You’re going to spend a lot of your time as a developer inside the editor, so it important to use an editor that you’re comfortable & productive with.
In this article:
All of these editors support Windows, Linux & Mac. Let’s get started! Atom is an open-source code editor from Github. It supports many programming languages including Ruby. Pros: Git integration; Good support for code snippets (time saver) Allows you. What you might be interested to know is that Ruby comes preinstalled on your Mac. Don't believe me? Open the Terminal and type: ruby -v. Likely, the version number will return 1.8.7. While you might be tempted to stick with that, you probably shouldn't for a couple reasons: Old versions of the OS shipped with a buggy version of Ruby. The macOS / Mac OS X operating system comes pre-installed with the libraries needed to run Ruby programs. You can interact with Ruby programs via the Terminal application (Applications - Utilities - Terminal). To determine the version of Ruby installed, type the following in the Terminal window and then hit enter/return: ruby -v. Open the Applications folder, and then open the Utilities folder. Locate the terminal program in the.
I want to help you choose which Ruby IDE / Editor is right for you!
You don’t need to stress over this decision, just pick one, give it a try for a few weeks & see how it feels. You can always change your editor later.
Here are a few things to look for:
- What Ruby-related plugins are available to make things easier for you
- Whether the editor is open-source or not
- Built-in features that improve your productivity (like code snippets, auto-complete, clean design that doesn’t get in your way)
All of these editors support Windows, Linux & Mac.
Ruby Vs The Machines
Let’s get started!
Atom Editor
Atom is an open-source code editor from Github. It supports many programming languages including Ruby.
Pros:
- Git integration
- Good support for code snippets (time saver)
- Allows you to run code directly in the editor (with plugins)
Cons:
- Can be slow when opening really big files
VSCode Editor
VSCode is an open-source code editor from Microsoft & it’s based on the same GUI technology as Atom.
Pros:
- Terminal integration
- Debugger integration & other IDE-like features (needs language support via plugins)
- Under active development
Cons:
- Ruby language plugin doesn’t get many updates, but it works 🙂
RubyMine IDE
RubyMine is a closed-source code editor from JetBrains. It’s the most complete IDE in terms of features, but it’s also not free.
Pros:
- Refactoring support
- Integration with testing frameworks, bundler, rake, terminal, etc.
- Intelligent auto-completion
Cons:
- Closed source
- Can feel “heavy” in terms of performance & UI design
VIM Editor
VIM (VI iMproved) is an open-source editor that has been around for ages, the most striking characteristic is that it’s terminal based, unlike the other editors which are GUI-based. It has countless plugins that you can install to add new features.
Pros:
Ruby For Machine Learning
- Many keyboard shortcuts & plugins
- You can do everything you need without leaving the terminal & without your mouse
- Powerful editing features (delete inside quotes, regex replace, block selection, etc.)
Cons:
- Initial setup takes some time (.vimrc file & installing plugins)
Other Editors
While these four editors are what I think the most popular in the Ruby community, there are still others that are worth a mention.
Here’s the list:
- Sublime Text
- Emacs
- Cloud9 (online editor)
Feel free to give these a try.
Personally, I use Atom for most of my Ruby development & writing, for quick edits (like configuration files) I use VIM.
Ruby For Mac
Summary
You have learned about a few Ruby editors that can make your work easier, which one are you going to pick?
Mac Ruby Update
Let me know in the comments 🙂
Thanks for reading!