Ruby Web Application Framework Roundup

[Gavin Kistner]

I'm trying to decide which Ruby web application framework to use (if
any) for a new project. To that end, I'm looking for all Ruby web
application frameworks that are out there. Following is what I have so far.

Am I missing any major contenders?
Has anyone actually used any of these on a full project? If so, what was
your experience with it? (Flexibility? Ease of learning? Ease of use?)



Name: Arrow
URL: http://www.rubycrafters.com/projects/Arrow
Status: Alpha
Update: 2004-Jan-19
Server: Apache/mod_ruby
Docs: In progress...not bad.


Name: Mortar
URL: http://fallingsnow.net/ruby/
Status: 0.9alpha
Update: 2004-Jan-24
Server: WEBrick, cgi, or mod_ruby
Docs: None


Name: Cerise
URL: http://rubyforge.org/projects/cerise/
Status: 0.5 "Stable"
Update: 2004-Jan-4
Server: Self
Docs: Piecemeal via links at http://cerise.rubyforge.org/


Name: CGIKit
URL: http://www.spice-of-life.net/download/cgikit/index_en.html
Status: 1.0b7
Update: 2003-Apr-17
Server: Self (?)
Docs: Reasonable, but written by non-native-english speakers.


Name: Borges
URL: http://segment7.net/ruby-code/borges/
Status: 1.0a3
Update: 2003-Jan-27
Server: WEBrick (Apache + DRb 'soon')
Docs: RDoc reference only...no documentation (that I could find)


Name: radical
URL: http://idanso.dyndns.org:8081/rportal/ (broken)
Status: 0.7 (under "rapid development"...as of september)
Update: 2003-Sep-13
Server: Self
Docs: ? (server broken)


Name: div
URL: http://www2a.biglobe.ne.jp/~seki/ruby/index.en.html
Status: 1.2 "usable"
Update: 2003-Feb-07
Server: dRuby, WEBrick, cgi
Docs: ? (japanese only)


Name: Ruby Publishing Framework
URL: http://software.terralab.com/framework/ (broken)
Status: 0.5.3 ('very alpha')
Update: 2002-Jan-31
Server: Apache/mod_ruby
Docs: ? (server gone)


Name: Ruby Web Application Framework
URL: https://sourceforge.net/projects/ruby-waf/
Status: 0.2 alpha
Update: 2001-May-30
Server: ?
Docs: Some (raw text only)


Name: SBSM
URL: http://www.ywesee.com/index.cgi?SbSm
Status: 0.6beta
Update: 2003-Sep-23
Server: ?
Docs: ? (no?)


Name: Wakaba
URL: http://www.blue.sky.or.jp/atelier/ruby/wakaba/
Status: 0.1
Update: 2002-Sep-10
Server: ?
Docs: no

 

[Tom Copeland]

I'm trying to decide which Ruby web application framework to use (if
any) for a new project. To that end, I'm looking for all Ruby web
application frameworks that are out there. Following is what I have so far.

Am I missing any major contenders?

Another one is here:

http://rubyforge.org/projects/labyrinth/

Haven't used it, just figured you'd want to include it...

Yours,

Tom

 

[gabriele renzi]

I'm trying to decide which Ruby web application framework to use (if
any) for a new project. To that end, I'm looking for all Ruby web
application frameworks that are out there. Following is what I have so far.

Am I missing any major contenders?
Has anyone actually used any of these on a full project? If so, what was
your experience with it? (Flexibility? Ease of learning? Ease of use?)

define application framework. Maybe amrita could fit in here?

 

[Gavin Kistner]

define application framework. Maybe amrita could fit in here?

Damn...I was afraid someone would call my bluff

OK, in all honesty, I'm not sure precisely what the term means. (Or
perhaps it's (ab)used to mean multiple things.)


My particular end goals for this upcoming project are:

* A common set of features in the application core (e.g. calendar,
message board, media library, various hierarchies of pages).

* CMS for various pages and pieces. (User accounts, permissions on who
can edit or create content, etc.)

* For multiple clients buying into the package (all on the same host),
the ability to skin the output uniquely per client. (I don't much care
how this is accomplished; could be common XML + unique XSLT per client
(merged on the server, not client), or perhaps some sort of template
abstraction hierarchy.)


I certainly don't expect anyone to have developed this dream
applications as a free 'framework'. What I'm looking for is:

* Something that may speed development time. (Perhaps handles CMS issues
well, or makes common things like client+server side form validation
trivial.)

* Something that adds strong features. (Perhaps a template/caching
system which improves performance by not hitting the database multiple
times every time a page is requested.)

* Something that is flexible. (I don't want to be constrained by the
system as to what I can and cannot do with the end application.)


It's rather vague, I know. This is partially due to secrecy concerns;
partially because we're not far enough along in the project to know
precisely what features we will be implementing; and partially because
I've never used a web application framework before, and so don't what
one offers.


Clear? Confusing? Does that provide enough details to at least help you
help me?

 

[Pierre Baillet]

Hi Kirk,

In the past two weeks I have been working hard to take my current
incarnation of Iowa and prepare it for a release once again. It's
currently in a pre-release state, as there are some known bugs with some
new features that I have added, and my new documentation is not complete.
However, if anyone is curious, I can put up for download a tarball of the
entirely private (i.e. no documentation other than the internal rdoc
targetted comments, little install help other than a basic installer and
some comment based documents, no frills) version that most of my
production stuff is running on at the moment.

If this is a "quick" task for you, I'd love to have a look at your
pre-alpha-undocumented release.

Or else i'll wait for your release... just like a kid waits for
christmas

Good Luck,
Pierre.
--
Pierre Baillet
It is a good viewpoint to see the world as a dream. When you have something
like a nightmare, you will wake up and tell yourself that it was only a dream.
It is said that the world we live in is not a bit different from this.
Ghost Dog - The Way of the Samouraï

 

[Chris Morris]

Name: Borges
URL: http://segment7.net/ruby-code/borges/
Status: 1.0a3
Update: 2003-Jan-27
Server: WEBrick (Apache + DRb 'soon')
Docs: RDoc reference only...no documentation (that I could find)

I've not built a production app with this, but I did extend the sushiNet
example app (implemented the checkout cart, for example), to help with
an unrelated web testing demo.

It worked pretty well, but if one was to use it for a prod app, IMO:

- be prepared to dive some into the Borges code to figure out some
things and bug fix others
- it's very memory intensive (that, or I'm doing something wrong).

 

[Chris Morris]

I've not built a production app with this, but I did extend the
sushiNet example app (implemented the checkout cart, for example), to
help with an unrelated web testing demo.

It worked pretty well, but if one was to use it for a prod app, IMO:

- be prepared to dive some into the Borges code to figure out some
things and bug fix others
- it's very memory intensive (that, or I'm doing something wrong).

I meant to add, on the upside it was easy to work with (when I wasn't
spelunking into Borges) -- it's a cool concept and I'd be interested in
working with it again, but the memory use issue would need to be
addressed (or I just need some further education on it).

 

[paul vudmaska]

Damn...I was afraid someone would call my bluff

OK, in all honesty, I'm not sure precisely what the term means. (Or
perhaps it's (ab)used to mean multiple things.)


My particular end goals for this upcoming project are:

* A common set of features in the application core (e.g. calendar,
message board, media library, various hierarchies of pages).

* CMS for various pages and pieces. (User accounts, permissions on who
can edit or create content, etc.)

* For multiple clients buying into the package (all on the same host),
the ability to skin the output uniquely per client. (I don't much care
how this is accomplished; could be common XML + unique XSLT per client
(merged on the server, not client), or perhaps some sort of template
abstraction hierarchy.)


I certainly don't expect anyone to have developed this dream
applications as a free 'framework'. What I'm looking for is:

* Something that may speed development time. (Perhaps handles CMS
issues well, or makes common things like client+server side form
validation trivial.)

* Something that adds strong features. (Perhaps a template/caching
system which improves performance by not hitting the database multiple
times every time a page is requested.)

* Something that is flexible. (I don't want to be constrained by the
system as to what I can and cannot do with the end application.)


It's rather vague, I know. This is partially due to secrecy concerns;
partially because we're not far enough along in the project to know
precisely what features we will be implementing; and partially because
I've never used a web application framework before, and so don't what
one offers.


Clear? Confusing? Does that provide enough details to at least help
you help me?

You've pretty well described Zope.org. When you're done porting that to
ruby, please send me a link to the code

 

[Joel VanderWerf]

You've pretty well described Zope.org. When you're done porting that to
ruby, please send me a link to the code

Ditto. Ditto. Ditto. Zope is pretty much the only reason I ever use any
Python. There are a lot of things I don't try to do with Zope because
I've never invested the learning effort into python like I have with ruby.

 

[Lothar Scholz]

Hello Gavin,


GK> * Something that adds strong features. (Perhaps a template/caching
GK> system which improves performance by not hitting the database multiple
GK> times every time a page is requested.)

Thats a common technical misunderstanding.
Only very very few database queries can be hold in caches when this is
done on a general level. This is why you still write applications !

And from my experience i would skip all mod_ruby solutions and go with
fast CGI and session affinity or a simple fast CGI external server if
performance requirements are not so high.

 

[George Moschovitis]

You've pretty well described Zope.org. When you're done porting that to
ruby, please send me a link to the code

you also described our Ruby Web Application Server (version 2 is
codenamed 'Root') check out some examples (in greek, sorry):

www.joy.gr
www.pcmag.gr
www.glamourmag.gr
www.focusmag.gr

it uses xml based server pages, xsl/css for skins, fragment/object
caching, an object database system, plugable modules (cms, user pages,
forum), and runs with mod_ruby or mod_fastcgi. It also allows realtime
communication with flash clients using XmlSocket.

the latest version has rather clean source code, so maybe we can
release something pretty soon.

regards,
George Moschovitis

 

[gabriele renzi]

il 3 Feb 2004 05:28:19 -0800, (e-mail address removed) (George Moschovitis) ha
scritto::

you also described our Ruby Web Application Server (version 2 is
codenamed 'Root') check out some examples (in greek, sorry):

finally !
I hoped someone could point that out, I already did this in he past

the latest version has rather clean source code, so maybe we can
release something pretty soon.

could you refine your concept of 'pretty soon'?

plus, you say 'release' and I read 'open source' in you web site. I
wonder if you're going to let this product under some kind of OSI
approved license or whatever.

It would be incredibly cool to have a company like Zope corporation
working on an open source app server.


PS
btw I just discovered http://www.rubycrafters.com/ and even that seem
really cool, I wish best luck to all the ruby hackers out there

 

[George Moschovitis]

could you refine your concept of 'pretty soon'?

when we find time to write some simple docs, and a small example
webapp in english. We have set a target for the end of March.

plus, you say 'release' and I read 'open source' in you web site. I
wonder if you're going to let this product under some kind of OSI
approved license or whatever.

We will release the source code for the server. Later we will probably
release the framework as well.

It would be incredibly cool to have a company like Zope corporation
working on an open source app server.

naaah, we are not that ambitious. But our product is really strong (though
I am saying it myself)

George Moschovitis
Navel Ltd.

 

[Jim Freeze]

Am I missing any major contenders?
Has anyone actually used any of these on a full project? If so, what was
your experience with it? (Flexibility? Ease of learning? Ease of use?)

Name: Arrow ...
Name: Mortar ...
Name: Cerise ...
Name: CGIKit ...
Name: Borges ...
Name: radical ...
Name: div ...
Name: Ruby Publishing Framework ...
Name: Ruby Web Application Framework ...
Name: SBSM ...
Name: Wakaba

Was tdiary ever added to this list?

Is this information on the Rubygarden wiki?
If so, I couldn't find it.

 

[Kirk Haines]

On Tuesday, 3 February 2004 at 1:49:51 +0900, Gavin Kistner wrote:

Was tdiary ever added to this list?

Is this information on the Rubygarden wiki?
If so, I couldn't find it.

Good question. If someone can point out where this list is at, I'd like to
see Iowa added to it, as well.


Kirk Haines

 

[Dick Davies]

Do you mean this?

http://www.rubygarden.org/ruby?HtmlTemplates

 

[Kirk Haines]

Do you mean this?

http://www.rubygarden.org/ruby?HtmlTemplates

I've got too many things rattling around in my head lately to be sure. I
think it was a different list, though. That one I knew about. Thanks for
the reminder, though. I'm going to tweak the Iowa entry a bit.


Thanks,

Kirk Haines

 

[Gavin Kistner]

[a long list of HTML Frameworks with a bit of status and overview]

Was tdiary ever added to this list?

Is this information on the Rubygarden wiki?
If so, I couldn't find it.

No, the list only existed in its original post, as a snapshot look as I
was trying to evaluate and choose one. It was never meant to be
all-encompassing, definitive, or maintained. (Though if someone else
wants to steal my original post for such a maintained listing, they
have my blessing.)

 

[Jim Freeze]

Do you mean this?

http://www.rubygarden.org/ruby?HtmlTemplates

No. This one is on web frameworks -- which may or may not
include their own template system.


--
Jim Freeze
Gray's Law of Programming:
`_n+1' trivial tasks are expected to be accomplished in the same
time as `_n' tasks.

Logg's Rebuttal to Gray's Law:
`_n+1' trivial tasks take twice as long as `_n' trivial tasks.