asterisk users - Dec 2007 - New feature: calling all bug marshals

Hi.

I wanted to write a "popcorn" app for myself, both to learn how to 
script in extensions.conf, but also because it was something handy.

Along the way, I found myself doing something like:

[popcorn]
exten => s,1,Set(FUTURETIME=$[${EPOCH} + 10])
...
exten => s,n,While(${EPOCH} < ${FUTURETIME})
exten => s,n,Wait(0.01)
exten => s,n,EndWhile()
exten => s,n,Play(beep)
exten => s,n,Hangup()

and hating myself for it (my Asterisk runs on a 500MHz Geode LX).

So I decided it would be useful (in general, and educational for me in 
particular) to write a WaitUntil() application instead.

Well, I've done that.

I was going to file a bug and then post a "fix" to get their feature
in,
but the Bug guidelines seem to be pretty clear that this is not the way 
to go.

So, I'm posting here instead.

The example to paste into the documentation or extensions.conf is:

[popcorn]
exten => s,1,Answer()
; the amount of delay is set for English; you may need to adjust this time
; for other languages is there's no pause before the synchronizing beep.
exten => s,n,Set(FUTURETIME=$[${EPOCH} + 11])
exten => s,n,SayUnixTime(${FUTURETIME},Zulu,HNS)
exten => s,n,SayPhonetic(z)
exten => s,n,SayUnixTime(${FUTURETIME},,HNS)
exten => s,n,Playback(local)
exten => s,n,WaitUntil(${FUTURETIME})
exten => s,n,Playback(beep)
exten => s,n,Return()


I invoke it as:

exten => 712,1,Gosub(popcorn,s,1)
exten => 712,n,Hangup()

And lastly, attached is the source for app_waituntil.c.

It's fairly straightforward, and not very big.

But hopefully useful.

Oh, before I forget:  it does require the recording of one additional phrase,
either "local" or "localtime".  I've used
"local" in my example above.  And
I read out the time first as GMT/UT (because I travel a lot), and then in the
timezone of my PBX...

-Philip


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On Tue, 4 Dec 2007, Philip Prindeville wrote:
> I wanted to write a "popcorn" app for myself, both to learn how
to script in
Just out of curiosity, what does this have to do with popcorn?

Thanks in advance,
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Steve Edwards      sedwards at sedwards.com      Voice: +1-760-468-3867 PST
Newline                                             Fax: +1-760-731-3000

Steve Edwards wrote:
> On Tue, 4 Dec 2007, Philip Prindeville wrote:
>
>   
>> I wanted to write a "popcorn" app for myself, both to learn
how to script in
>>     
>
> Just out of curiosity, what does this have to do with popcorn?
>
> Thanks in advance,
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------
> Steve Edwards      sedwards at sedwards.com      Voice: +1-760-468-3867 PST
> Newline                                             Fax: +1-760-731-3000
>   
You used to be able to dial "popcorn" (767-2676) in any area code (at 
least prior to 1982) and get the current time.

-Philip

Philip Prindeville wrote:
> Steve Edwards wrote:
>   
>> On Tue, 4 Dec 2007, Philip Prindeville wrote:
>>
>>   
>>     
>>> I wanted to write a "popcorn" app for myself, both to
learn how to script in
>>>     
>>>       
>> Just out of curiosity, what does this have to do with popcorn?
>>
>> Thanks in advance,
>>
------------------------------------------------------------------------
>> Steve Edwards      sedwards at sedwards.com      Voice: +1-760-468-3867
PST
>> Newline                                             Fax:
+1-760-731-3000
>>   
>>     
>
> You used to be able to dial "popcorn" (767-2676) in any area code
(at
> least prior to 1982) and get the current time.
>
> -Philip
>
>   
Not really ANY area code.
That was mostly a Western US thing.
In the Mid Atlantic US, C&P, later Bell Atlantic, later VeriZon, it was 
TI-4-2525.
There was NO standard throughout the Bell System, and often not even 
offered by independents, though some time and weather along with a short 
commercial were sponsored by banks and such, often recorded on an 
Audichron system.

John Novack

-- 
Dog is my co-pilot

At 11:58 PM 12/4/2007, you wrote:
>You used to be able to dial "popcorn" (767-2676) in any area code
(at
>least prior to 1982) and get the current time.
I thought it was UL3-2121 when I was younger and occasionally if that 
was the only number in the UL3 prefix, dialing just UL3 was enough to 
get the time.

Ira

So, am I not summoning the bug marshals correctly?  Or like druids and 
wizards, do they mystically sense when they are needed and emerge from 
the deep woods just in the nick of time?

(Ever notice that whenever Batman is needed at night, it's always 
cloudly?  How lucky is that!  What if you need Batman, and it's a 
perfectly cloudless night?  Or what if it were foggy?)

Will they send me a sign if my feature gets approved?  Should I look out 
the window towards downtown?  ;-)

Or... am I really supposed to file a bug after all?


Philip Prindeville wrote:
> Hi.
>
> I wanted to write a "popcorn" app for myself, both to learn how
to
> script in extensions.conf, but also because it was something handy.
>
> Along the way, I found myself doing something like:
>
> [popcorn]
> exten => s,1,Set(FUTURETIME=$[${EPOCH} + 10])
> ...
> exten => s,n,While(${EPOCH} < ${FUTURETIME})
> exten => s,n,Wait(0.01)
> exten => s,n,EndWhile()
> exten => s,n,Play(beep)
> exten => s,n,Hangup()
>
> and hating myself for it (my Asterisk runs on a 500MHz Geode LX).
>
> So I decided it would be useful (in general, and educational for me in 
> particular) to write a WaitUntil() application instead.
>
> Well, I've done that.
>
> I was going to file a bug and then post a "fix" to get their
feature
> in, but the Bug guidelines seem to be pretty clear that this is not 
> the way to go.
>
> So, I'm posting here instead.
>
> The example to paste into the documentation or extensions.conf is:
>
> [popcorn]
> exten => s,1,Answer()
> ; the amount of delay is set for English; you may need to adjust this 
> time
> ; for other languages is there's no pause before the synchronizing
beep.
> exten => s,n,Set(FUTURETIME=$[${EPOCH} + 11])
> exten => s,n,SayUnixTime(${FUTURETIME},Zulu,HNS)
> exten => s,n,SayPhonetic(z)
> exten => s,n,SayUnixTime(${FUTURETIME},,HNS)
> exten => s,n,Playback(local)
> exten => s,n,WaitUntil(${FUTURETIME})
> exten => s,n,Playback(beep)
> exten => s,n,Return()
>
>
> I invoke it as:
>
> exten => 712,1,Gosub(popcorn,s,1)
> exten => 712,n,Hangup()
>
> And lastly, attached is the source for app_waituntil.c.
>
> It's fairly straightforward, and not very big.
>
> But hopefully useful.
>
> Oh, before I forget:  it does require the recording of one additional 
> phrase,
> either "local" or "localtime".  I've used
"local" in my example
> above.  And
> I read out the time first as GMT/UT (because I travel a lot), and then 
> in the
> timezone of my PBX...
>
> -Philip