I don't know if Why the Lucky Stiff (the name alone causes me some trepidation) is truly criminal, but spend a few minutes at his (her?) (its?) web site and tell me that that's not the work of a madman (madwoman?) (madperson?).

Still, he/she/it has created why's (poignant) guide to Ruby, which seems almost coherent, despite the fact that by the third paragraph, he's (let's just assume it's a he) talking about housecoats. I've never learned a language from cartoon foxes before, but by chapter 3, they're already showing me code.

And by chapter 4, you've made your own starmonkey by plunging car keys into an apple.

Update: I've come to appreciate what a freakin' genius Why is. He's (yes, Why's a he) funny, smart, and incredibly prolific. His RedHanded blog is a great source for what's new in the world of Ruby, Rails, and general wackiness. I've become something of a groupie. This is one lunatic that's going places (and not necessarily in a straight jacket). I'll be able to say I knew Why when...