From: Marc Heiler <lists@...>
Date: 2012-05-15T22:11:31+09:00
Subject: A million reasons why Encoding was a mistake

Newcomer wants to try Ruby.

Newcomer comes on IRC and asks for help.

Newcomer is on Windows.

Newcomer installs Ruby 1.9.3 and manages to run it. IRB works for him.

Newcomer then installs radiant via:

  gem install radiant

Newcomer runs into problems:

  http://paste.ubuntu.com/988874/

The relevant part:

C:/Ruby193/lib/ruby/site_ruby/1.9.1/rubygems/defaults.rb:64:in `exist?':
"\x8D" to UTF-8 in conversion from Windows-1254 to UTF-8
(Encoding::UndefinedConversion Error) from
C:/Ruby193/lib/ruby/site_ruby/1.9.1/rubygems/defaults.rb:64:in `def
ault_path'

It is a known fact that I do not like the Encoding situation in Ruby at
all. But I am old and can deal with myself being grumpy.

What about newcomers though? This is about the first impression
they get from Ruby.

Do we really want to send them over the cliff into Encoding
problems like this?

Do we really want to force newcomers to deal with this mess?

How are they supposed to resolve problems like this ON THEIR OWN?

Back then, years ago, matz said that he wants to put the emphasis of
Ruby on "how programmers feel" when using a programming language. And I
learned ruby because of that interview back then.

Ruby is still absolutely awesome.

But the Encoding situation, if newcomers are confronted with this,
simply kills the fun they may have had when trying to use and code in
Ruby.

I'd appreciate it if anyone can tell me how they can resolve situations
like this, because I also recommended to use rubyinstaller. But the next
time, I will simply recommend people to stick to 1.8.7 instead, because
that ruby version is the better ruby.

The real ruby.

-- 
Posted via http://www.ruby-forum.com/.