The Scoop

For most of the past week I’ve been at a Ruby on Rails boot camp conducted by Big Nerd Ranch, and I wanted to share some of my thoughts from the experience. First, if the other courses are like mine, you should go if you can. Being pulled away from work and into an environment where you can focus on learning is extremely valuable. Having meals and lodging included is huge, because it means all you have to do is show up ready to learn. It didn’t hurt that I got no cellphone reception while I was there, either.

But most trainings are highly dependent on the instructor, and having Charles Brian Quinn was a great benefit. Yes, CBQ knows his Rails, but maybe more important was that he kept the same energetic and patient demeanor the entire week. Think about it: he was the only instructor for a class that had a wide range of backgrounds and experience, and he was unflappable from 9 am to near 11 p.m. every day. That’s pretty remarkable, and it helped make the class even better.

The class covered quite a bit of material - “as much as [Charles] could possibly cram into five days”, as the certificate says - so I don’t have any complaints about substance. One possible suggestion would be for BNR to do a brief poll of attendees to get a sense of their experiences/backgrounds, and distribute that to the class beforehand. That could help an instructor plan and would also save a few minutes on Monday morning, when we were all raring to go.

In all, I’d definitely recommend Big Nerd Ranch for its total immersion learning style. Oh, and I’m thinking of incorporating an afternoon walk into my schedule, too.