Rails is no longer the new kid on the block. Basecamp was launched on February 4, 2004 and the '1 minute blog video' is a distant memory for many Ruby developers. Most new comers dont know Chunky Bacon and Why the lucky stiff!
Rails has just gone through its awkward teen years full of drama and tears. Like any teenager, Rails was influenced by a lot of external forces.
Rails 4 is about to launch and it’s more than clear what the path is; SOA, such a grown up, scary acronym, right? One of those buzz words that cool Ruby developers hated. But guess what? Ruby apps are now big and in the enterprise whether DHH likes it or not. The silver lining is that Ruby is still very relevant and way better suited for SOA's and we'll see why.