I don't think it makes sense to compare these products directly. Samurai is a gateway only -- you still need a merchant account which is a lengthy process, while Stripe lets you start accepting payments immediately. That distinction implies they are for different use-cases. Samurai is useful if you want a simpler integration than Authorize.net and Strip if you have nothing, and want to get up and running immediately.
The simplest example of the difference is the sign-up process, Samurai requires you to enter a company name before you can start using the service -- Stripe doesn't even need an email address.
Another key difference is that (from what I can tell) Stripe handles all PCI compliance, whereas Samurai still requires you to handle some aspects.
I've found a number of fantastic iPad apps for my 2 year old. Our favorites at the moment are the ABC series by Peapod labs. I complete agree that it is hard to find them -- in particular because Apple doesn't have a "Kids" category -- they have "Education" and "Entertainment".
I think Famigo is a great idea -- though it would help if you had a "How old is your child?" prompt on the homepage, instead of burying it in the "Power Search" because I could care less about great apps that aren't appropriate for my kid.
I also feel like the most important thing I want to see in an app is some kind of educational experience. I'm not going to give my kid the iPad just to pacify him with a game -- I wish your site presented me with a straightforward way to filter by educational value, as opposed to "free/paid" since I'm willing to pay for an app if it is well rated and educational, but won't download a free game. I know the power search gives you a checkbox for educational, but that's not the same thing. Further -- does it count as educational just because they say so?
Some other concerns I have with Famigo:
* I can't see how to rate an app on your site.
* If I could rate, I'd like to be able to rate by the quality of educational content i.e. does this app do a good job of teaching ABCs or Counting?
* I couldn't find our favorite app "ABC Music" by searching, nor could I find "Cat in the Hat" what gives?
I've tried to use every IDE out there -- from Aptana RadRails to NetBeans, and RubyMine. After lots of frustration and headache, I've gone back to using the command line and TextMate. I actually think that TextMate while not "Integrated" with every aspect of development, has the two key features you really need -- code completion and syntax highlighting.
This isn't a code-maniac purist perspective either -- I really wanted to use an IDE and tried hard, but between the setup/dependences of the application, or the tricky integration with git, or the lack of visual CSS support, then something else (usually version incompatibility) would end up biting me every time I tried.
To answer your actual questions:
Maybe, maybe, yes, YES.
To answer the implied question: "Will an IDE help me develop a Rails app more easily?" IMO, probably not.
The simplest example of the difference is the sign-up process, Samurai requires you to enter a company name before you can start using the service -- Stripe doesn't even need an email address.
Another key difference is that (from what I can tell) Stripe handles all PCI compliance, whereas Samurai still requires you to handle some aspects.