Site News #15: New content, new welcome series

Hiya graceful devs! It’s been a little while since the last update. My real-life vegetable garden is tailing off its production as the St. Louis weather cools, but Graceful.Dev updates are going strong.

Content Updates

Since the last news post, we’ve added a few brand-new topics to the collection:

• As a follow-on to Ruby Sequencing Operator, the new Bouncer Method topic covers an important technique for checking method inputs at the door—with a uniquely Ruby twist.
• I’m especially excited about the new video on Creating Seams. This one is a little longer than usual, but I think the extra length is justified. Understanding how to create and exploit seams in existing code is among the most essential tools a developer can have. The demonstration language is PHP, but the technique shown is universal.
• Most recent is a new topic on Ruby Block-Local Variables. This addition to the Scintillating Ruby course covers a somewhat obscure Ruby feature for “shadowing” variables used within a block. If you’ve ever had questions about Ruby variable scoping within methods, this episode may clarify your understanding!
• New freebie: not new to the site, but the classic video on subclassing Ruby’s core Array class—and why you probably shouldn’t—is now free to all. So tell your friends!

Site Updates

• New email series: As you may have already seen, we’ve started sending out a new Graceful.Dev welcome series of emails to members! Called the “Docent’s Tour”, each email in the series introduces an area of the Graceful.Dev content, and offers a tip on making the most out of the site. You can control whether you receive these emails in your profile.
• New forum: in an effort to boost the community aspect of the site, I’ve kicked off a new forum area for general discussion called The Patio. Come say hello, and feel free to kick off your own threads on topics technical or non!
• A small tweak: as you may have noticed, the script-and-code for each topic has moved. It’s no longer a fold-out section. Now we’re making better use of the site’s theme, and giving the [tran]scripts their own tab:

And that’s all for now. Stay graceful!

— Avdi