Lots of good advice, but I'd take the "X is crap" stuff & chalk it up to opinion.
Like most other things in coding, the right tool for the job will vary from person to person. Rails is probably not the best way to learn programming, but it does introduce a whole bunch of built-in best practices. PHP works for a lot of smart people and powers some big sites; it's an easy first language.
I've learned that there are lots of smart people out there & if they're willing to invest the time/effort and resources on something, chances are that it's probably got some kind of merit. To discount it as "crap" is the stuff of religion & holy wars.
I'd just say be open minded about things & remember that smart people often find different directions to come to the right answer. If it makes sense to you, go ahead and explore it -- even if it is "crap." It's hard to recognize the good without having encountered the not-so-good.
Like most other things in coding, the right tool for the job will vary from person to person. Rails is probably not the best way to learn programming, but it does introduce a whole bunch of built-in best practices. PHP works for a lot of smart people and powers some big sites; it's an easy first language.
I've learned that there are lots of smart people out there & if they're willing to invest the time/effort and resources on something, chances are that it's probably got some kind of merit. To discount it as "crap" is the stuff of religion & holy wars.
I'd just say be open minded about things & remember that smart people often find different directions to come to the right answer. If it makes sense to you, go ahead and explore it -- even if it is "crap." It's hard to recognize the good without having encountered the not-so-good.