Status update: compilers and ruby on rails

So you probably noticed I haven't been posting much about the parsing stuff lately and thats because I stopped working on it. I got to the point where wikipedia + lecture notes isn't quite cutting it and I've been unable to find a resource that tackles the subject matter in a way I am comfortable with. A good textbook could make a big difference and there are a few out there that look promising but my heart is not in it at the moment. I'm somewhat torn in between wanting to finish the projects I start and making sure that I am enjoying the projects. However the simple fact is that this plan of less video games and more programming/reading/learning is only sustainable if I am really enjoying the work. My intention is to come back to the compilers stuff in a few months and spend time looking at some of the programs out there that make compiler/interpreter development easier. Previously I avoided this because I wanted to learn the fundamentals and I found this to be worthwhile. It was never my intention to implement an actual compiler or interpreter completely from scratch, although I had hoped to get somewhat further than I did. In any case, the topic that holds my interest at the moment is that of a web development framework called Ruby on Rails. Rails interests me for a number of reasons but I think the primary driver is frustration with ASP.NET at work. I have read about the model-view-controller pattern but never actually worked with it first hand so I am curious about how it compares to developing with web forms. Rather than downloading and configuring Rails locally I am making use of Heroku - they provide free Rails hosting with an integrated development environment. I'm sure you will hear how I'm finding it soon enough.