I agree that Rails team embracing either ViewComponent or Phlex would be a good thing for the framework, but I don't think that why the framework has dropped off the way it has. The industry was convinced long ago that JS and React were the future, and that's where all of the YouTubers/TikTok programming influencers went. How do you fight an echo chamber with orders of magnitude more influence and reach, regardless of what they say?
I still believe Ruby and Rails are great tools for small to medium sized teams in 2026, and the shift back to SSR and framework conventions (looking at you "Rules of React") very much validates what Rails has been doing all along. But it's not sexy, and sex sells in this industry just like any other.
I agree that Rails team embracing either ViewComponent or Phlex would be a good thing for the framework, but I don't think that why the framework has dropped off the way it has. The industry was convinced long ago that JS and React were the future, and that's where all of the YouTubers/TikTok programming influencers went. How do you fight an echo chamber with orders of magnitude more influence and reach, regardless of what they say?
I still believe Ruby and Rails are great tools for small to medium sized teams in 2026, and the shift back to SSR and framework conventions (looking at you "Rules of React") very much validates what Rails has been doing all along. But it's not sexy, and sex sells in this industry just like any other.