AJAX Chatbox for Pascal developers?

[code_glitch]

I'd tried messing with the sql support in the FPC fcl a while back - with the values supplied by blueimp in their implementation except that the challenge then is to get it to talk with the vBulletin login information or at least be able to query the PGD database for info in order to talk with it... If anyone is up for something like that maybe it'd be worth putting together a small team and get a community app driven - something nice which involves a bit of everyone and gives the community more of a 'open source' type working together team feel thats so nice about some of those open source initiatives

[cairnswm]

vBulletin is written in php. The easiest way for a thick client app to talk to a web page is for custom php services to be created that return the info you want. For example we create a hallo world call like this (psuedo code)

helloworld.php
<?php
$name = getParam("name");
echo "Hello $name";
?>

and this can be called from a browser like http://localhost/helloworld.php?name=William
and it returns a text string contianing "Hello William\n".

This can the be included inside a Delphi/Freepascal program as an HTTP call to the server. The result comes back as text and can be loaded into a TStringList to interpret.

These services can be created as needed for example
logincheck.php?username=cairnswm&md5password=klh54 lkjh3kjndklj43
fetchlatest.php?username=cairnswm&chatroom=pgdchat &lastid=1243
addchat.php?username=cairnswm&chatroom=pgdchat&com ment=Hi guys, long time no see
etc

I currently run a software deployment and discovery system covering about 200 servers using this system. Each server every 5 minutes asks for a list of new deployments that are relvant for it. If a new deployment is identified it asks for details and then does an FTP of the required files. After that it again tells the server if it was successful or not and what the new version is.

I have also written a full website for my GPRO.net team where each persons data is loaded to the website using services like this.

My examples above are not good examples as the whole system should work on session tokens rather than usernames.

[WILL]

Anyone making regular use (or trying) of the AJAX Chat?

The test version is still up in case anybody was curious or is still interested in it's use.

I was interested in using it for talks and the like. Having a virtual PGDCon or something.

[Andru]

I think main problem of this chat is using a browser... As for me it will be better to use jabber conference(because my Pidgin is always online when my computer is on), but unfortunately not everyone have a jabber account(as I can see - Skype is more popular ).

[WILL]

Would a kind of app that hooks into the DB work better for you? I sometimes turn on my Safari App on my iPad and set it beside my computer while I'm working.

There are solutions like this we can explore. And it would be especially useful should we design a series of webinar-like talks if we ever get that going...

[SilverWarior]

Here is an idea!
Why don't we use Smart Mobile Studio to make instant chat system of our own. Its capability to make Html5 based applications could come in werry handy. We can use it to make server core application, web acces aplication wich can then be integrated into PGD site itself and even standalone clients.
Unfortunatly I have werry litle expirience on this field therefore I can't offer much asistance but I'm sure there are PGD members wich have expirience in making multiplayer games and network based applications. They can come werry handy in development of our own chat system. And becouse of Smart Mobile Studio they won't have to learn new programing language to do this.