If you could comment on the general design of classes and the way things are done in some Pali grammar programs that would be great.
I am using Ruby On Rails mainly because for web apps the MVC design pattern it uses makes web apps simple. I've messed around with clunky PHP systems before. Want to keep things simple this time. You've used Perl which as a scripting language is pretty similar to Ruby.
One web app I hope to write in Ruby On Rails is a automated grammar quiz system. For example, display four noun phrases, let's say a number plus a noun, since the number has to agree with a noun, one choice is right, the others don't disagree. If Pali grammatical info is embedded in a program this is the sort of thing one can do. Could also generate many simple interlinear translations like the ones at this site, the most useful Pali learning resource that I know of.
Also in the process of embedding Pali grammar in a program, one must attend to all the details one skips when one is studying the language from the top down. For example, sandhi seems to have a role in almost all grammar, even basic noun declension and exceptions can be explained by it, it seems.
I worked in IT for about 8 years after university but clunky messy high priced business applications like accounting, payroll, and inventory systems written in, ugh, Cobol and some C. But also have knowledge of nicer programming languages like Lisp from grad school. Discovered scripting languages many years later and in my work for a newspaper in Thailand I have written PHP customizations for Moveable Type web publishing system.
I have taken refuge in the Three Jewels but I like to drink beer with my friends, a violation of five precepts.