m912

I'm a designer/front end developer with no idea where to start learning Ruby/Rails. Would you be able to give any insight on that?

I always compare this to football (or 'soccer') fans who always seem to know an impossibly large amount on the subject compared to me. I guess it's just what you're in to — I suppose the same goes for music and movies.

"What's the last major thing to ever use Optima?"

For starters:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marks_%26_Spencer

"Marks & Spencer (M&S) is a major British retailer, with over 895 stores in more than 40 territories around the world, over 600 domestic and 295 international.[3][4] The company, with its head office in the Waterside House in the City of Westminster, London, England,[5][6] is the largest clothing retailer in the United Kingdom, as well as being an upmarket food retailer, and as of 2008, the 43rd largest retailer in the world.[7] Most of its domestic stores sell both clothing and food, and since the turn of the century it has started expanding into other ranges such as homewares, furniture and technology."

http://www.shoppingnsales.com/wp-content/uploads/marks-spenc...

Tips on how to pick a typeface? Research further into the history of typography and current usage.

Generally there are 'safe' options for instance, in my opinion, you can rarely go wrong with Helvetica.

It is probably more about the actual setting of the type - sizes, line spacing, layout and so on. I would suggest focusing on and practicing with that more than focusing on actual typefaces.

Read more design-y blogs/magazines such as Brand New and Creative Review than just web orientated blogs such as the one linked here.