74 lines
3.3 KiB
Plaintext
74 lines
3.3 KiB
Plaintext
== Welcome to \Rails
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\Rails is a web-application framework that includes everything needed to create
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database-backed web applications according to the {Model-View-Controller (MVC)}[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Model-view-controller] pattern.
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Understanding the MVC pattern is key to understanding \Rails. MVC divides your application
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into three layers, each with a specific responsibility.
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The View layer is composed of "templates" that are responsible for providing
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appropriate representations of your application's resources. Templates
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can come in a variety of formats, but most view templates are \HTML with embedded Ruby
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code (.erb files).
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The Model layer represents your domain model (such as Account, Product, Person, Post)
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and encapsulates the business logic that is specific to your application. In \Rails,
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database-backed model classes are derived from ActiveRecord::Base. Active Record allows
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you to present the data from database rows as objects and embellish these data objects
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with business logic methods. Although most \Rails models are backed by a database, models
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can also be ordinary Ruby classes, or Ruby classes that implement a set of interfaces as
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provided by the ActiveModel module. You can read more about Active Record in its
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{README}[link:files/activerecord/README_rdoc.html].
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The Controller layer is responsible for handling incoming HTTP requests and providing a
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suitable response. Usually this means returning \HTML, but \Rails controllers can also
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generate XML, JSON, PDFs, mobile-specific views, and more. Controllers manipulate models
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and render view templates in order to generate the appropriate HTTP response.
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In \Rails, the Controller and View layers are handled together by Action Pack.
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These two layers are bundled in a single package due to their heavy interdependence.
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This is unlike the relationship between Active Record and Action Pack, which are
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independent. Each of these packages can be used independently outside of \Rails. You
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can read more about Action Pack in its {README}[link:files/actionpack/README_rdoc.html].
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== Getting Started
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1. Install \Rails at the command prompt if you haven't yet:
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gem install rails
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2. At the command prompt, create a new \Rails application:
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rails new myapp
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where "myapp" is the application name.
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3. Change directory to +myapp+ and start the web server:
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cd myapp; rails server
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Run with <tt>--help</tt> or <tt>-h</tt> for options.
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4. Go to http://localhost:3000 and you'll see:
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"Welcome aboard: You're riding Ruby on Rails!"
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5. Follow the guidelines to start developing your application. You may find the following resources handy:
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* The \README file created within your application.
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* {Getting Started with \Rails}[http://guides.rubyonrails.org/getting_started.html].
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* {Ruby on \Rails Tutorial}[http://ruby.railstutorial.org/ruby-on-rails-tutorial-book].
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* {Ruby on \Rails Guides}[http://guides.rubyonrails.org].
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* {The API Documentation}[http://api.rubyonrails.org].
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== Contributing
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We encourage you to contribute to Ruby on \Rails! Please check out the {Contributing to Rails
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guide}[http://edgeguides.rubyonrails.org/contributing_to_ruby_on_rails.html] for guidelines about how
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to proceed. {Join us}[http://contributors.rubyonrails.org]!
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== License
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Ruby on \Rails is released under the {MIT License}[http://www.opensource.org/licenses/MIT].
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