Rails Social — A Full-Stack Social Media Web Application

Click here to checkout the application deployed on Render! (currently down)

This is a full-stack social media web application built with Ruby on Rails 8, Hotwire (Turbo + Stimulus), and PostgreSQL.
It allows users to create posts, follow others, like and comment on content, and manage their profiles — all within a clean and responsive interface.

This project was built as part of the Ruby on Rails curriculum from The Odin Project, and serves as a capstone to demonstrate what I’ve learned about Rails, full-stack development, and modern web design.

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Features

• User authentication using Devise (sign up, log in, edit profile)
• User profiles with avatar uploads via Active Storage
• Posts — create, edit, delete, and display user posts
• Likes and comments with live updates using Turbo Streams
• Follow system to connect users and view their posts
• Clean, responsive UI built with CSS
• Instant feedback through Hotwire (no full-page reloads)

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Tech Stack

• Backend: Ruby on Rails 8
• Frontend: Hotwire (Turbo + Stimulus), CSS, HTML
• Database: PostgreSQL
• Authentication: Devise
• File Uploads: Active Storage

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What I Learned

This project helped me bring together everything I’ve learned so far about full-stack web development in Rails. It also pushed me to explore areas where I had less experience (particularly in JavaScript) and adopt a learn-as-you-go mindset.

Some of the key takeaways include:

• Using Hotwire and Turbo to create dynamic, real-time features without a heavy JavaScript frameworks.

• Structuring a Rails app with clear model relationships and RESTful routes.

• Managing authentication, authorization, and profile editing with Devise.

• Designing a consistent, user-friendly interface with reusable CSS components.

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Future Improvements

There are several improvements and extensions I would like to work on next:

• A dark mode theme

• Photo uploads in posts

• More profile personalisation features (bio, social links, etc.)

• Chat rooms / direct messaging

• Smarter content organisation and recommendation algorithms

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Contact

Created by WillEdgington

📧 willedge037@gmail.com

🔗 LinkedIn

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Screenshots

Here are a few screenshots from the application.

Home Feed

Profile Page

Create Post

Post and Comments

Discover Page

Log-in Page (Devise)

Sign Up Page (Devise)