Web 2.0 is about using the Web as a platform for collaboration, users creating value, connections between people and the global network mulitpling these effects. Web 2.0 is about information, allowing people to recombine and use information in new ways.

Web 2.0 is not just about strong designs and easy to use interfaces (though this helps).

Why Ruby on Rails?

We use Ruby on Rails (a.k.a. Rails) mainly because it allows us to rapidly prototype systems and the Rails framework lets us develop the system collaboratively with you, the client. You can drive the evolution of the system, and things can be changed in a matter of minutes, not hours or days.

Rails is suitable for a variety of tasks, from intranet database applications, to full Web 2.0 interactive communities such as twitter.

We can deploy Rails applications on a local server in your organisation, for intranet applications, or on a server farm in your data-centre, in a hosted environment, or even in the 'Cloud', using services such as Amazon EC2 and S3.

Other pluses of Rails (some of these are a bit technical):

• Rails provides a rich, easy to use interface to implementing AJAX (read interactive and responsive) applications.
• Rails makes it easy to manage changes to the database and quickly roll-out or roll-back new versions of the application to a large number of severs.
• The Rails framework is open source - free and with a huge community behind it.
• Uses the standard Model View Controller (MVC) model, meaning your data and display are kept separate - so we can quickly change the 'look-and-feel' of your site without rewriting the 'business logic'. And if you have your own designer, they can work on the CSS and XHTML without impacting the workings of the application that we develop.

Our Development Service

Our development service follows an agile methodology to help develop applications quickly, and the ability to have maximum collaboration with you, the client.

You can choose how much input you wish - if you want to develop the application in a more organic way, this is a fast and inexpensive way to do it. In traditional development styles, a complex specification document is first created, and then coding is done to that specification. Changes usually cost extra - with us, they are expected and built into the methodology.

Because we know what it is like as a client - you don't always know exactly what is possible, and great ideas sometimes come later in the day.

So get in touch, and we'll discuss your project and see if Rails is a good fit (like anything, Rails is not a panacea, and we don't pretend it is).