ActionCable vs. Socket.io at ConFoo

How do you achieve real time, bi-directional, event-based communications in your apps? The Socket.io library is tested and true. ActionCable, new with Ruby on Rails version 5, is a challenger. Which solution is better, and why?

This presentation compares Socket.io and ActionCable (included w/Ruby on Rails version 5).

Transcript

1. ActionCable
   vs. Socket.io
   @RayHightower
   ConFoo - Dec 5-7, 2016
   Vancouver, BC
   Canada
   

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2. What? Why?
   Examples.
   Comparison.
   

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3. ActionCable is…
   •Real time.
   •Full duplex.
   •Event based.
   

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4. Half Duplex
   Walkie-Talkie
   Full Duplex
   Phone
   

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5. HTTP is
   stateless.
   

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7. https://xkcd.com/869/
   

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8. WebSocket
   Protocol
   

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9. REmote
   DIctionary
   Server
   

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10. In-memory
    Key-value store
    Dictionary
    Hash
    {
    

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11. pub/sub
    

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13. Channels: Clients
    Rooms: Server
    

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14. Create the app.
    

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16. Generate the
    rooms controller.
    

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18. Generate the
    channel.
    

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20. Create a home for
    the messages in
    the database.
    

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22. Remember the
    migration!
    

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24. 1 Rails.application.routes.draw do
    2 get 'rooms/show'
    3
    4 end
    1 Rails.application.routes.draw do
    2 root to: ‘rooms#show'
    3
    4 end
    config/routes.rb (before & after)
    

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25. 1 class RoomsController < ApplicationController
    2 def show
    3 @messages = Message.all
    4 end
    5 end
    app/controllers/rooms_controller.rb (before & after)
    1 class RoomsController < ApplicationController
    2 def show
    3 end
    4 end
    

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26. app/channels/rooms_channel.rb
    1 # Be sure to restart your server when you modify…
    2 class RoomChannel < ApplicationCable::Channel
    3 def subscribed
    4 # stream_from "some_channel"
    5 end
    6
    7 def unsubscribed
    8 # Any cleanup needed when channel is unsubscribed
    9 end
    10
    11 def speak
    12 end
    13 end
    

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28. The Remarkable Journey
    of a Single Web Request
    by Aaron Kalin
    https://windycityrails.com/videos/2015/#9
    

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30. Another chat app?
    

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31. Gartner Hype Cycle
    Image by Jeremy Kemp
    https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Gartner_Hype_Cycle.svg
    

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32. Gartner Hype Cycle
    ActionCable
    Slope of Enlightenment?
    

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35. +
    

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36. WebSockets
    and
    Robotics
    

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37. Remotely
    Operated
    Vehicle
    

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49. Browser
    BeagleBone Black
    Arduino
    Socket.io
    Serial
    Node.js
    Chrome C++
    

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50. Browser
    BeagleBone Black
    Arduino
    ActionCable
    Serial
    Ruby
    Chrome C++
    

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51. Comparison
    

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52. •ActionCable is…
    •Socket.io is…
    

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53. YACA
    OpenROV
    vs.
    

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54. Fitness for a
    particular
    purpose.
    

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55. Thanks!
    RayHightower.com
    

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