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No, the client that spawned this blog post was specifically asked for heavy google maps integration. We haven't had one client asking for just a server side ap

No, the client that spawned this blog post was specifically asked for heavy google maps integration. We haven't had one client asking for just a server side app in years. I've been doing this for 8-9 years, I have a good idea on how to talk with my clients :)

asdasf 13y ago
And I haven't had a client ask for a javascript app ever. This is why anecdotes aren't very useful.
- joshowens 13y ago
  Insert mis-attributed Henry Ford quote about customers wanting faster horses
  - mtkd 13y ago
    If you're going to make a bold prediction about Meteor killing Rails be prepared for some heat - your responses to that heat may progress or regress the argument.
    - joshowens 13y ago
      I'm cool with the heat. I am not perfect, don't pretend to be. I welcome the conversations and I am seeing interesting responses.
  - asdasf 13y ago
    So, now you agree with what carsongross originally asked? The client does just want an app and you believe you know better and foist a broken javascript app on them?
    - rywalker 13y ago
      Broken javascript app? you're implying that all Meteor apps are broken?
      - asdasf 13y ago
        I'm implying his are, based on the fact that his meteor blog is broken.
- neilkelty 13y ago
  Are you serving the same market segment as OP?
carsongross 13y ago
I'm sure you do. We've got a pretty good google maps integration in our rails app & I've found sticking with plain old rails for CRUD and using fancy-pants javascript in high-value places to work out well. Your milage, and billing rates, may vary.
Doctor_Fegg 13y ago
I'd love to see what your client actually wanted. Is the site launched/public yet? Because there's a subset of map-based sites for which pure, out-of-the-box Google Maps is the best solution, but I'd estimate it at no more than 30%. (StreetView and consistent street-level addressing are the two main points in its favour.) For the other 70%, you will build something better by working with the raw map data (which usually means PostGIS) and using custom cartography (which could mean a lot of things, but let's say TileMill+OpenStreetMap). This greatly swings the balance back towards Ruby or Python. FWIW I don't generally use Rails, preferring a custom Rack+DataMapper stack, but the same point holds. The amount of smart geo stuff you can do in one line of code with a PostGIS-friendly ORM is astonishing. More broadly, your article says "technology A is better than technology B because C". That's cool. And here I am, posting a comment that says technology D (custom geo) is better than technology E (GMaps) because F. No doubt there are also arguments G, H, and so on. Your C is essentially a productivity argument - do the same thing faster. That's important, yes, but deeply personal (I find it difficult to believe I'd ever be as productive in JS as Ruby, and I'm not entirely a JS n00b). But if F, G, and H enable you to do actual new stuff, they're the arguments I'll listen to.
kitsune_ 13y ago
The hyperbole of your blog post really annoys me. The urge to generate traffic lessens the quality of the overall discussion here on hn and within the larger programming community. As an author with every post and submission you make a conscious decision about what is important to you. Do you want to enlighten your readers or do you want to gain notoriety at the expense of your audience? Ask yourself, do you want to be the Daily Mail or Le Monde?

asdasf 13y ago

And I haven't had a client ask for a javascript app ever. This is why anecdotes aren't very useful.

joshowens 13y ago
Insert mis-attributed Henry Ford quote about customers wanting faster horses
- mtkd 13y ago
  If you're going to make a bold prediction about Meteor killing Rails be prepared for some heat - your responses to that heat may progress or regress the argument.
  - joshowens 13y ago
    I'm cool with the heat. I am not perfect, don't pretend to be. I welcome the conversations and I am seeing interesting responses.
- asdasf 13y ago
  So, now you agree with what carsongross originally asked? The client does just want an app and you believe you know better and foist a broken javascript app on them?
  - rywalker 13y ago
    Broken javascript app? you're implying that all Meteor apps are broken?
    - asdasf 13y ago
      I'm implying his are, based on the fact that his meteor blog is broken.
neilkelty 13y ago
Are you serving the same market segment as OP?

carsongross 13y ago

I'm sure you do. We've got a pretty good google maps integration in our rails app & I've found sticking with plain old rails for CRUD and using fancy-pants javascript in high-value places to work out well. Your milage, and billing rates, may vary.

Doctor_Fegg 13y ago

I'd love to see what your client actually wanted. Is the site launched/public yet? Because there's a subset of map-based sites for which pure, out-of-the-box Google Maps is the best solution, but I'd estimate it at no more than 30%. (StreetView and consistent street-level addressing are the two main points in its favour.) For the other 70%, you will build something better by working with the raw map data (which usually means PostGIS) and using custom cartography (which could mean a lot of things, but let's say TileMill+OpenStreetMap). This greatly swings the balance back towards Ruby or Python. FWIW I don't generally use Rails, preferring a custom Rack+DataMapper stack, but the same point holds. The amount of smart geo stuff you can do in one line of code with a PostGIS-friendly ORM is astonishing. More broadly, your article says "technology A is better than technology B because C". That's cool. And here I am, posting a comment that says technology D (custom geo) is better than technology E (GMaps) because F. No doubt there are also arguments G, H, and so on. Your C is essentially a productivity argument - do the same thing faster. That's important, yes, but deeply personal (I find it difficult to believe I'd ever be as productive in JS as Ruby, and I'm not entirely a JS n00b). But if F, G, and H enable you to do actual new stuff, they're the arguments I'll listen to.

kitsune_ 13y ago

The hyperbole of your blog post really annoys me. The urge to generate traffic lessens the quality of the overall discussion here on hn and within the larger programming community. As an author with every post and submission you make a conscious decision about what is important to you. Do you want to enlighten your readers or do you want to gain notoriety at the expense of your audience? Ask yourself, do you want to be the Daily Mail or Le Monde?