gistfile1.txt

Hey there,

I'm very excited to share this news: the course is finally launching!

It's been four months of work, but I'm really happy with the final product. I think I managed to distill all my best advice for creating, maintaining, and refactoring a top-notch Rails app.

As for the launch, here's everything you need to know:
 

Launch date 

Monday, October 16th; just a few days from now.
 

Topics covered

- ActiveRecord callbacks, their drawbacks, and alternatives
- The usefulness of Service Objects
- Laying on new funcionality with decorators
- Simplifying your app with Form Objects
- Addressing compound conditionals
- A handy bin/setup script
- Tips for comments
- Why it's worth thinking about levels of abstractions
- Control couples, and why to avoid them
- Avoiding instance variables in partials
- Improving tests with Page Objects
- Following REST to improve your design
- Speeding up your tests
- View specs, and their advantages over integration specs
- Testing external services 
- A nuanced look at Tell, Don't Ask
- The four-phase test pattern
- Improving the clarity of test failures
- Avoiding the Mystery Guest smell
- (And plenty of others!)
 

Format

The topics above are covered in a series of eight DRM-free, tightly-edited videos. 

You'll get to see me follow my usual TDD workflow, improve code that needs some help, and discuss the pros and cons of each approach. In other words, the course is jam-packed with live coding; my favorite way to teach. 

If you haven't had a chance to check out the samples I've been sending, but want to check them out now, head here:

→ Watch the sample lessons

 
Pricing

Instead of a single one-size-fits-all package, I’ve put together a pair of options so you can choose the one that’s the best fit for you.

Additionally, I'm going to be offering everything at a discount at first to celebrate the launch of the course.

The Basic Tier

Contents: All eight videos.
Cost: $79 during the launch discount, $99 later.


The Premium Tier

Contents:
All eight videos.
The source code shown in the videos (with branches so you can view each refactoring as a diff, and flip between the before and after).
Detailed notes on all topics, so you can quickly reference a refactoring or best practice without scrubbing through the videos.
  Cost: $99 during the launch discount, $149 later.
 

Pricing for teams

There is just one tier for team purchases. It includes everything (videos, code, and notes).

Here are the prices during the launch discount: 

Up to 5 developers: $299
Up to 10 developers: $499
Up to 20 developers: $699

I think the value of this course goes up exponentially if you watch it as a team. Developing a shared vocabulary and knowledge of refactoring techniques will make your code reviews and architecture discussions far more efficient. Even deciding as a team that you're *not* going to follow some of my advice will make for good discussions about why.


Wrap-up

The next time you hear from me (on Monday), the course will be available for purchase. (I'm pumped!)

Until then, if you have any questions that weren't answered in this email, please let me know.

Finally, thanks so much to all of you who provided constructive criticism while I built this course. It wouldn't have turned out nearly as well without your help.
Thanks also to those of you who simply shared your excitement when I sent out samples. Your enthusiasm was contagious, and helped me get this thing over the finish line.

Looking forward to Monday!

-Ben