Topic: Widget with a xml file for configuration

Hello,

First of all, sorry for my English writing with an ax.

I have a widget that I intend deployed via a USB on the back of Chumby, the widget will connect to a database with personal access.

Can you store an xml file with the access codes to the database to avoid having to recompile the widget completely for each user in the database and just modified the Chumby for each XML file locally.

Thank you in advance

cordially

Chris

Re: Widget with a xml file for configuration

A few questions:

1. Your widget will be run directly from the USB stick (that is: plug in the stick, boot Chumby, and the Chumby directly loads your widget -- the regular control panel doesn't get involved) correct?  Is it actually a flash widget that will be launched from the flashplayerlite? Otherwise I'm not sure your widget will be able to run at this point in time because the Chumby network is just a "stub" right now that only shows the Star Trek clock.

2. By "personal access" and "access codes", you basically mean the usernames and passwords used to access the database, right?  Each user will have their own login and password for the database, and you want to be able to just use customized XML files to provide the credentials instead of hard-coding that in and recompiling the widget for each user?

If the answer to both of those are "yes", then I think your idea will work (Duane can provide a more authoritative answer though).  Also, I might suggest adding the database hostname/IP address to the XML file so if, for some reason, the DB moves to a different server at some point, you just have to give people updated XML files (or have them update it themselves) rather than having to recompile and redistribute the widget.

Re: Widget with a xml file for configuration

Yes to both questions, I'm doing just a test via a widget that displays a message in XML.

I would give to you to return to this test.

Thank you for your reply very useful for my project;

Thank you so much.

Chris

Re: Widget with a xml file for configuration

I know Flash has some security hang-ups, which is why I asked whether you'd be running the widget from the USB stick. If both the widget and the XML file are in the same path, hopefully Flash will consider them to be in the same "domain" and allow your widget to read the XML file. If they're both on the same USB stick but the XML is higher in the folder structure than the widget (like XML is @ /mnt/usb/foo.xml and widget is @ /mnt/usb/mywidget/main.swf) it might run into trouble.

Please bear in mind I don't know a whole lot about Flash, so some of my thoughts are more speculation than fact. Are there any Flash/widget developers out there who can provide a more authoritative answer on this?