce sites much easier.
The Most Popular Ruby on Rails Ecommerce Platforms
Shopify
Shopify is a platform for creating online stores with an easy-to-use dashboard. Based on the RoR platform, this platform allows users to build stores and sell through social media, marketplaces, blogs, websites, and other websites, as well as by email and SMS. Shopify supports physical selling. You can use the built-in Point-of-Sale, which is ideal for pop-up shops and retail stores as well as for market sales. Shopify offers customers a variety of payment, shipping, and tax options. Shopify's biggest benefits are its scalability and secure tech stack. Ruby on Rails is included.
Spree
RailsCart is the open-source Ruby on Rails framework that this Ruby on Rails Framework was derived from. A year later, it changed its name from Spree Wi. Spree lets you build large-scale applications for ecommerce, like GoDaddy and Garmentory Huckleberry.
Platform provides a wide range of features related to multi-channel marketing and sales, compliance, back office, and customer interactions. Your app can be connected to analytics, marketing tools, and payments. Spree has already gone headless and no longer uses a shopfront. It is now more flexible and allows users to create online stores while still exposing API.
Solidus
Solidus became an ecommerce framework in 2015. Solidus is currently an open-source, free software. Solidus lets you build ecommerce apps that are compatible with different devices and operating systems. Platforms with a community-centric focus are used by global companies.
Solidus offers more extensions than Spree. The number of Extensions is lower, but they are so high-quality that you can easily convert them into code in order to deploy your eCommerce product with no compatibility issues.
Solidus Gateway is a payment gateway provided by Solidus. Cyber Infrastructure Inc.'s team can offer other solutions for automating accounting and eliminating manual processing. Integration of payment portals in Ruby on Rails eCommerce projects is critical. Clients can choose from a wide range of APIs to meet this challenge. PayPal, Stripe, and Amazon are just one example.
Shopify can be used to process online payments. Active Merchant is an example of a Shopify Extension that provides access to multiple payment gateways. Ruby can be used for validating credit card numbers.
Note: Pay attention if you want to know what eCommerce platforms are using Ruby on Rails. Shopify, Spree, and Solidus are not the only eCommerce platforms that use Ruby on Rails. There are also other RoR applications and websites in the eCommerce business. For example, Instacart, Spree-based storefronts, and Superpedestrian.
Classification of Ecommerce Ruby on Rails Projects
RoR eCommerce is classified into different categories.
- B2C
- Business to business (B2B)
- B2B2C
Subscription-Based
B2C, or business-to-consumer sales, is the most common point of sale for companies. In recent years, the consumerization of business has resulted in a decrease in B2C sales channels and an increase in B2B. Many business consumers, in response to this market shift, have given up traditional marketing methods like printing catalogs. B2B has followed B2C in adopting RoR as a means of e-commerce. Alibaba is the most successful B2B model.
B2BC is the combination of B2B and B2C business models. This business model is being adopted by large companies such as Walmart, Amazon, and AliExpress. RoR is a framework that allows you to combine different business models in order to build B2B2C startups.
Create an eCommerce Site With Ruby on Rails
No matter what platform you choose to build your eCommerce website, it will need multiple integrated components. It is essential to hire software developers who are tech-savvy in order to complete this project. Cyber Infrastructure Inc. Team can help you.
From experience, we know that an eCommerce Ruby on Rails application needs these components:
- Storefront.
- Inventory Management.
- Carts for shopping.
- Order fulfillment and shipment.
- Here are some of our most popular ways to contact you.
- Customer Account.
- Support.
- Reviews of Products.
- Social media integration.
- Tools for Analytics and Reporting.
- Market Module.
- Accounting, Finance, and Payments - Integrated.
Why should you invest in Ruby on Rails e-Commerce Development? There are many technologies to choose from. The technology stack of a particular product should align with the needs of the business. It is for this reason that we do not always use RoR when building online stores. This framework has proved to be a powerful, easy-to-use platform for developing ecommerce.
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Conclusion
Ruby on Rails allows you to create an online store in just a few weeks. Cyber Infrastructure Inc. can implement your eCommerce project in order to enhance your brand and foster customer loyalty. Send us a message for a free consultation.
