I agree that putting all that logic and template vars into a template is confusing. Hard to create mocks of what the HTML should actually be structured like. Im using Jade so I can be terse and pre-compiling the templates. While in my Backbone application, I apply DOM-like rendering with Plates.js.
I dont think it's clear yet; changes to the network may only require a change in software to get this VoLTE function. The document suggests Verizon is testing this, but where did he get that info? There is no footnote about it. Also, would the phone even support it?
Sounds a lot like webOS; huge amounts of potential, only to be plagued by 'being ahead of the game'. Probably still 5 years out, sadly. I really like the idea of a JavaScript OS.
Why was webOS not mentioned in the article? They have a very nice linux stack, telephony, and radio interfaces as well. Not to mention it's been open sourced (both OS and framework)
There was no attempt made to use Ruby idioms in the article. I think you're missing the point. It was merely an example how one can use alternate build tools, while extending their JavaScript or Cordova based app using Ruby over Objective-C. Not everyone is a fan of Xcode nor Obj-C. Lots of education about the tools was included to help one get on their way; the intention was not to be craft a reason as to why Ruby idioms can make a developer more productive.
RubyMotion does make sense here, if your goals are as described in the article.
There is no build system in PhoneGap, just instructions on how to get it build with Xcode. Using the RubyMotion build tools will allow you to work around this, all you'd really need is the Rakefile in this case, no extra Ruby files.
It's agreed, that most may not need to write (or alter) Plugins for PhoneGap, but if you did, and if you'd prefer to write in Ruby, this article may be helpful!