Bahaha, sucker! The sensationalist title sucked you in. I don’t hate Ruby at all! In fact, I love Ruby because of the things that it and it’s supporting community have helped to advance:

• MVC on the web
• Testing and test-driven development
• SOLID principles
• Delivering business value quickly
• Pressuring other languages and frameworks to keep up

Not to mention some of the most important influences on my career have been Rubyists.

But here’s the thing: I don’t really use Ruby. Honestly, I just don’t really like the language. I’ve been through the Koans, I’ve written some (very helpful) automation scripts for my Linux media server, and some other stuff here and there. But I’ve never really felt comfortable with it. My mind works a certain way, and I don’t think Ruby aligns with it. If you are a Rubyist, that may seem shocking to you, because I read posts all the time that suggest the opposite: Ruby gives you more freedom, Ruby code looks like the way you think, Ruby has gems for everything, Ruby makes you popular and heals all wounds, etc. I’ve just not experienced that.

It’s like hearing all your friends rave about how great a restaurant is, and then actually going there and finding out everything is covered in onions. Sure, it’s great food, if you like onions. But I just can’t eat them. Don’t read too much into that metaphor, because I’m not sure what the “onions” specifically represent.

So, this isn’t to say I hate Ruby (despite the title), or that I’ll never use it. I believe that I should challenge myself and learn new things all the time, including Ruby. I believe in RTRJ. It’s just that Ruby just isn’t at the top of my list, and I probably wouldn’t apply for a position or take on a project that is Ruby focused. I’m just not a Rubyist, plain and simple.