Michael Buckbee
26 Jun 2023
It's a bummer that there weren't enough tickets to meet the demand for the inaugural Rails World, but it's a remarkable testament to the renewed energy in the Rails community.
An energy that I've found at the many new and returning regional Ruby/Rails conferences that have popped up.
In my experience, since they're smaller, they can:
Below I've listed every Ruby/Rails conference I could find and tried to pull out some of the unique and interesting ways that the organizers are boosting the community with their efforts.
Two outstanding examples that I can speak for personally are RailsSaaS and Blue Ridge Ruby both of which provided a tremendous overall experience.
Note: I've included conferences that have already passed as if you'd like to attend them, you'll need to get on their mailing lists now, as they're also likely to sell out.
| Name | Dates | Location |
|---|---|---|
| Brighton Ruby 2023 | Jun 30th | Brighton UK |
| Ruby for Good | July 27th - 30th | Fairfax VA (DC) |
| Wroclove.rb | Sep 15-17 | Wroclaw, Poland |
| Rails Camp West | Sep 15-18 | Oahu HI |
| Euruko 2023 | Sept 21-23rd | Vilnius, LI |
| Friendly.rb 2023 | Sept 27 - 28th | Bucharest, RO |
| Rocky Mountain Ruby | October 5&6 | Boulder CO |
| Ruby Conf 2023 | Nov 13-15 | San Diego |
| Helvetic Ruby 2023 | Nov 24th | Bern, Switzerland |
| Sin City Ruby | Mar 21-22nd 2024 | Las Vegas |
| Southeast Ruby | TBD | Memphis TN |
| Rails Conf 2023 | Apr 24th - Apr 26th | Atlanta |
| Ruby Kaigi 2023 | May 11th - May 13th | Nagano, Japan |
| Blue Ridge Ruby 2023 | Jun 8 - Jun 9th | Asheville NC |
| Rails Saas 2023 | Jun 1 - Jun 2nd | Athens Greece |
| Ruby Unconf 2023 | Jun 10 - Jun 11th | Hamburg Germany |
| Ruby Day 2023 | Jun 16th | Verona Italy |
| Tropical Ruby 2024 | Apr 4th and 5th | São Paulo, Brasil |
I've had the chance to speak with the organizer Andy Croll a few times, and he's a great voice in the community and you can tell he really cares about making everything he works on great.
The folks at Cleo wrote up their experience at Brighton 2022 and I was impressed with how much practical information they were able to take away.
I find Ruby for Good's premise really intriguing: as it's not exactly a conference; it's more of a coding jamboree where folks come together and contribute to meaningful projects development projects.
With a focus on using Ruby for social good, attendees collaborate on open-source projects to support nonprofits and community organizations. This unique event combines learning, coding, and giving back, fostering a sense of purpose within the Ruby community.
Something I'm always interested in seeing is that other languages and frameworks are up to (good ideas can come from anywhere) and it's impressive to me that Wroclove has baked this into their organizing principles for the conference:
Wroclove.rb serves best to people who are already fluent with Ruby. The ideas presented at our conference are very advanced. They are meant to inspire the way we write code, the way we help our clients and users. It's not uncommon for us to present you ideas that come from the Java and .NET worlds, we believe that their ideas can have a great influence on our community. There are good reasons, why our conference is called “the best Java conference in the Ruby world”.
Rails Camp West feels like it takes the "hallway track" to the beach. I really like their concept (and what a stunning location). I've never been, but I've heard great things.
Also, if you're looking for a tax-deductible vacation, you could do a lot worse than the North Shore of Oahu. Consider that it will probably be around 16C/61F in Amsterdam at RailsWorld, while in Oahu, the Rails Campers will be enjoying sunny 26C/80F breezes.
Euruko's celebrating its 20th conference this year in Vilnius, Lithuania.
Designed as a "traveling" conference - every year, it's held in another city (2022 was in Helsinki, Finland). There's a large emphasis on the overall experience and the expert speakers.
Something else that's distinctive is their pay-what-you-want online tickets - to draw in a larger audience.
As a bonus, the Euruko folks reached out with the following message: "If you were hoping to go to RailsWorld but couldn't get tickets, don't worry. Euruko has got you covered with a special offer. We have a limited number of discounted tickets available, offering a 20% off. Just use the code "HELLOWORLD" to secure your ticket."
Friendly.rb explicitly is aiming for a very calm and relaxed conference (which I can appreciate)
Note: both Jason Swett (organizer of Sin City Rails) and Jeremey Smith (organizer of Blue Ridge Ruby) are speaking, so the lineup is great.
If you haven't been, Colorado is just a really cool state, and Boulder, CO is fairly undeniably the coolest city in Colorado. (Suck it Golden).
Rocky Mountain Ruby offers a unique experience for Ruby enthusiasts in the picturesque setting of Boulder, Colorado. With a limited number of attendees, this conference creates an intimate environment for deep discussions, networking, and collaboration with very little chance of succumbing to altitude sickness.
Bonus: if you already took off the days for Rails World. Rocky Mountain Ruby takes place at nearly the same time.
Ruby Conf is one of the largest and most prestigious Ruby conferences, drawing Ruby enthusiasts from around the world. With a diverse range of sessions, workshops, and activities, Ruby Conf offers something for everyone, whether you're a beginner or a seasoned Ruby developer.
Taking place in the beautiful city of San Diego, this conference promises a memorable and enriching experience for all Ruby enthusiasts.
Helvetic Ruby is a new Ruby conference (and the first Swiss Ruby conference!) that takes place in the charming city of Bern, Switzerland.
You wouldn't know that this was their first conference as they've got a great lineup of very interesting speakers covering bootstrapping, Ractors, and 0 to 1 billion level scaling.
Sin City Ruby is a conference that combines the excitement of Las Vegas with the magic of Ruby and Rails. You haven't experienced ```Random.srand``` until you've lost $10,000 at an Angry Birds slot machine, and the casino manager takes you into a back room to "discuss" payment.
Southeast Ruby is a gathering of Ruby enthusiasts in the charming city of Memphis, Tennessee.
While there are no details about the conference (not even a date), I'm looking forward to it based solely on having always wanted to visit Memphis.
Rails Conf 2023 took place in Atlanta. I didn't get to attend, but what I heard from many attendees was that it was a wonderful opportunity to see folks in the community that they'd only previously known online and reconnect.
Ruby Kaigi is likely the largest Ruby conference on the planet, one of the most significant Ruby conferences globally, and was held in the scenic city of Nagano, Japan. With a massive gathering of Ruby enthusiasts, this conference offers a platform to explore the future of Ruby, discuss its latest advancements, and share experiences.
Sidenote: Ruby Kaigi's graphic design every year is stunning. Check out their gallery of Past Kaigis.
This took place in one of the most fantastic, most magical-looking venues.
The talks were great, and there was just so much energy, some highlights:
Disclaimer: we (Wafris) sponsored the conference, and by sponsoring, I mean that we bought everybody artisanal ice cream sandwiches (again, not joking).
Andrew Culver put on Rails SaaS LA in the heart of Los Angeles, and it was an absolute blast. If you're involved with running a SaaS + Rails, definitely attend, but even if you're not, there's still tremendous value as it attracts the folks tackling extensive real-world services and issues with Rails, and it's great.
Highlights:
Note: If you check out the site right now, it's pointing to their most recent conf in Athens, Greece, which if anything, looks even more awesome.
Ruby Unconf is an unstructured conference where the attendees themselves determine the agenda. With two tracks covering both Ruby and Rails, this community-driven event fosters an open and collaborative environment for learning and sharing knowledge. In the vibrant city of Hamburg, Germany, Ruby Unconf promises to be a unique and inclusive gathering for Ruby and Rails enthusiasts. These are just a few examples of the diverse regional Ruby/Rails.
Ruby Day 2023, a one-day conference celebrating the Ruby programming language will be held in the enchanting city of Verona, Italy. Despite its small size, this event promises an intimate and engaging experience for Ruby enthusiasts.
Ruby Day is an opportunity to deepen your knowledge, connect with fellow Rubyists, and appreciate the beauty of Verona while celebrating the language we all love.
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