Running and Restarting a Rails Puma Webserver in Production

Let’s dive into how to run a Rails Puma webserver process and how to restart it.

Rails 7.0 replaces byebug with ruby/debug

Debugging information can help you understand what’s going on in your application. After Rails 5 and before Rails 7, the byebug gem was responsible for tracking the execution flow. It has been providing a way to view a complete backtrace of the code while working on the application. Rails 7 introduces debug as its default debugger.

Rails 7: PreviewError now raised in ActiveStorage

When ActiveStorage handles media uploads, the Poppler gem takes care of preview generation to be used all across the application. In previous versions of Rails, a failure in creating a preview would capture a 0-byte IO stream and send that to ActiveStorage. For instance, if a user uploaded a media file and the preview failed to generate, a 0-byte preview would still be stored and rendered, causing unexpected errors in the application.

Subscribing, Sending and Receiving ActionCable messages with vanilla JavaScript

ActionCable is an awesome feature of Rails that allows for sending real-time messages. If your frontend is part of your Rails app, much of the plumbing is handled for you. However, sometimes you need to use ActionCable, outside of Rails. In this blog post I’ll show you how to subscribe to a channel, print out messages and publish messages, all with vanilla JavaScript. Although I’m using JS, the principles apply to any language that supports websockets.

Ensure location is safe before redirecting in Rails 7.0

When you access a Rails controller from another page, the originating URL is sent to the server as the referrer. In previous versions of Rails, the redirect_back query parameter with allow_other_host set as true could allow a vulnerability for an attacker to override this parameter and force the user to a malicious page.

ActiveRecord #load_async speeds up queries in Rails 7.0

The load_async method allows you to speed up queries by loading threads in an asynchronous way. It helps reduce the response time dramatically, especially for large databases. This method handles loading records, before they are referenced in the view, making the foreground thread do the work before it is sent to the background.

Proof of Concept in Software Development

It’s invigorating to come up with a new piece of software. Team members are inspired to build something new that addresses an issue after brainstorming possibilities and envisioning potential. Ideation is thrilling, but if you don’t put your idea through its paces, you might not get the thing you want.

Interactive Prototyping - How to Prepare Clickable Application Prototypes

Some of the most successful applications rely heavily on interactive elements to maintain user engagement. For example, the social media sector has discovered how to tap into a variety of psychological features that motivate consumers to continue using their apps. These days, product design is much more than just static images. Creating interactive prototypes is now easier and more helpful than ever before when developing digital products.

Why SaaS Product Reviews Matter + How to Boost Yours

Your leads are skeptical – maybe more so than they’ve ever been. As a result, your sales and marketing strategies aren’t enough anymore. To turn new leads into customers, you need to show them real-life results and get unbiased sources to vouch for you.

7 Step Guide to Content Marketing for SaaS [Updated April 2021]

According to a 2020 study by Demand Gen Report, 67% of buyers are reading more content than ever before making purchases. In fact, 77% noted that they tend to read more than 3 pieces of content before even talking to a salesperson.

UX Writing: a Deep-Dive Guide for SaaS Businesses

According to Toptal, 88% of customers are unlikely to return to your website if they have a bad experience. And a whopping 90% of users will stop using your apps if the interface doesn’t perform well.

How to Attract Quality Talent When You’re Bootstrapped

It’s hard enough to attract quality talent as a startup. But when you’re strapped for cash, finding qualified candidates who fit your desired company culture and long-term goals is even harder.

4 SaaS Landing Pages to Learn from in 2021

It’s easy to hit a creative wall when you’re building landing pages for your audience. And sometimes, the only way to get through it is to flip through some high-quality examples.

What is a SaaS Landing Page?

Landing pages are a critical piece of any successful SaaS marketing strategy. But they aren’t the easiest to create. Not only do they have to fit seamlessly into your marketing funnel, but they also need to convince leads to give you valuable pieces of information.

NumberHelper converts numbers to formatted values in Rails

Ruby on Rails is well-known for creating magic just with simple methods, and sometimes their benefits are underrated. With NumberHelper, Rails turns numbers into specifically formatted values.

Product-Led Growth in SaaS: Identifying the Challenges and Opportunities

You may feel like you have taken enough risks with your SaaS business so far, and for this reason, it seems better to follow the traditional sales-led growth strategy. As SaaS itself shakes up every traditional model we are used to, it’s time to look at how product-led growth can benefit your SaaS business.

A Comprehensive Guide to Using SaaS Metrics for Your Business

If you’ve ever heard of the butterfly effect, you know that every little action is interconnected, especially with SaaS. Every single interaction along the customer journey impacts an array of metrics determining the health of your business. This is highly relevant for customer retention; there is no one customer interaction responsible for keeping your customer happy. Instead, retention is a byproduct of the overall efforts of your entire enterprise.

A 10-Step Guide to Targeting the Right Customers in B2B SaaS

Growing a loyal and trust-worthy customer base is key to seeing your business taking off. But in the beginning, you’ll quickly realize that there are all types of customers out there, from terrible ones to ones you wish you could work with forever. A key aspect of making sure you’re mostly dealing with the latter is targeting the right customers from the get-go and focusing on making them happy. Here is a guide on how to do just that, in 10 simple steps.

How to Reduce Customer Churn

Churning customers isn’t something that many people at a SaaS company will enjoy discussing. After all, growth is sexy, and everyone gets excited about how many new customers you can onboard to your platform on a monthly or annual basis.

Customer Acquisition Explained: A Guide to Getting More Customers

It’s getting harder and harder for brands to understand what their customers want. The needs of the customer are constantly changing and unfortunately, this means that it is becoming harder for SaaS companies to acquire more customers. But just because it’s harder doesn’t mean it’s impossible, and SaaS companies are putting their best foot forward to get more customers through the door.

15 SaaS Business Tips to Help You Succeed

You would think that success in the SaaS industry is a given considering the massive surge in growth. SaaS organizations are now operating in more than 100 countries, with an annual growth rate of 18%. The revenue forecast for the SaaS industry was $94.8 billion. Gartner predicts this will be close to $143.7 billion in 2022.

Necessary SaaS Selling Techniques for Business Owners

Never has there been a better time for SaaS business startups and SaaS businesses in general. The market is booming as new opportunities are constantly arising. Despite being a billion-dollar industry, SaaS is still considered to be in its infancy. TechCrunch compares it to the PC market in ’83 or the smartphone industry in ’03.

What Does It Take to Raise Capital for SaaS, in 2021?

2020 threw us more curveballs than ever expected. Some SaaS companies have had to cut back on staff or delay the release of new products and services. Others have pushed forward with their plans. The pandemic that raged through this year will not disappear just yet, and the financial implications are likely to run well into 2021.

Best Practices to Offer Superior SaaS Customer Support

For a SaaS business to excel, it needs recurring income. The longer a client subscribes the more chance you have of recuperating the initial cost of acquisition and then making a profit. The importance of excellent support would seem obvious, but perhaps not many SaaS business owners are aware of just how crucial it is.

7 Tools to Acquire More Customers

Every SaaS company has a goal to stay afloat, avoid burning through the runway, and eventually reach profitability. However, that’s not always an easy task. Oftentimes, the biggest challenge in going from idea to profitable business isn’t the idea itself, but the execution of that idea and the ability to garner interest in the product.