I wonder whether I should lern Ruby on Rails 3 (RoR) or ASP .NET MVC 3. Java web development has frustrated me and I’m looking for something better. So I’m looking for a framework and programming environment that lets me concentrate on the essential things.
As far as I know RoR it seems to be mature and much better than direct competitors like Grails. But Rails also looks a bit magic to me (read: I don’t understand what actually happens).
On the other hand ASP .NET helps me with static typing and a probably larger ecosystem. But it seems not to be a ready to go system, because you need a separate DB for development, a separate ORM and so on.
The Rails slogan is “Web development that doesn’t hurt”. But what hurts less: Rails 3 or ASP .NET MVC 3?
Why not learn both?
Sure, it’ll take more time and effort. As you go along you’ll be able to identify for yourself which aspects of each you prefer and will likely gravitate toward one over the other. But that’s a decision better made after you’ve started using them rather than asked (subjectively) on Stack Overflow.
They’re just tools. Might as well ask if a hammer is more useful to wield than a screwdriver. People may have opinions either way, but in the end it’s entirely up to you. Use them both, learn them both, learn first-hand the similarities and differences, and apply them accordingly where each one fits.