Mike Clark

Dave says the book Programming Ruby 2 (aka the PickAxe book) is now available for pre-order.

Why Ruby? Well, if your world revolves around Java, as mine did, then you need this outstanding book to learn about all the wonderful things you're missing. Ruby is concise and elegant, and when I'm not programming in Ruby, I want to be. There's just one catch: once you crack the cover of this book you'll be spoiled by Ruby from then on. Don't say I didn't warn you. Although I still program in Java, it feels a bit like trying to push rope in comparison to programming in Ruby. And that turns out to be a good thing. In addition to learning a fun new language, learning Ruby has made me a better Java programmer. So even if your project has no intentions of using Ruby, you'll be honing new skills while discovering ways to improve on old skills.

I blame the first edition of the book for getting me hooked on Ruby. But after being a reviewer of the second edition, I can confidently say it's even more intoxicating. I've been having a lot of fun working through it by writing more learning tests and building automation tools. The extra 200+ pages in the second edition have really been helpful for me because they describe new libraries I wasn't aware of and clarify some things I didn't quite get about the language on my first pass.

Prepare to be spoiled. Pre-order a copy today!