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The world is becoming increasingly web-based. Health care institutions are utilizing the web for personal health records, surveillance, communication, and education; health care researchers are finding value in using the web for research subject recruitment, data collection, and follow-up. Programming languages, such as Java, require knowledge and experience usually found only in software engineers and consultants. The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate Ruby on Rails as a feasible alternative for programming questionnaires for use on the web. Ruby on Rails was specifically designed for the development, deployment, and maintenance of database-backed web applications. It is flexible, customizable, and easy to learn. With a relatively little initial training, a novice programmer can create a robust web application in a small amount of time, without the need of a software consultant. The translation of the Children's Computerized Physical Activity Reporter (C-CPAR) from a local installation in Microsoft Access to a web-based format utilizing Ruby on Rails is given as an example. |
