Action Pack: Working with Routes, Controllers, and Views

Abstract

When you type a URL into your browser’s address bar and press Enter, a few things happen behind the scenes. First, the domain name is translated into a unique address by which the server that hosts the application can be identified. The request is then sent to that server, which begins a chain of events that culminates in a response. The response is usually, but not always, in the form of an HTML document, which is essentially a text document full of special code that your browser understands and can render visually on your screen. At this point, the request cycle is complete, and the browser waits for further input from you. If you click a link somewhere on the page or type a new URL in the address bar, the cycle begins all over again: the request is sent, the server processes it, and the server sends back the response.