RPI + LCD + Ruby (GPIO question)

[voorTech]

Hello, obvious newbie here,

I've got my rpi working with an 16x2 lcd, using the Adafruit tutorial. It works with the Python code.

I want to achieve the same thing using Ruby. I already tracked down a library that allows me to
access the GPIO from Ruby - but then the questions start.

I also read through the tech docs on the display to get a better idea what commands is it expecting, but I'm pretty sure I'm lacking some very basic knowledge.

If anyone can point me to some documentation / tutorials / basic info, then that'll be much appreciated.

* First I have questions about the GPIO - I (think I) understand the basic concepts, from what I can tell they are basically just ports you turn off/on, but I want to read up on the specifics.
* Second question is about the display and how to send commands using the GPIO. I'm using a 4 bit command set, but it is not clear to me how if it is just a matter of setting the right pin, or if the display is expecting any other inputs.

Thanks,

Rob.