Newbie's guide: Saving information in Ruby on Rails

In my Rails 4 application, I am looking to save questions and answers either in a document or database. Once stored, I want to showcase them on a specific webpage for users to respond.

For instance, I envision having a page titled /questions where a question like "Do you prefer Math or Science?" will be displayed. Depending on the user's choice (Math or Science), they will be directed to different follow-up questions.

My Question: What is the best approach for storing questions or any other data within my Rails app and then presenting them on the view as required?

Answer №1

When seeking assistance on this platform, it's crucial to frame specific questions instead of general ones. Consultants are paid to offer opinionated responses, while Stack Overflow is primarily for sharing precise information related to direct inquiries.

For those new to the platform, here's a brief guide:


Ruby on Rails

The fundamental function of Rails lies in saving data, as it operates within the MVC (Model-View-Controller) framework. This setup allows input from the view to be processed by the controller and saved in the model (database).

Rails stands out for its efficiency in creating, storing, and associating data. Its design revolves around these functionalities.

--

MVC Structure

To begin with Rails, understanding that it emphasizes object-oriented programming using Ruby is crucial. Everything within Rails involves objects, from routes to controller actions.

Newcomers often overlook Rails' OOP capabilities, leading to disjointed application flows. A systematic approach focuses on placing objects at the core of Rails-based applications.

-

As an MVC framework, Rails manages requests differently than traditional applications. It processes requests through routes, controllers, models, and views, ensuring a structured flow of data handling.

Here are helpful beginner resources for learning Rails:


Structured Question

In response to your question, follow these steps:

#config/routes.rb
root to: "questions#index"
resources :question do #-> domain.com/questions
   resources :answers
end

Implementation guidelines:

#app/models/question.rb
Class Question < ActiveRecord::Base
   has_many :answers
end

#app/models/answer.rb
Class Answer < ActiveRecord::Base
   belongs_to :question
end

#app/controllers/questions_controller.rb
Class QuestionsController < ApplicationController
   def index
      @questions = Question.all
   end

   def new
      @question = Question.new
   end

   def create
      @question = Question.new(question_params)
      redirect_to @question if @question.save
   end

   def show
      @question = Question.find params[:id]
   end

   private

   def question_params
       params.require(:question).permit(:your, :question, :attributes)
   end
end

#app/views/questions/index.html.erb
<% @questions.each do |question| %>
   <%= link_to question.title, question %>
<% end %>

#app/views/questions/new.html.erb
<%= form_for @question do |f| %>
    <%= f.text_field :title %>
    <%= f.submit %>
<% end %>

--

Structural Flow

By following these instructions, you can access the route domain.com/questions/new to create a new question, along with incorporating nested functionalities for answers under those questions.

Prioritize defining your objectives before structuring them in Rails, enabling a clearer path toward implementation.

Answer №2

After setting up your Rails application, a config/database.yml file was automatically generated to specify where your data is stored. The default location for storing data is in a sqlite database, which is ideal for beginners learning how to use Rails.

Rails utilizes database migrations to establish the structure of the database.

A quick way to kickstart your project is by using a scaffold. By running the following command in the terminal, a Rails model, a database migration, along with all necessary views and controllers will be created:

bin/rails generate scaffold Question question:string category:string

The output will display a list of files that have been generated, worth examining thoroughly.

Once the files are successfully generated, proceed by executing the following command:

bin/rake db:migrate

This action migrates your database, adding a questions table with two string columns (question and category), as well as certain Rails-specific columns. To view the table's structure, refer to db/schema.rb.

Upon completing the database migration, launch the rails server by entering:

bin/rails server

With the server up and running, navigate to localhost:3000/questions in a web browser to view your list of questions. Although the initial list may be empty, the scaffold includes functionalities to add, edit, and delete questions.

Plenty of tutorials are available for advanced steps, such as linking answers to questions.

Answer №3

If you're interested in learning how to build Rails applications, I highly recommend checking out the Ruby on Rails Guides. They offer a wealth of valuable information and resources for beginners.

Answer №4

When I first delved into railways, I took the time to grasp the MVC framework thoroughly before moving forward. This approach really helped me understand how the individual aspects of MVC functioned before combining them together. The rails guide provided valuable insights and resources for breaking down MVC components. Additionally, exploring projects with screencasts was instrumental in putting theoretical knowledge into practical application. Personally, I found base rails and the odin project particularly helpful in reinforcing my understanding.

Similar questions

If you have not found the answer to your question or you are interested in this topic, then look at other similar questions below or use the search

Error code 405: The POST method is not compatible with submitting multiple forms using JavaScript code simultaneously

Having multiple forms on a single page that are all submitted using the same JavaScript code presents some challenges. <form class="form" id="cancelchallenge1" method="POST" action="{{action('ChallengeController@cancelChallenge')}}"> <i ...

Utilize Meteor's ability to import async functions for seamless integration into method calls

Encountering an issue with this Meteor app where the error TypeError: vinXXX is not a function occurs when attempting to call an exported async function named "vinXXX" from within a method call in a sibling folder, which has been imported in the methods f ...

Using three.js to add an image onto an already existing object

I attempted to modify the appearance of an object by adding an image, but all my tests resulted in a white object... The goal is simply to apply an image to the entire object. Here is my test code: var obj = scene.getObjectByName('wall_20_118') ...

Tips for populating an array with information gathered from an axios request within a React application

Currently, I am using axios to fetch data from an API and attempting to store the retrieved data in a variable that represents an array within the state of the component. However, when I try to do so, I encounter the following error: Objects are not valid ...

Automatically execute a function when the number input changes, but only if no further changes are detected after a certain period of time

I am implementing angularjs with an input field for numbers. I want to trigger an action automatically after a certain amount of time, but only if no further changes have been made to the number within that time frame (let's say 2 seconds). In my exa ...

Unexpected behavior encountered with Angular module dependency injection

Having some difficulty managing dependencies for my node app. Here's the current structure: app.js var app = angular.module('myApp', ['myController', 'myFactory', 'rzModule', 'chart.js', 'myServ ...

Does the process of reading a `stream` consume resources in Node.js?

Node.js utilizes a stream as an abstract interface for handling streaming data. The node:stream module offers an API to implement this stream interface. During my exploration of NodeJs streams, I encountered confusion over whether a stream was involved in ...

Tips for transforming JSO into JSON data format

Here is an example: var info = [{"name":"john","age":"30"},{"name":"smith","age":"28"}] I am looking to convert the above json object to a format like this result: [{name:"john",age:30},{name:"smith",age:28}] Any suggestions on how to achieve this? ...

The pie chart is unable to render due to issues with accessing the external JSON file in Ext

I attempted to create a pie-chart using extjs, but unfortunately, the pie-chart is not showing up. Interestingly, when I pass the JSON data through AJAX inline, it works perfectly fine. However, when I try passing it through a file, it doesn't work a ...

Displaying a loading animation within a specific div element

Is it possible to use jQuery to insert a div into another div? My goal is to replace the contents of one div with a loading div while waiting for an ajax call to return. <div id="content1">foo</div> <div id="content2">bar</div> < ...

Issue arise when utilizing async/await in conjunction with .forEach method

My code is attempting to make a basic request to Redis in order to retrieve all the values (not keys) from my database. However, I am encountering an issue where the tab is being returned before the .forEach function even begins. This is evident because ...

Tips for effectively retrieving data from the server in Node.js

When attempting to retrieve data using /data with server-side fetch, I encountered the following errors: response.getCategory is not a function (()=>{ const url = "/data"; fetch(url) .then(response => { console ...

Selenium Scrolling: Improving Web Scraping Efficiency with Incomplete Data Extraction

I have been attempting to extract product data from a website that utilizes JavaScript to dynamically render HTML content. Despite using Selenium, implementing scrolling functionality to reach the end of the page, and allowing time for the page to reload, ...

Tips for structuring a news thread with a staggered approach

On my Drupal 8 website, I have set up a newsfeed. How can I display the news items in staggered rows? I would like the first item to align on the left and the second item to be on the right, repeating this pattern for all subsequent items. Currently, I am ...

Creating Filled DIVs using JavaScript

Although it may appear to be a common inquiry, my specific needs have not been addressed in any of the Stack threads I've come across. I am dealing with a series of nested DIV statements, as demonstrated here (not all CSS included). I am looking to ...

Revamp the sequence of divs using jQuery

<div class="example first">111</div> <div class="example second">222</div> <div class="example third">333</div> Can the order of these divs be changed using jQuery? I am looking to get: <div class="example second"&g ...

Tips on how to obtain the element reference while using v-if in Vue

I need to conditionally display a div inside a card that slides within a carousel. My current approach is to check if the ancestor element contains the active class, and then use v-if to decide whether it should be rendered or not. However, this method d ...

Error in Mongodb: Unable to convert value into ObjectId

Currently, I am attempting to retrieve only the posts belonging to users using the following code snippet: router.get("/:username", async (req, res) => { try { const user = await User.findOne({ username: req.params.username }); const ...

Having trouble installing @angular/cli 4 on Debian?

I'm having trouble installing @angular/cli on my Debian box. I already have the latest versions of Node.js and npm installed. Interestingly, Angular4 works perfectly fine on my Windows machine where I use it daily. However, when I try to get it runnin ...

React failing to display changes in child components even after using setState

When I delete an "infraction" on the child component, I try to update the state in the parent component. However, the changes do not reflect visually in the child component even though the state is updated. It seems like it's related to shallow update ...