Thanks!
- http://pragprog.com/book/ruby3/programming-ruby-1-9 - http://pragprog.com/book/rails4/agile-web-development-with-r...
Read them in that order so that you learn Ruby first. After that your'll want to polish your Ruby and Rails idioms with:
- http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0672328844 - http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0321601661
Enjoy!
Also reading The Rails 3 Way (http://tr3w.com/), but I wouldn't recommend this one right away unless you are pretty comfortable with programming and Ruby already (or you know another language and pick up fast).
Also I second http://ruby.railstutorial.org/, that one is free and super helpful.
1) I'd highly recommend taking the Rails for Zombies course. it is free from code school. 2) In terms of online resources, RailsGuide and RailsTutorial have both been quite useful. 3) In terms of books, I like the Agile book. I like the reference in the second half of the book more than the tutorial coverage (which I also got from the sources listed in #2 above)
Some tips:
a) While scaffolding seems cool when you first see it, I suggest not using it for your first project. It hides too much stuff that you should probably understand.
b) I'd suggest going with Rails 3.0 for now. That's the advice I got.
c) I'm using MacOS and heroku. Fantastic experience so far!
d) Don't start with mastering the ruby language first. I did a quick primer and got started with rails.
Definitely worth buying his video series that accompanies the book (which is free online).
then:
http://railscasts.com/ (start with the early ones and work forward - I found these great to do at the end of a day)
Although I'd certainly also recommend the books that glasner mentioned, particularly "The Rails Way" by Obie Fernandez (although, from experience, it will freak you out a bit as a beginner if you try to read it cover to cover...)
Finally, http://stackoverflow.com/questions/tagged/ruby-on-rails - there won't be many questions you'll have initially that haven't already been the subject of a great answer (or indeed multiple great answers).