suggestions invited

[Mike Meyer]

gry at ll.mit.edu writes:

> Aditi wrote:
>> hi all...i m a software engg. student completed my 2nd yr...i have been
>> asked to make a project during these summer vacations...and hereby i
>> would like to invite some ideas bout the design and implementation of
>> an APPLICATION MONITORING SYSTEM....i have to start from scrach so
>> please tell me how to go bout it rite from the beggining this is the
>> first time i m making a project of this complexity...
>> i have to make a system used by the IT department of a company which
>> contains 31 applications and their details which are being used in a
>> company ...the details are...
>> Application	sub application		catagory	platform	language	version		IT
>> owner	functional owner	remarks		source code	documentation	last updated
>> dates
>> i want to design a system such that it lets the it employee enter the
>> name of the application and gives him all the details about it...please
>> suggest an appropriate design and the language which you think would be
>> best to use...as i have enouf time with me and i can learn a new
>> language as well...i currently know c and c++...your advise is welcomed
>> Aditi
> Then you might look at xml as a means for storing the data.  Xml is
> structured, readable without special software(very helpful for
> debugging), and easy to use for simple data.  Try the xml module from
> http://pyxml.sourceforge.net/topics/download.html
> [look at the demos for simple usage]   Don't be intimidated by complex
> formal definitions of XML, what you need is not hard to use.

I'd humbly disagree with the suggestion of using XML for storage. It
has a fairly large overhead, is usually unreadable unless special care
is taken when you generate it, and not as easy to use as some of the
alternatvives.

It definitely has it's place - for instance, if you are interchanging
data with other developers who have settled on an XML format for doing
so. If you can use a DTD and leverage existing XML tools - editors,
validators, etc. - to advantage, then it's a good choice.

But for simple data storage, I think it's overkill. Pickle is much
easier to use, and you can explore stored data with an interactive
Python interpreter.

The application as described doesn't really call for an
application. You have apparently static descriptions of 31 different
applications. What's wrong with 31 XHTML pages (so you get to use XML
after all :-) and a front page that lists the applications
alphabetically?

That also avoids the problem of what you do when the employee
misspells the name of the application.

          <mike
-- 
Mike Meyer <mwm at mired.org>			http://www.mired.org/home/mwm/
Independent WWW/Perforce/FreeBSD/Unix consultant, email for more information.