Re: tlug: 3 questions or "Is it possible to save the world with Perl?"

[Ulrike Schmidt <798a5047@example.com>]

Jonathan Byrne wrote:

> Uli, you really keep biting off bigger and bigger chunks all the time :-)
> This is your largest project idea yet :-)  Then again, the natural language
> syntax parsing one would be awfully big too :-)

Thanks, Jonathan, but actually, it is much easier than I thought.

> This is the first Big Part.  Packages are tracked by having a unique item
> number on each and every package. Let's use Federal Express as an example.
> When you send a FedEx package, it is picked up by a courier or you take it to
> a FedEx office, and they do a couple of things. They enter the package data
> into their database, so who it's from and where it's going are in the
> computer.  It's probably also assigned a best route to get there by the
> software, I suspect.  At that point, a bar code label is generated and the
> package is checked into the system by scanning the bar code, then sent on its
> way.  At every transfer point during its journey, the bar code is yet again
> scanned, so they know when it passed each waypoint.  Their tracking database
> also knows which FedEx truck, airplane, etc., the package is on, when it left
> a point along the route and when it is expected to arrive at the next one.  If
> they want to (and maybe they do this, I don't know), they could also use the
> GPS system to continously monitor where each vehicle was and they could tell
> exactly where in the world a package was if they needed to.  Even how fast
> it's going :-)

Thanks a lot!!!

> > - Where could I get the software needed for the graphical displays and
> > statistics? What are the usual economic calculations and categories?
>
> Don't know.  You might have to write it.

After I have finished the following:

I thought of modifying the guestbook script from the llama-book (pp. 198 or
downloadable from ftp://ftp.ora.com/published/oreilly/nutshell/learning_perl2)

I have to feed in the form that I sent in my last mail, and just change the output
a bit:
If the search-button is pressed a search is done through the file or database (if
I ever manage to connect one).
If the submit-button is pressed the information is stored in the file or database
and sent per email to interested parties like mirror sites, or people who
subscribed to certain categories, which might be done through the same form: e.g.
submit what=all_info_in_this_database&where=email-adress&when=current_timestamp

When I have finished everything the script will be public domain, I will post it
here. And I will also include instructions as to where to get a program that
parses incoming emails from specific sites and feeds info into a database, and
where to get webacces for which price (I think there was a place called "TheList"
somewhere) but actually I guess I only have to fill the database myself with the
appropriate information, will be self-explanatory. Although you never know ... A
little helpfile I might write for sure.

> > - How can I let other people mirror the site and keep the mirrors
> > synchronized in real time?
>
> Mirroring is not a problem, but real-time synchronization of it is something
> you might as well regard as impossible.  With a lot of bandwidth and mirror
> sites that were constantly polling the master site to see if it had any
> updates, you could come close enough to this that few people would know the
> difference.

 Ah, well ...

> Maybe a more modest approach to the problem is needed, but something like this
> could be of use.  It would need a lot of resources, though.
>
> Good luck!

Thanks!

Uli


PS: I am really tired now, have to eat something, have not posted anything yet to
that site I mentioned, wanted to finish this script, post the URL, feed in the
info I found scattered from the homepages of the different governments, e.g.
http://www.hondurasinfo.hn/
http://members.aol.com/carpophage/spanish/mitchdonations.html
http://www.canadian-forests.com/mitch.html

and send them a mail, as well as to unicef, and maybe some journalists ...

Apropos: "Im Anfang war das Wort" ("In the beginning was the word")
or fill in appropriate sentence from own religion or culture, I am sure there is
something ... not that I am religious, but the quantum computing tutorial reminded
me of calculations by some psychologist, Hilbert space of subjects (according to
what I think I understood from Faktor-Analysis, but we never knew what we were
actually calculating is my impression...) Come on into a different universe ...

BTW: My guess:
The number is 7 plus or minus 2. 42 or whatever must be Murphy's law. Albert said
2Pi, but it is Murphy.
And the question seems to be that of Parzival: How are you?

I think I .. send this mail right now!


----------------------------------------------------------------
Next Nomikai: 20 November, 19:30   Tengu TokyoEkiMae 03-3275-3691
Next Technical Meeting: 12 December, 12:30 HSBC Securities Office
----------------------------------------------------------------
more info: http://tlug.linux.or.jp Sponsors: PHT, HSBC Securities