From Ruby to Elixir: Unleash the Full Potential of Functional Programming

Acknowledgments....10

Introduction....12

Who Should Read This Book?....13

About This Book....14

About the Code....15

Online Resources....16

Part I. Fundamentals of Elixir....17

1. Why Elixir? Why Now?....18

The Joy of Ruby....19

The Case for Elixir....21

Erlang, OTP, Elixir, and Friends....25

Install Elixir on Your Computer....29

Write Your First Elixir Code....31

Wrapping Up....33

2. New Language, New Syntax....35

The Big Picture....36

Data Types....38

Operators....41

Module and Function Basics....44

Fun with Functions....49

Capturing Functions....54

Advanced Module Keywords....57

Compile Time vs. Runtime....61

Wrapping Up....63

3. Working with Data....65

Lists—Not Arrays....66

Maps—Your Data Layer Foundation....71

Implementing Data Structures....77

Enumerating Data Structures....80

Wrapping Up....86

4. Pattern Matching Your Way to Success....88

Pattern Matching Basics....90

Use Patterns for Control Flow....97

Level Up Your Functions....104

Wrapping Up....110

5. GenServers: Build Cities, Not Skyscrapers....111

Parallelism vs. Concurrency....113

Explore Elixir Processes....118

Go Parallel with GenServers....126

Be Parallel, Be Cautious....132

Build Cities, Not Skyscrapers....134

Wrapping Up....136

Part II. Tools of the Trade....138

6. Persisting Data with Ecto....139

What Will We Build?....141

The Foundations of Ecto....145

Write an Ecto Schema....148

Use Migrations to Create Database Tables....155

Use Changesets to Persist Data....160

Query Data with Ecto.Query....165

Put Everything in a Context....175

Wrapping Up....178

7. Serving Requests with Phoenix....181

Explore the Foundations of Phoenix....182

Route Requests Through Phoenix....188

Serve Requests with Phoenix Controllers....193

Manage Static Assets....203

Use Components to Keep Your User Interface Clean....206

Phoenix Is More Than Controllers....212

Wrapping Up....214

8. Outbound HTTP Requests with Req....217

Decide on Which HTTP Client to Use....219

Prep Your Project for Req....224

Use Req to Make Requests....227

See Your App in Action....231

Wrapping Up....234

9. Asynchronous Jobs with Oban....236

Understand Async Job Systems....238

Explore Asynchronous Jobs in Elixir....243

Implement an Oban Worker....248

More About Oban....256

Wrapping Up....259

10. Testing Elixir....261

Create Your First Test....263

Test an Ecto Query....268

Test External API Requests....271

Test Phoenix Requests....275

Test Oban Jobs....281

Wrapping Up....285

11. The Future of Elixir....287

Deployment and Observability....288

Real-Time Apps with LiveView....290

GraphQL with Absinthe....291

Machine Learning with Nx and Bumblebee....292

Type Systems....294

Wrapping Up....296

The End of Our Journey....298

Bibliography....300

Elixir will change the way you think about programming. Use your Ruby experience to quickly get up to speed so you can see what all of the buzz is about. Go from zero to production applications that are reliable, fast, and scalable. Learn Elixir syntax and pattern matching to conquer the basics. Then move onto Elixir's unique process model that offers a world-class way to go parallel without fear. Finally, use the most common libraries like Ecto, Phoenix, and Oban to build a real-world SMS application. Now's the time. Dive in and learn Elixir.

Whether you're a seasoned Ruby developer looking to expand your skill set or a programming beginner looking for a solid foundation in Elixir, this book has what you need to get up to speed quickly. Elixir is a functional language with a fairly small footprint. This makes it easier to learn and put into production than other languages. Plus, it's built on forty-year-old foundations that give your applications rock-solid stability.

The first part of this book is all about developing expertise in the language. Learn about the core data types, build application data structures, enumerate over data, and use pattern matching to control the flow of an application. Elixir has an amazing process model that allows for (actually) easy parallel processing. Learn how to tap into this process model so you can leverage that power yourself.

The second part of this book builds a real-world application using the most important libraries in a web developer's toolbox. Each library is compared to its similar Ruby library so you'll quickly see similarities and differences. We'll use Ecto, Phoenix, and Oban to build a SMS application powered by Twilio.

What are you waiting for? Tap into your Ruby knowledge and start building scalable Elixir applications today.

What You Need

You'll need Elixir 1.14+ and Erlang/OTP 24+ installed on a Mac OS X, Linux, or Windows machine.