| April 23rd | The Java chat server was integrated into the control server today. The control server already contained the necessary server structures to handle the additional burden. With only a few lines of code, the chat was implemented. The Applet GUI was also completely re-organized. I believe that it is now much easier to navigate and easier on the eyes as well. I have converted the binary string of status data from the cd player to hex and now the applet interprets the status strings from the cd player. |
| April 19th | The Java Applet is functional. There are still many more features and protections to be implemented. |
| April 17th | The Java server is now functional. With the help of my advisor, Alexander Malinowski, the Java server is working to my satisfaction. |
| March 29th | The microprocessor code has been completed. There were some stupid errors in the code which prevented it from working properly. I'm not even sure why the working portion of the code was even working. After finding two critical errors, the PC to CD player communications worked completely. There is some protective measures I can take with the microprocessor code to prevent malicious attacks from users, but I will not focus on these until the rest of the project is completed. |
| March 20th | I now have the interface for the Networked Home Theater written. The interface is purely functional at this point, and is ugly. When the project is up and working, I will try to make it pretty. The buttons are not functional yet, but as soon as the microprocessor code is completed, the functionality shouldn't be very far behind. |
| March 8 & 15th |
The microprocessor is now able to send the S-Link data to the PC. The
code that controls the opposite communications is still in the
works. This code should be finished up soon. The Java code will be started soon, and hopefully a working applet will be posted within the next week. |
|
February 15, 22, & March 1 |
The microprocessor code has taken much longer than initially
anticipated. I am nearly finished with the code, but I still have a small
problem to work out. The processor is able to detect the S-Link signal,
but when it comes to sending the recorded information to the PC, it does
not transmit the code. I think there may be a problem either storing to
the array or reading from the array. For a long time I was stuck trying to sort out my assembly code. I spent a long time just looking at the code and trying to figure out what the problem was. I finally made a hardcopy of the code and sat down with it. I wrote out a flow chart of the code flow, and that's when I found all of the problems. I was not re-initializing some of the counters at certain points in the program, as well as some other small problems. After doing this, the code worked much better than before. I will create flow charts of the project code when I have the microprocessor code section completed. The code will never be 100% done, but when it works reliably enough I will call it a day. If there is extra time at the end of the project, I will add extra features to the microprocessor code. In order to save time on this project, I am going to set up a dedicated PC in Jobst Hall to run the java server. I will be able to work on the code whenever I want. I am also considering using a pre-made chat server to handle the java chat features. This will probably speed up the design process considerably. |
February 1 and 8th | The microprocessor coding section which was initially scheduled to take only weeks one and two is taking longer. I am able to read the S-Link information from the cd-player, but have not implemented the pc communications yet. There is a compile error in the code which I am using from the Micropac 535 documentation. |