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Create a tutorial describing how to implement an application layer capable of communicating with multiple serial devices and a web client/presentation layer for remote view of state of serial devices.

Strategy should consider network security, ideally free/opensource tools and frameworks.

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  • Latest Post Latest Post by browncesar
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Day 1) "Looking through the mist"
When embarking on a new project one may have no idea where to begin. Should you use the waterfall approach or work from the bottom up. A more practical approach may be to start where you can.

Design Methodology - Define System Boundaries

My system will consist of the following

Hardware Specification
-1 or more USB Serial Devices
-1 Host PC
-Internet Connection
-Touch Screen Monitor

Software Modules:

|----------------------------------------------------------|
|                     Presentation                         |
|----------------------------------------------------------|
|Web thin clients  |                | local rich client    |
|Web Server        |                |                      |
|----------------------------------------------------------|
|                     Controller                           |
|----------------------------------------------------------|
|Data Model - Initially flat files on Host later Database  |
|----------------------------------------------------------|
|Device Driver                                             |
|----------------------------------------------------------|
|1 or more USB Serial Devices                              | 
|----------------------------------------------------------|

I will continue posting as I work through the problem.

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Day 2)
Researched design and development possibilities of Web Clients/View Web, Controller, and Hardware Access. Prototype, again, focuses on a strategy that uses free and available tools such as Wordpress, and Java SDK for development and cross platform support.

Java was high up in the selection process due to it's platform independence, additionally a web based client is also platform independent.

|--------------------------|
|     Wordpress            |      
| PHP Clients using Sockets|
|--------------------------|

|**********************  Host PC       *****************|
|                                                       |
|-------------------------------------------------------|
|                   Java Socket Server                  |
|-------------------------------------------------------|
| Interface using Java Native Interface (JNI) to DLL    | 
|-------------------------------------------------------|
|                   Driver DLL in C++                   |
|*******************************************************|

|********************************************************
|                    Serial Connection                  |
|********************************************************

|********************************************************
|                       Peripheral(S)                   |
|********************************************************

to be continued.

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