Internet Tech Boston

Imagine my surprise when I dropped down to the console to telnet to a remote computer and was told, ever so politely:

‘telnet’ is not recognized as an internal or external command, operable program or batch file.

Huh? Telnet has shipped with every version of Windows since the dawn of 3.1 or so – why stop now? Rather than go on yet another MS-rant at such a blatant movement of cheese, I found you can easily enable telnet on Vista by going to:

Control Panel -> Programs -> Turn On Off Windows Features -> Check Telnet Client

After a reboot (naturally), order was restored.

Embarc has long been a Java Web Development shop. Citing our preference for open-source technology built for an open-source and predictable, stable target Operating System in Linux, we’ve developed many scalable and enterprise-level web applications using J2EE Java.

Now, we are considering changing our approach regarding web development technology. Instead of Java, we’re starting to work with Ruby on Rails (aka RoR, or simply – Rails). We’re contemplating this shift based on a number of measurable benefits Rails has over Java. However, the technical aspects of this debate are not the focus of this article. Rather, I’m focusing on explaining the benefits to a non-technical audience. Often times, it’s difficult to explain the pro’s and con’s of a technology decision to people without a strong background in the web development field. In the worst case scenario, it can be perceived as a religious debate that has no clear benefit to the business. Here are some points to raise that might make a decision to begin a Rails project more palatable to the Business Owner of your projects.

1. Pure Web Technology: Rails was built to make websites. Other languages such as Java and .NET can be used to write console applications, system functions, and software for other non-Internet related purposes. Rails has a single purpose and is geared to be the best at it.
2. Smaller Footprint: Rails aims to increase the speed and ease with which database-driven web sites can be created and offers skeleton code frameworks from the outset. Many of the packages needed to create web applications in Java or .NET are inherent in Rails. It comes out of the box.
3. Resources: It’s been no secret that good Java Web developers in Massachusetts are hard to find. Also, when you find them, they may or may not know the “rest” of the internet technologies – HTML, CSS, Apache, Tomcat, etc. Because Rails is a pure web technology – you are only attracting people who inherently are the perfect fit for the organization.
4. Latest and Greatest: There are instances I am personally aware where smart, energetic, and rock-star level Java Developers take a pay cut from previous jobs in order to work with Rails. In other words, smart people in this industry are flocking to opportunities work on Rails. By moving to Rails, I feel we’ll have a steady stream of eager beavers, expertly knowledgeable in the web.
5. Compatible with Java: Through the use of an interpreter called JRuby, Ruby can be tightly integrated with Java to allow the embedding of the interpreter into any Java application with full two-way access between the Java and the Ruby code.

While Ruby on Rails might be a new phrase for some, it is not new in this industry. Several companies are using Rails to build enterprise-level, profitable products:

• 37Signals.com – They have built a suite of online applications that serve as workflow and data repositories. Go to the site and see their suite of applications:
  a. Basecamp (like Embarc’s CMS)
  b. HighRise (like Salesforce.com)
  c. Campfire (like Skype)
  d. Backpack (like Google pages)
• Twitter.com – A blogging service, Twitter’s userbase numbers in the millions. Prominent Twitter users include U.S. presidential candidates John Edwards and Barack Obama.
• Eons.com – Eons is a 50+ media company inspiring a generation of boomers and seniors to live the biggest life possible. Founded by Jeff Taylor, founder of Monster.com, Eons was launched in July 2006. Susan Sarandon came to the Charlestown Navy Yard to officially launch the site. Good times were had by all.

At the end of the day, the pro’s and con’s of Rails vs. Java vs. .NET vs. PHP can and will be debated hotly. Don’t lose site of the fact that web technology is just a tool – it must be put in the hands of a talented, intelligent web development team to use effectively.

Given that the Internet changes rapidly, it’s important to keep abreast of the more important changes in technology. There will be fads that are nothing more than a flash in the pan, as well as trends that come and go. But, there will also be shifts that will dictate the future development and use of the Internet.

One of these shifts could be a new platform developed by Google called Google Gears. This set of APIs allows web applications to be used offline. For example, when people are travelling in airplanes – they have a laptop, but no Internet connection. They’re not able to login to their extranet or intranet and get some work done. Well, leave it to Google to develop and launch a platform that may change our whole perspective on this issue. This is new technology, so I don’t have any experience with it yet. But given that it is a Google project, I think it’s safe to assume it brings this feature request into the realm of reality. Just some food for thought in your next planning meeting with the Business Owners of your web applications.

Second is Microsoft’s Silverlight. A rich media development and distribution platform, Silverlight aims to overtake Adobe’s current dominance in the industry currently owned by the Flash and Flex technologies. To understand just how enthusiastically Silverlight is being accepted by the development community, I’ll share a quote from Michael Arrington, who was at the Mix conference where it was showcased:

“Silverlight will be the platform of choice for developers who build rich Internet applications. It makes Flash/Flex look like an absolute toy. After the keynote, the main topic of conversation in the hallways centered on just how effectively Microsoft carried out its execution of Adobe.”

Web Developer exuberance is always fun to witness, but there is no denying that Silverlight will be a force to be reckoned with. If you are starting a development project, it’s not necessarily important to rush these new technologies into your specifications. Instead, it’s important that you work with a web development team whose knowledge of Internet development technologies runs deep. Their ability to adopt new trends and technologies, and leverage them where appropriate, is a fundamental of a good partnership between you and your web development team.

Both Internet Explorer 7 and Firefox 2 include a new feature that automatically displays active RSS feeds on any web page you visit. This “feed detection” icon is the orange icon depicted to the right. When active feeds are detected, it lights up orange.

RSS Feeds have been around for awhile, but this built-in feature is relatively new with the release of IE7 and Firefox2. I was a somewhat surprised and irked that some of the feeds that I’ve subscribed to in other RSS readers, were not being found by the detector. As with everything related to RSS feeds, the fix was quite simple – put the following line of code in any page, to alert the detector of the presence of an RSS Feed:

<link rel=”alternate” type=”application/rss+xml” title=”Company News” href=”/highlights-rss.jsp”/>

My RSS feeds are now fully detectable – and yours can be too. For more information on RSS feeds, with an overview on the subject, I recommend reading Internet Technology Series: Get Your Site On Board with RSS.