Will html image paths still work after precompile? - html

Question

I'm building a Rails app, but I'm using a plugin in which I have to render my images using only html.
Since I haven't deployed yet, all my images are in RAILS_ROOT/app/assets/images/, so to render an image I have to write the following code:
<img src="/assets/image.jpg">
But when I'm ready to deploy to the web and I perform a precompile, all my images are supposedly going to be moved to my public folder. Will the html still work to link to the image, or will I have to change to link to a different path?
The plugin I'm using is Typeahead:
application.html.erb*
<script type="text/javascript">
//....
$('#typeahead').typeahead(null, {
maxLength: 5,
displayKey: function(thing) {
return "<div class='typeahead'><img src='" + thing.image_url + "'></div>";
},
source: bloodhound.ttAdapter(),
});
</script>
things_controller.rb
def typeahead
#render json: Thing.where(name: params[:query])
q = params[:query]
render json: Thing.where('name LIKE ?', "%#{q}%")
end
*Thing.image_tag is currently set to "/assets/[image.jpg]", except for each thing it's adjusted with the proper file name.

Answer 1

Not only are they going to be in the public folder, but they'll be renamed to include the fingerprint.
You must use the Rails helpers for all assets, see how to here and read the rest of the guide while you're at it :)

Answer 2

I think you should use non-stupid-digest-assets gem as it copies all your assets(mentioned in assets precompile list) in public/assets folder and then you need not to change your code before/after compiling.To install, you just need to add it into your Gemfile.
gem 'non-stupid-digest-assets'
I hope it might help you.

Answer 3

Joe, my suggestion would be to create a directory in your public folder to house your images, instead us using the app/assets directory. The public folder will allow the assets to not be altered by the rails pipeline, and you can link to them reliably using any external services that need the images.
As stated in RailsGuides:
Assets can still be placed in the public hierarchy. Any assets under
public will be served as static files by the application or web server
when config.serve_static_files is set to true. You should use
app/assets for files that must undergo some pre-processing before they
are served.
So you would need to add this line in config/application.rb
config.serve_static_files = true
As described in Rails general configuration.

Answer 4

It looks like you're storing your image_url in your model, and that's not working because assets don't have fixed URLs in Rails. I would override the getter in your model to use the asset_path helper, so it translates the path when that attribute is read (e.g., when the JSON is generated).
Something like:
# thing.rb
[...]
def image_url
ActionController::Base.helpers.asset_path(read_attribute(:image_url))
end
[...]

Answer 5

Short answer, no.
But it isn't that big a deal to remedy. Just move the images you need to reference with html into your Public folder. Then you can simply reference them with this code:
<img src="/image_name.image_type">
and the html will link to the correct path, both before and after precompile. So you don't have to change any code before you deploy.
BTW: I assume image_tag and image_url are the same column and you just made a mistake in one of the two times you mentioned it. If that's the case, then don't forget to change it to simply "/[image.jpg]".