Ask HN:WHich testing framework should I use as a Rails beginner?
My question is for TDD which testing framework will be easier to pickup for a beginner?
I find RSpec a bit hard to grasp.
http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=4376527
Just keep in mind, learning Rails isn't going to be something you can do in just a couple or even a few months. To become good at it you'll have to practice day in and day out for years. But the good thing about it is, you will be able to deploy simple apps with minimal knowledge very soon which is fun!
My favorite tutorial thus far has been Michael Hartl's at http://ruby.railstutorial.org/ruby-on-rails-tutorial-book
It's long but it's very informative and walks you through rspec if you do decide to use that. Best of luck!
Given what you're looking to do: Geocoding gem: http://railscasts.com/episodes/273-geocoder Devise gem: http://railscasts.com/episodes/209-devise-revised
The former uses the google maps api to handle geocoding but you could use it as well to figure out the distance between two points. You could also use the great circle formula yourself if you know the lat and long of both points (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great-circle_distance).
The latter is one of his pro episodes but if you don't mind watching semi-dated material and picking up the rest from docs you could watch the original episode.
I find the railscasts to be extremely helpful when it comes to understanding both what's available to the rails community (lots of gem coverage) and unique ways to deal with common problems.