This license is commonly used for video games and it allows users to download and play the game for free. There are many different open source licenses but they all must comply with the Open Source Definition - in brief: the software can be freely used, modified and shared. Programs released under this license can be used at no cost for both personal and commercial purposes. Open Source software is software with source code that anyone can inspect, modify or enhance. Freeware products can be used free of charge for both personal and professional (commercial use).

Add value to the growing community of Windows-based Ruby developers by providing a place that summarizes the hard-won lessons and issues with building Ruby and Ruby C extensions natively on Windows.įreeware programs can be downloaded used free of charge and without any time limitations.

Provide a build environment via this project and complementary projects like rake-compiler to help developers easily build Ruby and Ruby C extensions from source code.

Provide an optional Development Kit for those interested in building mswin32-compatible Ruby extensions natively on Windows platforms using an MSys/MinGW-based toolchain.

Provide an easy-to-use Windows installer for quickly and painlessly installing a fully functioning baseline MRI Ruby environment on Windows platforms.

Specifically, the goals of the RubyInstaller are:

But it is slower and it’s difficult to use Windows native resources. Cygwin offers only a few advantages over RubyInstaller like a better shell and universal UTF-8 support. Ruby can be installed among many other tools, but can not execute Linux binaries directly (in contrast to WSL). It provides a POSIX environment on Windows. Some of the shortcomings are due to Windows operating system internals (like poor shell support) and others are due to the fact that many Ruby developers prefer a UNIX-style system.Ĭygwin is another alternative to Ruby Installer. It is a great foundation to use Ruby for development and production, especially if you want to use Ruby for day-to-day scripting or require access to Windows resources like hardware devices, DLLs, OLE, graphical user interfaces, or GPU.Īlthough the Ruby community is continuously working to get Ruby on Windows as smooth as possible, it’s still slower and less convenient compared to Linux or macOS. It combines the possibilities of native Windows programs with the rich UNIX toolset of MSYS2 and the large repository of MINGW libraries. It’s suitable for small scripts as well as large applications. And Ruby is a great language for beginners as well as professionals.

RubyInstaller is the easiest and most used Ruby environment on Windows. This is a self-contained Windows-based installer that includes the Ruby language, an execution environment, important documentation, and more.

Rubyinstaller 1.8.7 windows