Top 12 Tutorials on Ruby On Rails...Ravine of tutorials opensource...ROR, PHP, Java

1. Rolling with Ruby on Rails - Curtis Hibbs of ONLamp.com offers his first excellent introduction to Ruby on Rails. This is the article that got me really excited about RoR.
2. Rolling with Ruby on Rails, Part 2 - The sequel to Curtis Hibbs excellent series of articles.
3. Four Days on Rails (PDF) - a great tutorial that is broken down into simple tasks that you can do over a four day period. To be quite honest, this tutorial only takes about 2 hours, but nonetheless it is very well organized!
4. Really Getting Started in Rails - Amy Hoy has a great tutorial that not only covers RoR, but also introduces the reader to many of the basic concepts of the very cool Ruby scripting language.
5. Tutorial in Ruby on Rails - is a basic tutorial aimed at newbies.
6. Fast-track your Web apps with Ruby on Rails - IBM jumps into the sandbox with an excellent (as usual) tutorial to get you on your feet fast.
7. Getting Your Feet Wet With Ruby on Rails - Talking about getting on your feet fast, this one from Webmonkey promises to get them wet too!
8. How to make a todo list program with Rails - Another excellent introductory tutorial that actually helps you build something useful!
9. Ajax on Rails - Curtis Hibbs offers part 3 of his look at RoR
10. Many to Many Tutorial for Rails (PDF) - is a nice document that begins to delve into some of the more complex parts of web application programming, but in fine Ruby on Rails manner, it’s really not too complicated!
11. Distributing Rails Applications - A Tutorial - So now you’ve built your RoR application, how to you push it to a production server? This tutorial covers the bases.
12. Installing Ruby on Rails with Lighttpd and MySQL on Fedora Core 4 - and of course this list wouldn’t be complete without a shameless bit of self-promotion, this tutorial promises what it says. Other install tutorials can be found here, here and here!

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Google AdWords Algorithm Update

Do you run an AdWords campaign and want to see your business in that top ad position? Now it may be within your reach. In the upcoming weeks, Google will be tweaking their AdWords ranking algorithm which is used to determine which ads are displayed in the top spot, above organic search results.

The updated algorithm will continue to use the Google quality score and cost per click (CPC) elements in the formula, with a small change for the first ad position. Instead of using the advertisers actual cost per click, it will factor in the maximum CPC bid for each advertiser. This will allow advertisers to have more control over their ads showing in the top position.

From the Google AdWords blog:

"Actual CPC is determined, in part, by the bidding behavior of the advertisers below you. This means that your ad's chance of being promoted to a top spot could be constrained by a factor you cannot influence. By considering your ad's maximum CPC, a value you set, you will have more control over achieving top ad placement."

Let's look at a quick example. Say I have an ad with a maximum CPC of $0.25, but there are no competitors for my keywords; then I'm only paying the default cost of $0.05 per click. If any new advertisers enter the market for this keyword, I will be credited for my maximum CPC bid of $0.25, giving me greater control over retaining that top spot.

Some bloggers have raised concerns over the new formula, saying it will allow the system to be abused by advertisers willing to pay more and is just a move to increase Google profits. It should be noted that Google still use quality score as the greatest determining factor in top ad placement, making it unlikely for junk advertisers to buy their way to the top. But as far as increasing Google's profits go - it's likely that some advertisers will see an increase in the price of their keywords. As always, let us know what you think via our blog comments!