Honestly, the first programming language I taught myself was Visual Basic. I was comfortable with it for about 2-3 years. Then I discovered Ruby. I didn't like it at first, because it was too different. But then six months later, I rediscovered it, tried to learn the basics, and discovered why it is so great. Ruby is great, because it works in the way we think. Our mind easily wraps around it, at least, I find. So that's why.
I like JavaScript too, but not as much. The nice thing about JavaScript is that the DOM provides so little (only the bare minimum), that, we can do anything with it. But honestly, I have not ever been a big fan of Java, and the syntax for JavaScript is similar. (Although the API is very different) Just my 2ยข. On Mon, May 18, 2009 at 12:39 PM, Seth Thomas Rasmussen <[email protected]> wrote: > On Mon, May 18, 2009 at 10:06 AM, Seth Thomas Rasmussen > <[email protected]> wrote: >> On Mon, May 18, 2009 at 3:45 AM, Kyle King <[email protected]> wrote: >>> Shoes has always, to me anyway, pioneered the idea that anyone should be >>> able to write a simple gui. That programming little apps should be fun and >>> easy. But Shoes isn't just a toy to teach children. Although it is best >>> suited for teaching, it also has the very real potential to be a practical, >>> everyday utility in a ruby programmer's toolbox. I can honestly say that >>> I've used Shoes at work to write little one-time guis for people that aren't >>> comfortable with the command line. >> >> I find this passage, and much recent discussion on this mailing list >> quite curious. Why is Shoes best for educational purposes? It seems, >> in fact, that some of the ambiguity and quirks of the Ruby language >> make that task quite a chore in certain moments. >> >> That said, I'd love to see it used increasingly in school settings, >> and I think Ruby is probably less painful than a great many other >> languages. Perhaps this is what it all boils down to. >> >> Anyway, no big deal or argument here, just an observation. Personally, >> I'm more interested in the "easy GUI" part, though their is a lurking >> educator in me. Sadly, I don't think I've yet got the maturity of >> patience to seriously consider teaching. > > Hey, educators and the like.. it's not very clear from my blurting > this all out, I suppose, but I'd like to know what you think! > > I'm curious how people view the use of Ruby and Shoes as a teaching > tool in their experiences so far. Obviously, some of you are into the > idea and have shared some feedback. What specifically interests you? > How do you see Ruby as a good fit? Etc. > > -- > Seth Thomas Rasmussen > http://greatseth.com > -- ~devyn
