A Chinese translation of my book is currently in the works. A few weeks ago I received a note from Liao Zhigang asking if I would say a few words to Chinese Rails developers. Here's what I came up with:
"The most I could ask of my Chinese translation would be for it to bring the developers of our two countries closer together. (We've seen Ruby do this between Japan and the United States.) The developers of the world need to work together. We need to set an example to our respective leaders showing them that we can build healthy worldwide communities that contribute to the greater good of humankind and the planet. The internet is our canvas, collective intelligence is our paint, and Rails is our paint brush.
You might ask, "How exactly can Rails make the world a better place?" I think that by focusing on people and the way they interact—their tendencies, strengths, and shortcomings—Rails and the practice of agile software development can make a significant impact in our lives.
For example, let's look at test driven development or TDD (which is fully supported by, and integrated into the Rails framework). TDD gets down to the bottom of how people actually design and write software. It's a practice that fully recognizes that writing bugs is human nature, as is fixing those bugs only to have them creep back into your system later, when you least expect it. By always writing tests, you ensure that fixed bugs stay fixed. Moreover, by writing tests first, you almost trick yourself into thinking about how your software needs to behave, before you start writing the code, which inherently leads to better design.
Tools that are honest about the human condition and both acknowledge our weaknesses and play to our strengths are ultimately what we need. I believe Rails is just such a tool. Let's use this tool and come together as a global community of developers, through the freedom of open source software, and make the world a better place.
(As an aside, I would love to visit China one day. Perhaps Rails can help me do that. :-)"
Very well said Rob.
I’ve recently discovered the brilliantly written, concise, and jem-packed book “Getting Real”, by the great guys at 37signals.com (the makers of Ruby on Rails), and have been really enjoying it. I’ve been recommending it to my friends and colleges, telling them that it’s like the “Lao Tzu” of web application development … and a whole lot more. The book represents something like a philosophy (actually appearing somewhat Taoist) around all the aspects of development and relationships involved in the web business.
May such wise and modest attitudes around this promising development platform continue to bridge “East and West”, and allow for collective intelligence to emerge … like bamboo brush strokes upon woven silk.