Hello. I am somewhat of a novice when it comes to programming. To begin programming in RoR, what other programming languages should I know, and what is the reading material I should study?
Thanks for any feedback
You will find learning Ruby a very nice start. Don't try and go back and learn something like C, or even C++. Here you can learn ruby http://www.humblelittlerubybook.com/
Then start your first Rails project. I'd say do the demo in Agile Web Dev. with Rails and after that start your first application. Search google, especially the API for what you don't know how to do, and go from there.
I'd also take a look at "Learn To Program" my Chris Pine, that book helped solidify some of the concepts of object oriented programming (OOP) that I was a bit sketchy on. You can find it over at the pragmatic press.
The best part is it looks at all of the intro programming concepts with ruby!
-Jon
I also began with "Learn to Program", then Agile Web Development, 2nd Ed. I'm now working through "Programming Ruby" (a.k.a. "Pickaxe"), and I wish that I had read it earlier. The more you know about Ruby, the better you will ultimately be in Rails. To make things even better, there's a 3rd edition that's now available for Ruby 1.9 (Pragmatic Bookshelf: By Developers, For Developers).
Be patient. Rails is in an interesting place right now, and I know people who are frustrated with the lack of available resources for Rails 2.0. Search this list for some recommendations regarding the newest version of Rails, and don't wait until you've pulled all of your hair out before you ask questions here, either.
-Kyle
I found "Build Your Own Ruby on Rails Web Applications" by Patrick Lenz a very good start for a complete newbie.