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Step-by-Step guide on how to move from Sprockets to Webpacker

by Kevin

Why we write this guide  There are several reasons The official guide provides very little info. We underestimated the effort to do this. This long post explains our similar experience. Yet, that long post doesn't give a brief step-by-step guide. So, we decide to fill the gap.             1. Add Webpacker to Gemfile  We recommend you to leave the sprockets gem in your Gemfile if it's still needed. Or, if you plan to move gradually. Don't worry because both of them won't interfere with each other.  In our…
Score: 3.81

How to migrate from jquery-ujs to rails-ujs

Why do this?  As usual, we'll start with why. Why do this to our existing Ruby on Rails application? There are several reasons We always keep our Ruby on Rails application up to date. Starting from Rails 5.1.0, rails-ujs is a part of the Rails itself. We hate duplication. Why should we keep using jquery-rails (the gem for jquery-ujs) if Rails itself already has the rails-ujs with similar functionality? We love to keep our Gemfile clean. We drop any gem that we don't use anymore. Jquery-rails is…
Score: 3.05

Optimize your Rails Code with Bullet Gem and Speed Up your site!

by Kevin

Why Bullet Gem?  For this Rails optimization, we'll focus on optimizing repeated SQL calls to retrieve objects associated with many relationships: N+1 queries problem. The solution to such an issue is an eager loading association.  Unoptimized N+1 affected code takes a significantly longer time as N times additional SQL calls are needed.  But, we should be careful when using that eager loading approach. This because unused eager loading can deteriorate our Rails app performance instead of improving…
Score: 2.42

Post-Apocalyptic Parenting in a COVID-19 World

This may well be the year when the American people learn to appreciate street smarts over book smarts.        Because kids right now can learn important lessons about how badly the adult world has lost it right now.   We have Betsy DeVos in charge of the Department of Education, which is like putting a fox in charge of the henhouse. We have the "demon seed" lady replacing Dr. Fauci as our national pandemic expert. The US is heading into the worst peaks of COVID-19 infection while the rest of the world…
Score: 2.41

A Letter to the Church

      The Church, specifically white, masculine, evangelical Christianity, has been a driving force behind colonialism, white supremacy, and Christian nationalism. The church has sought to erase any and all culture that does not align with its beliefs sought to hold power over women, force Black, Indigenous, and other people of color to assimilate, and excommunicate the LGBTQIA+ community.    This same Church claims to follow the teachings of Jesus, but if you ask me, I don’t think the Church today looks…
Score: 1.92

Ruby on Rails

Step-by-Step guide on how to move from Sprockets to Webpacker

by Kevin

Why we write this guide  There are several reasons The official guide provides very little info. We underestimated the effort to do this. This long post explains our similar experience. Yet, that long post doesn't give a brief step-by-step guide. So, we decide to fill the gap.             1. Add Webpacker to Gemfile  We recommend you to leave the sprockets gem in your Gemfile if it's still needed. Or, if you plan to move gradually. Don't worry because both of them won't interfere with each other.  In our…
Score: 3.81

How to migrate from jquery-ujs to rails-ujs

Why do this?  As usual, we'll start with why. Why do this to our existing Ruby on Rails application? There are several reasons We always keep our Ruby on Rails application up to date. Starting from Rails 5.1.0, rails-ujs is a part of the Rails itself. We hate duplication. Why should we keep using jquery-rails (the gem for jquery-ujs) if Rails itself already has the rails-ujs with similar functionality? We love to keep our Gemfile clean. We drop any gem that we don't use anymore. Jquery-rails is…
Score: 3.05

Implement Two-factor-authentication in Rails with Devise, ActiveModel::Otp, and Google Authenticator

by Kevin

Background  There are many gems for implementing two-factor authentication for Rails app out there. But, most of them don't work properly with Devise out from the box.   Some gems offering seamless integration with Devise gem never work smoothly with our existing Rails app. This is why we share our experience and strategy to implement two-factor authentication using Devise and ActiveModel::Otp gems.  This implementation, based on our experience, works very well with the latest Google Authenticator app…
Score: 2.7
Parenting

Post-Apocalyptic Parenting in a COVID-19 World

This may well be the year when the American people learn to appreciate street smarts over book smarts.        Because kids right now can learn important lessons about how badly the adult world has lost it right now.   We have Betsy DeVos in charge of the Department of Education, which is like putting a fox in charge of the henhouse. We have the "demon seed" lady replacing Dr. Fauci as our national pandemic expert. The US is heading into the worst peaks of COVID-19 infection while the rest of the world…
Score: 2.41

Helicopter parents

by Dominus

Parents love their children. They want to protect the young ones from everything that can harm them and teach their adorable little humans everything they need to know to become responsible, self-sufficient adults. Parents teach the child the proper way to do things and then they have to give that same child space to practice on their own. That means that in some situations the child has to be left alone to find his/her own solutions to increasingly more difficult problems, based on what they…
Score: 1.82

Miracle Happens ~ True Story of Faith, Hope, and Love in Infertility Treatment

by ChefPerry

  My wife and I had planned on being the typical American couple. We’d get married, work for a couple of years (to earn some stability and get to know one another) and then start our family. We had seen our friends follow this same agenda and it seemed simple enough.  We learned it was not always so simple…  Finally, after a decade of trying and reaching the ripe-old age of thirty-eight, we realized that having a baby just wasn’t going to happen the “old-fashioned way.”  So, we sought help.  Only to find…
Score: 1.08
Music Reviews

Best Summer Zoom Hangout Albums

by CFC123

Meet up with friends over Zoom and enjoy some of the best music of the 2000s, for gatherings of any occasion! Find your favorite genres and styles below, match the vibe, and let these great records spin. With a little something for everyone, check out the list below and let your tastes be heard!      I'm all about the classic HIP-HOP sound, both from the old guys and the modern greats. I've heard all the best out there, and I want my rappers to be......brash and cocky   Jay-Z – American Gangster     …
Score: 1.61
The Church

A Letter to the Church

      The Church, specifically white, masculine, evangelical Christianity, has been a driving force behind colonialism, white supremacy, and Christian nationalism. The church has sought to erase any and all culture that does not align with its beliefs sought to hold power over women, force Black, Indigenous, and other people of color to assimilate, and excommunicate the LGBTQIA+ community.    This same Church claims to follow the teachings of Jesus, but if you ask me, I don’t think the Church today looks…
Score: 1.92

The Catholic Church Cover-up

by Dominus

Many years ago, I learned German and was eventually able to work in Germany over summer break. For the last 10 years I have spent 1-2 months working in Essen, Germany and except the first couple of years, when I was still struggling with properly understanding the language, there hasn’t been one year when I haven’t heard of a sexual scandal involving priests of the Catholic Church. I am not Catholic, but in Germany, I worked for a foster home and retirement home complex owned by a pro-catholic…
Score: 1.11
Content Marketing

Freelance Writing in a Post-COVID-19 World

    How long will the shadow of the Corona Virus pandemic darken future history?   We do not know. Therefore, there's no way to know how much I should exposit COVID-19 in this here paragraph. Obviously, if I'm talking to readers in the short term, you're all sick of hearing about it. But did the pandemic gets cured by, say, 2021? Do I have to go back over what it was like for audiences in the 2030s? Or is it indelibly ground into the pages of history textbooks like the 1918 Spanish Flu was?  Just from…
Score: 2.22

How I Accidentally Became A Writer

  Hello, and thank you for dropping by to devote these microseconds to a meeting of our minds. That's an appropriate opener for the year 2020. This article was the editor's idea. No really, they said to tell everyone about the life of a writer. I will tell you right now that I press buttons on a flat electronic device in patterns that cause checks to arrive in the mail. Now that I have that dunked, a whole article is left to fill.  I just don't do autobiography well, but as I understand it some of…
Score: 1.03
Book Review

You're A Miracle: Understanding and Accepting the Vast Array of Human Emotions and Behaviors

  There are numerous books out there that will claim to change your life - from self-help to multi-step programs. But the jury is still out on how helpful such schemes truly are. That is not to say personal change cannot be inspired by someone else’s story, however. A story is a powerful thing. Words can be both a weapon and an elixir. Or, as Albus Dumbledore would say,    “Words are, in my not so humble opinion, our most inexhaustible source of magic, capable of both inflicting injury and remedying…
Score: 2.15

Doing Good Better by William MacAskill - The Best Charity is often far better than a Very Good One

  Most of us want to make a difference in this world in some way or another - whether it be through our career choices or donating to our favorite charities.  Are you aware that some charities are actually ineffective, even harmful?  Did you know earning to give can be a more beneficial avenue than working in a field that impacts people directly (i.e. The medical field)?  Have you ever wondered how you can make the biggest impact?  In Doing Good Better William MacAskill, author and co-founder of the…
Score: 1.3

The Wonder of Nature: Four Ecology Books Everyone Should Read

There are so many good books, yet so little time to read them - a thought I have often lamented, until recent developments. With the rise of Covid-19, many people have found themselves quarantined and in need of restful ways to spend some time each day   One way I have found stillness in the midst of chaos is through books.  Reading is a fantastic way to relax and find solace. Reading books about nature, perhaps even more so - which is why I have compiled this list of my favorite nature books with…
Score: 1.12
Civil Rights Movement

No More White Silence

  I keep grasping for words, but I know better - there are none. There is only grief, rage, and anguish. Would you expect anything less from so much senseless loss of life?    I don’t have words for the losses of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, and the countless others whose lives have been taken simply because of the color of their skin. No words of mine can fill the space their lives once held.     I can, however, speak out against the systemic racism and white supremacy that is still…
Score: 2.16
Body Image

Your Body is Not the Enemy

A couple of years ago when I worked at Cumberland Falls State Park, a young boy and his dad came to a program I was hosting - a craft program that involved making picture frames out of sticks, leaves, pinecones, and other materials found on the forest floor   The three of us went on a hike and the boy picked out all the materials he needed. As he was building his frame he picked up a pinecone that was quite battered and broken. Next to it laid a whole pinecone. It was, for all intents and…
Score: 1.21
New Music 2020

The 2020 New Music Mega-List!

by CFC123

All the new music fans out there miss going to concerts and listening with our friends. Check out this list to listen to all the critically acclaimed albums so far this year! 2020 has already had some excellent new releases, so don't sleep on anything below!  Don't get out of the loop, folks! Keep up-to-date on all the new records and artists out there, and keep an eye out for updates and additions. There's still great new music coming out every week, so don't miss out!    🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 Top-Notch!    Dua Lipa…
Score: 1.67

February 2020 Listen List - Don't Miss These Albums!

by CFC123

Periodically over the course of the year, we will produce two lists to highlight a few of each month's new albums. This list spans multiple genres, with each album ordered best to worst. With about 40 albums in both lists, make sure you Don't Miss These Albums! - - -      ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Amazing    Katie Gately – Loom      Loom is only Katie Gately’s second release, but she can already craft a deeply moving, complex, and emotional album. Her experimental approach is less written than designed, shaping the sound to…
Score: 1.22

February 2020 Listen List - The Less Good Albums!

by CFC123

Periodically over the course of the year, we will produce two lists to highlight a few of each month's new albums. This list spans multiple genres, with each album ordered best to worst (here’s a link to the best albums of February). With over 40 albums in both lists, here are the Less Good albums of February! - - -        ⭐⭐ Satisfactory    Wrekmeister Harmonies – We Love to Look at the Carnage     This experimental duo has never feared to let the darkness creep into their music, but beauty often shows…
Score: 1.18
Pollinator Gardens

The Birds and the Bees: Why Pollinators Are Important and What You Can Do to Protect Them

Without pollinators, the human race and earth’s terrestrial ecosystems could not survive. That may be a heavy note to start on, but it is crucial to know the importance of pollinator species, such as bees, butterflies, and some birds. Everything from agriculture to lovely wildflower meadows depend upon them.     The vast majority of plants cannot reproduce on their own.     More than one-third of the world’s crop production is only possible through pollination. The vegetables, fruits, and nuts we enjoy…
Score: 1.81