Learning Ruby - current or 1.9 version?

Question

I've been learning Python for a while, but the projects I want to do are better suited for Ruby, for example the SAC API for CSS is available in Ruby (and C & Java).

Anyhow, which version of Ruby should I learn right now considering that I'll be building only web apps.

Thanks for your comments and advices.

Answer 1

(Just) because you are planning to build web apps, Ruby 1.8.7 seems to be the most appropriate version for the following reasons:

• The Rails ecosystem has still some problem with Ruby 1.9
• Ruby Enterprise Edition is based on Ruby 1.8.7 and this is the Ruby interpreter you are likely to use in production unless you don't use jRuby
• jRuby is based on Ruby 1.8.7, if you plan to use it

However, you should always keep in mind that Ruby 1.9 is the future. So, avoid using Ruby 1.8.7 deprecated features and you should definitely have a look at the Ruby 1.9 roadmap.

Avoid Ruby 1.8.6. The upcoming Rails release (Rails 3) won't work with Ruby 1.8.6.

Answer 2

i think you can start in 1.9 its more better.. its nearest future

Answer 3

Hands down, go with 1.9. There's not that much of a difference if you're a web developer just starting out with Ruby. And by the time you get to the point where the version nuances matter, everything will be on 1.9.