Edward Faulkner wrote:
> 
> You missed the key phrase: "in Ruby".  What you're describing is a
> typical project in Java or C++.  
> 
> In Ruby, if your application is so large and complicated that you
> can't easily navigate and understand it without a specialized IDE,
> you're basically screwed.

I agree. Although Ruby has potential, it still appears to be a language 
for small systems/utilities. Partly because of the tools support, partly 
because of performance, partly because it is "new" (ish).

If you have a complex problem to solve, choosing the "wrong language" to 
write a solution can make your task more difficult, but even Ruby cannot 
make intrinsically complex systems simple.

Reading this group and you seem to find several common threads
- Newbies from various backgrounds interested in exploring the 
potential, and hitting the same issues (scattered documentation models, 
scattered websites with documentation, lack of the level of IDE support 
other mainstream languages take for granted, language quirks)
- "experts" who use Ruby regularly and have probably figured out how to 
control the coffee machine  via vim, and eschew anything more complex 
than a console prompt.

Ruby seems to be at the stage of Java 0.9.. i.e. 1 set of command line 
tools and loads of "learning applets" to play with. Its going to be a 
few years and something like "RBuilder" (c.f. JBuilder) to get people 
using it to solve real problems... if this doesn't happen, then Ruby 
will probably join the backwater of "almost" or niche languages like 
Effiel, Forth, Modula-2, Pascal(?), Lisp, D..... (the list is endless).

I hope Ruby makes it - and if it does its going to be a few influential 
groups (like Matz and the Pragmatic team) producing products like RoR 
and then pushing it hard. You need to make it easy for people to 
deliver, and great tools support is one way to start this. IMHO all the 
Ruby IDE developers should be working together to make Eclipse + Ruby 
plugin work as well (and be as high a profile) as RoR is. You have 
win-win for all existing Eclipse users looking to transition, and 
provide great supoprt for new users too.
...
Thx for listening.
Graham