Thread: Front-end as a website (PHP, Jscript, CSS)

Sama, i am using Flash in the audio handler. But that is the only Flash. I took a quick look at the Velocity project. It looks a good choice of architecture for developing a high-end interface. I am not very experienced in Java or Flash development, but I would like to take a look at some of your modules. Where do I find it?

Hey treehouse

You can use HTML instead of Flash to talk to Velocity. It uses JSON.

It has a JSON based file browser, though in hindsight and the 5 years experience I've had to top it up, using Apache or WebDAV to do it would be better.

It has a JSON controlled media player (mplayer). Currently this plays to the screen but can easily be modified to stream (transcoded) video to a player on the UI - good for things like ipads that can play H.264

This is the main project page. This the source code here.

I built loads of stuff that has been wasted so I'm keen for someone with more time than me to pick it up. Any questions, please ask.

Have any of you seen Songbird? Utilises C++, HTML, JS and CSS. More here. And it's open source. If I had the time or the inclination I might see if I could make it into a frontend...but I don't.

Very interesting!
I too have thrown around this idea since I do php/mysql (CSS).
But I kept coming back to the argument that I thought a lower level language would eliminate most of the layers between hardware and final UI.
Also, I was worried about getting navigation, gps, OBD as close to real time as possible.

How is system speed? Do you still have music still playing while going through different pages?

.... do you have a download to try? (in a way, I guess I need to get my head around what you are doing ... )

@ velocity
Tried to download ... googlecode is empty, installer from the site has a 6-23-2007 jar and does not startup on osx (yes, did rar the folder

How hard would it be to remove the flash interface? I haven't had very good luck with flash + browser + osx

@ web-os
How would BT+phone, OBD, gps work in this type of environment?
speed? will this type of solution compare with with a normal C based language?
Why wouldn't a meego type of system not be a better solution?

I never really had a mac to try it on but happy to debug with someone. Wish I had time to offer some help with getting up and running but I'm already full to the brim. Happy to provide some guidance when I get a mo though! Add me to skype sam_hatoum

One of the cool things about this idea is that you could set up a wireless card on the machine and then bury it somewhere in the car. To use it, simply connect to that with your smartphone and there's your interface. No client required, no problem with apple's braindamaged store.

I think it's an awesome idea. Hocking myself, I've done something kinda like this here: OBDGPSLogger live updates in google earth. Youtube video here:[media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HHjD_U-VzWA[/media]

Except instead of just a browser, I use google earth as the renderer :-)

Of course, those same gauges are simple php files that render png images of gauges, so exactly the same code could work in any browser [including ones that are only html3! None of that new fangled CSS necessary :-)].

Gary (-;

Originally Posted by chunkyks

One of the cool things about this idea is that you could set up a wireless card on the machine and then bury it somewhere in the car. To use it, simply connect to that with your smartphone and there's your interface. No client required, no problem with apple's braindamaged store.

I think it's an awesome idea. Hocking myself, I've done something kinda like this here: OBDGPSLogger live updates in google earth. Youtube video here:[media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HHjD_U-VzWA[/media]

Except instead of just a browser, I use google earth as the renderer :-)

Of course, those same gauges are simple php files that render png images of gauges, so exactly the same code could work in any browser [including ones that are only html3! None of that new fangled CSS necessary :-)].

Gary (-;

I even works on the iPad.

Just finished testing 2 modules that let the user assign screen buttons for local and remote apps. Remote apps include anything on the internet or served to the browser from localhost. Examples include Internet radio stations, weather, Google and map searches, etc. These are displayed in an IFRAME and formated with large buttons for navigation.

The other module executes any app that exists within the local OS. The console interface asynchronously forks to the application, then minimizes itself to a corner of the screen. So you are looking at a normal XP desktop and whatsoever app you are running locally, with a small button in the corner of the screen. Touch the button and you are back in the console, with a "stop" button to kill the local app. This solves one of the biggest annoyances. I like having a standard desktop behind the console, but it is difficult to configure so the buttons on the local apps (particularly the Close button) can be actuated on a small touchscreen. Being able to start (and pass arguments) and kill them from the large buttons on the console makes them much easier to handle.

These 2 modules are essentially the core of the console, a simple bridge between the small touchscreen and any internet or desktop applications I want to access with fat fingers and poor eyesight while I am driving.

Is there a best open-source GPS voice navigation app? Besides the FM tuner, that is the one last app I'd like to integrate.