Hi, i intend to test the replacement of one of our webapp written in Java. The web part doesn''t seem to be a problem but the main feauture is to manage the login via an electronic identity card ... So where i have an applet interacting with a local middleware and local libraries, what is the solution proposed by RoR ? In fact, the question is how to get access to the client software I could be allowed to ? Thanks in advance Didier
I have a simpler but technically similar - I guess - need: how to use a barcode reader in a (Rails) web application? Think of a library desk app, where books and readers'' cards are barcoded. Alain Ravet
On 10/6/05, Didier Vaiser <dvaiser-eXtuofgIToC5rTukkuOeQQ@public.gmane.org> wrote:> > Hi, > > i intend to test the replacement of one of our webapp written in Java. > > The web part doesn''t seem to be a problem but the main feauture is to > manage the login via an electronic identity card ... > > So where i have an applet interacting with a local middleware and local > libraries, what is the solution proposed by RoR ?That''s a loaded question, and you need to get a lot more detailed about your current setup. Is this a commercial two factor authentication system? The answer is going to depend on what interfaces your identity card vendor has available, and also how you are tying in the authentication to the webserver. If you can''t tie into the vendor solution directly from ruby, then you might have to write your own authentication layer in rails in addition to your existing authentication system and tie the two together. Or you might just drop your java authentication client and do it in the webserver. Most commercial two factor systems have modules for apache. Chris _______________________________________________ Rails mailing list Rails-1W37MKcQCpIf0INCOvqR/iCwEArCW2h5@public.gmane.org http://lists.rubyonrails.org/mailman/listinfo/rails
On Oct 7, 2005, at 11:58 AM, Alain Ravet wrote:> I have a simpler but technically similar - I guess - need: how to > use a barcode reader in a (Rails) web application? > Think of a library desk app, where books and readers'' cards are > barcoded.A barcode reader with a keyboard interface, so the read barcode appears ''typed'' to the computer? No need for software support. Isn''t that pretty much how they all work now? -- -- Tom Mornini
Tom Mornini wrote:
> >..how to use a barcode reader in a .. library desk app,
> > where books and readers'' cards are barcoded.
>
> A barcode reader with a keyboard interface, so the read barcode
appears ''typed'' to the
> computer? No need for software support.
I know about this "dumb" mode, but it''s very limited, and not
really
useful in most cases:
- you have to do most of the work by first positioning the cursor in
the "right" field.
- you cannot have a new scan automatically trigger an event/sequence
of actions.
and more importantly:
- you cannot use the pc for anything else, as the barcode reader
looks like/is the keyboard.
Real life example:
I''ve seen many request for simple club/gym/../members management
applications that are very very simple, and could be done in half a day
with Rails.
Then the client add "Oh yes, and each member will have a barcode printed
on his Member Card, so your application can record when they come and
leave.
Can this be done with a web-app?
Alain Ravet
On Oct 7, 2005, at 3:00 PM, Alain Ravet wrote:> Tom Mornini wrote: > > >..how to use a barcode reader in a .. library desk app, > > > where books and readers'' cards are barcoded. > > > > A barcode reader with a keyboard interface, so the read > barcode appears ''typed'' to the > > computer? No need for software support. > > > I know about this "dumb" mode, but it''s very limited, and not > really useful in most cases: > - you have to do most of the work by first positioning the cursor > in the "right" field. > - you cannot have a new scan automatically trigger an event/ > sequence of actions. > and more importantly: > - you cannot use the pc for anything else, as the barcode reader > looks like/is the keyboard. > > Real life example: > I''ve seen many request for simple club/gym/../members management > applications that are very very simple, and could be done in half a > day with Rails. > Then the client add "Oh yes, and each member will have a barcode > printed on his Member Card, so your application can record when > they come and leave. > Can this be done with a web-app?Most of the barcode readers that I''ve seen are keyboard shunts that still certainly allow the use of the keyboard. Why couldn''t you have a URL that provided a form with one field for the barcode entry, and javascript to place the cursor in that field when the page loads. A bookmark would take the app there, and the default ''finished'' action on other parts of the app could land there as well, as is often the case with the home page of a web site, for instance. So, most of the time, or with a swift click (perhaps another browser window) you''d be ready to read a card. The readers can automatically send a return keypress after the code, so that would active the submit button in most browsers. Some simple logic could lookup the last scan time and determine if it can reasonably assume if it''s an entry or exit, and only prompt if something is weird (a person is not likely to be at a Gym for more than 12 hours straight, for instance). -- -- Tom Mornini
Tom,
AFAIK from what I read, barcode readers can send the collected data in 2
ways:
- to the keyboard port (keyboard wedge)
- to the serial port
Only the serial port mode is flexible enough for the simple use cases I
mentioned ( a gym/member/library/.. app running on a client PC, while
the keyboard is used for other tasks in other apps).
=> a module on the client needs to
1/ read the data from/poll the serial port
2/ send the data to the server (== a simple http request)
The question is :
can ''1/'' be done in a web browser, either through a java
applet or
some javascript code ?
, or is a separate standalone client software required, that only reads
data from the serial port and sends it to a server?
Alain