Reading code is an important skill for all developers. But, reading code is not as easy as writing code. In fact, it's thought to be as much as five times harder to read someone else's code than it is to write your own. Further, Ruby code (Rails in particular), poses unique challenges to the reader. So if it's so much extra work, why take on the challenge?

Isaac Newton is oft-quoted on the virtues of learning from the works of others. "If I have seen further, it is by standing on the shoulders of Giants." Reading the code of others is one way developers can stand on the shoulders of other great developers. Embedded within the code of the best programmers are gems that can not only improve your code, but improve the way you approach solving problems in code.

"Standing on the shoulders of giants" will take you through the code of several well-known Ruby and Rails developers. In the process, you'll learn techniques to improve your ability to read code written by others, find new and interesting tricks and practices, see how ideas evolve as they move between people, learn to recognize the "touch" of some well-known Ruby and Rails developers, and gain confidence that you can cut through any code that comes your way.