Eirikur Hallgrimsson on 28 May 2008 05:57:43 -0700


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Re: [PLUG] Need to build a web gui for a router box--possible contract job opportunity.


Thanks, Erek.  Sometimes I get hit with something like this and go into 
brain freeze because I don't have personal knowledge of all the options. 
  The code is all done for the functionality, we just need a web GUI 
that turns around and performs command line commands and config file 
editing.  Any solution that can do that is a candidate, and as you 
mention there are a lot of them.

Eirikur

Erek Dyskant wrote:
> Some things to consider:
> 	(1) You may want to couch it as two positions: a frontend designer and
> a backend developer.  If it turns out to be the same person, great, but
> a good site designer can really help out with projects like this, and is
> a very different skillset from a good developer.
> 	(1a) If you can pay for it, this may be a good candidate for just
> hiring a web application development firm to do the whole thing.  That's
> probably be your quickest to market decision if you pick the right firm
> with the right communication.
> 	(2) Have the application flow together before you start with the code.
> By this I mean feature list, wire frame, AJAX behavior list, database
> schema.
> 	(3) As for other web development environments to look at, there are
> many to choose from: PHP/symfony or codeigniter, Python/Django, ruby on
> rails, and many more.  This may be unpopular, but I see them  in a
> they're all the same light:  All of these provide you with the tools you
> need to make a manageable web application when combined with the
> appropriate talent.
> 	(4) When it's marketed in appliance form, what will the CPU and
> code-size limitations be?  This may inform your decision on web
> technologies to use. 
> 	(5) What will the integration between the frontend web application and
> the back-end configuration management be like?  This should be more
> robust than a set of commandline options, and should by documented fully
> for internal use.  Look into  REST/SOAP/XMLRPC, or maybe even a
> database-only interaction (both read from the same database, with hints
> for when an update has occurred)
> 	(6) Depending on your market, consider documenting the
> machine-interface for customer use.
> 
> 	Best of luck with the project.
> 
> Cheers,
> Erek
> 	
> 
> 
> On Tue, 2008-05-27 at 16:33 -0400, Eirikur Hallgrimsson wrote:
>> The good news is that the hardware is a Stratus dual server, which is to 
>> say a powerful box with a reasonable amount of physical memory.   OS is 
>> a recent Red Hat with paid support.
>>
>> The product is about as complex as one of the better home router/gateway 
>> boxes.   That's the size/complexity of the GUI that we need.  Today it's
>> four tabs at the top level.
>>
>> The bad news is that I took over this project from a person who left the 
>> company and everything I've found out about his implementation is that 
>> it's just a GUI shell that doesn't do anything. It's 
>> Python/GTK/Glade--right up my alley, really, I love the tools but my 
>> conscience requires me to advise my employer that there is so little 
>> actual code written that considering other approaches at this point is 
>> mandatory.
>>
>> Future versions of this router will be appliances with no screen or 
>> keyboard, so staying with the X/GTK approach looks broken to me even for 
>> the beta / V1.0.  I know of no way to map GTK/GLADE into a web app--do 
>> you???
>>
>> The only technology that I know of that would let us build this thing 
>> *quickly* with a built-in web app that functions as the GUI is Ruby on 
>> Rails.  I've hacked the Rails source to fix a problem, but I've only 
>> made trivial web pages with it.  I'm not the guy to hit the ground 
>> running confidently toward a great-looking configuration GUI using 
>> Rails.  I'm thinking Ajax, etc, but I'm not really a web guy.
>>
>> If it weren't for the time pressure--the GUI is now on the critical 
>> path, I could do this, in Rails, but I'm not convinced Rails is the way 
>> to go.
>>
>> What else should we be looking at besides Rails?
>>
>> If you are a Rails guru and this sounds like a piece of cake, I'll pass 
>> your resume along--the employment would be for the project duration and 
>> probably a job shop that my employer uses today.
>>
>> The same goes for any well-established competing technology--if you 
>> could do this for us, send me a resume.
>>
>> Eirikur Hallgrimsson
>> eh@mad.scientist.com
>>
>> Attachment:  The boss's version of my list of applicant requirements.
>>
>>   We’ve developed an application to perform certain tasks, but it’s all 
>> command-line driven (and not very user-friendly). We’re looking to 
>> create a web-based interface and we’re now in need of someone proficient 
>> in Ruby on Rails. Our developer listed the following criteria:
>>
>> - Someone who can really program in Ruby beyond the minimum amount 
>> needed for simple, static web sites. (Not just a person who read a Rails 
>> book or two)
>>
>> - Ability to design the database schema and program a fair amount of 
>> logic will be required.
>>
>> - Experience with JavaScript and Ajax.
>>
>> - Knowledge of Rails weak spots.
>>
>> - Experience in securing a Rails application.
>>
>> - A list of sites (portfolio) would be preferred.
>>
>> ___________________________________________________________________________
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> 
> ___________________________________________________________________________
> Philadelphia Linux Users Group         --        http://www.phillylinux.org
> Announcements - http://lists.phillylinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-announce
> General Discussion  --   http://lists.phillylinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug
___________________________________________________________________________
Philadelphia Linux Users Group         --        http://www.phillylinux.org
Announcements - http://lists.phillylinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-announce
General Discussion  --   http://lists.phillylinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug