I’ve been a VB developer for 8 years, first in VB6, and now in .NET. I don’t know near as much though because I only know enough to get my job done. Of course, most people are the same way.
But I’m tired of .net development. I’m ready for a change and so far, what I’ve seen of Ruby on Rails (RoR), I like. It’s simple, it’s easy to develop with and it works. It makes sense. It does a lot of the work for you, too, which means no switching from here to there to get an app working and running.
Granted, my web design skills are somewhat lacking, but I need a change. I don’t want to do Windows development anymore.
I’ve been reading books and tutorials on RoR and I’ve decided I need to develop some sort of app as a way to get my feet wet and get familiar with the framework. It would also give me something to show, if I ever decide to try and pursue a career in RoR development. But I’m at a loss as to what to build. I’m not too thrilled with the idea of making my own blogging software.
I’ve thought about a few idea, but none of them really sounds appealing or useful. Maybe because software development, regardless of platform, is just not exciting to me anymore. I think the whole idea has lost its spark. It goes back to the desire to leave the computer industry behind and find a decent paying job where the computer is just possibly a tool to aid in my work, not the main focus. My job currently depends on the computer. If you were to take it away, I couldn’t get my job done. I’d love to find a job where it’s only there to aid me or guide me but I’m not dependant on it, like I am now.
But since all I know is software development, I must stick to what I know. I can’t afford to relearn a new career or new skills needed to switch my field of work. So I thought maybe switching language and framework would at least offer something fresh. So I choose Ruby on Rails. If only I could find some useful, meaningful application to attempt to develop so that I can get familiar with it.
Anyone have any idea? This app most likely isn’t something I would be releasing to the public, but maybe use only personally on my own site or and extension of.
