On May 30, 2006, at 12:34 PM, Tim Becker wrote:
>> I was URL'd to this place after asking a XML question.
>> Is this the right place for New to Ruby  ?
>> What does a basic Ruby Application look like ?
>>
>> The only hands on expirience with making a GUI was a trial phase with
>> REALbasic  to get a grip on what programming is all about. They  
>> sent me here.
>
> I'm afraid that if you're new to programming, there isn't really any
> place where you can ask "how do I write an application?" and expect an
> answer.
>
> A number of good resources exist for learning Ruby. Premier among them
> is the book "Programming Ruby", and older edition of which is
> available online under a free license here:
> http://www.rubycentral.com/book/
>
> The `home` of Ruby's documentation lives at: http://www.ruby-doc.org/
> which is a great place to start as well. There's also "Why's
> (Poignant) Guide to Ruby" http://poignantguide.net/ruby/ if you're
> not into the typical programming texts...

Don't forget "Learn to Program" http://www.pragmaticprogrammer.com/ 
titles/fr_ltp/
I haven't read it myself, but it gets a lot of press as a great  
beginner book.  And it teaches you in ruby, so you'll be ready to go  
once you get a handle on the basics.