A couple years ago I was bitten by the Ruby on Rails bug. For those of you who don’t know (probably most people reading this), Ruby is a coding language and Rails is a framework (think template). My interest in Rails grew at first out of curiosity and interest in how comparatively easy it was to pickup in comparison to other technology I’ve worked with. Before long I grasped the basic ‘theory’ and ‘concepts’ of Rails to the extent that I could hold my own in general Rails conversations.

Similar to learning Chinese, as my vocabulary grew, so did my appetite. I didn’t just want to understand the language, I wanted to DO something with it. When I get an idea in my head I tend to beat the life out of it and then jump head first into the deepest part of the pool – a bona fide INTJ. Whether it’s software, Chinese, juggling, business, triathlons or rock climbing…

1. Deep thought.
2. Right now.
3. Head first.
4. Don’t look back.

When I went back to work in China I promptly changed my Chinese to Ma Shang which is a legit Chinese name but sounds like “right now or immediately”. Business Case Example: Hi Mr. Yang, I’m Ma Shang a.k.a. Mr. Right Now, as in lets get this thing done – right now!

Out’ing Ruby on Rails

After a bit of wrangling with Rails books and learning the basics of building a web app with Rails, I had a basic understanding of the benefits that Ruby on Rails offered. I wasn’t, however, bold enough to try building my own app. Instead, I started dabbling with open source apps by learning to install and tweak them on my local machine. To be totally honest, it wasn’t very fun…in fact, it was down right frustrating because I wasn’t (in my opinion) learning fast enough or going far enough. What made matters worse was that I came up with an idea for an app that I felt really strongly about but my learning curve just wasn’t working in my favor…or at least I didn’t think so. So instead of learning to code and building my own app, I decided to leverage my background in outsourcing development and commissioned a team to build the app I had dreamed up.

I wont bore you with the details of outsourcing something like this because quite frankly, I could write volumes. I will say this though…if you’re a non-technical entrepreneur, small business or dude with an idea…don’t go down the freelance/outsourcing path without having someone on your side to guide you through it. Don’t get me wrong, I’m a big proponent of the freelance, outsourcing and contracted scenarios. Hell, my entire professional career revolves around outsourcing in some form or another. But if you’re going to do it, take my advice and make sure you have someone that knows the industry, technology and your idea.

However, last fall I decided that it was time to get a better handle on Rails because I wanted to play a more prominent role in developing my application…i.e. I want to build it. So I enrolled in a ‘learning ruby on rails’ class taught by Sarah Allen in order to get the hands-on guidance that I had been. Sarah and her team of assistants produced a great class and gave me just enough of a nudge to get me to the next step.

I Got Next

Well earlier this week, I passed an important milestone in my Ruby on Rails experience and launched the beta version of the app I’ve been working on. In it’s current state it’s a snippet of what I envision but for now that’s all I need to drive me forward. While the user front-end website and user interface are rather drab that can be remedied with a little time and effort. Functionally it consists of a baseline that will serve it’s purpose for the time-being but I’m excited to get moving on some of the more enticing features. If you know of anyone in the fitness industry, feel free to have them take a look at MyFitHub.com where they can sign up for a free beta account.