i.    X-Remind
ii.   Betty J Lauer, no collaborators
iii.  “X-Remind” is a system that will allow subscribers to 
      send e-mail and/or SMS messages in the future.  The 
      intent is to allow subscribers to have basic “reminder” 
      functionality available via e-mail or SMS-enabled cell 
      phones.  There will be a web interface and a ‘web 
      service’ interface into the system.
iv.   The “X-Remind” system will have main components:
      a.  A servlet-based series of pages to allow for:
        i.   The ability for users to subscribe to the service
        ii.  The ability for users to manage their profiles
        iii. The ability for users to add/edit/delete future 
             message deliveries
        iv.  Administration pages to view subscriptions, 
             messages, etc.
      b.  A java-based server that processes incoming XML web 
          service requests (this may be a servlet page; I am 
          not sure yet)
      c.  A server-based set of Java classes that will:
        i.   Run a “scheduler” that will periodically “wake up” 
             and perform required tasks (similar to cron but 
             using Java and XML as the data store)
        ii.  Run a “report generator” that will generate invoices 
             for all subscribers whose profile indicates a 
             monthly bill should be mailed.  This will use 
             FO etc. to generate the PDF.
      d.  An XML-based database system in which all related 
          information will be persisted
      e.  A windows-based application that will invoke the 
          web service
      The general flow for usage of the application will be:
      a.  The user subscribes to the application, providing 
          appropriate payment information (note: this will be 
          a free service; the actual payment processes are for 
          demonstration only).  Payment options could include credit 
          card; PayPal; or monthly billing.
      b.  After subscribing, the user receives an email 
          containing the service user name and password
      c.  The user can then use the Web pages or the downloadable 
          Windows application to create new entries; an entry 
          essentially consists of the message receiver, the message 
          content, and WHEN the message should be sent.
      d.  At the appropriate time, the application will then deliver 
          the message (either via e-mail or SMS)
      e.  Administrative capabilities for generating monthly invoices, 
          viewing user subscription rates, etc. will be available for 
          appropriately-entitled users
      The application will then involve executing a web server/servlet 
      container, a web server/service container, and Java on the server.  
      There will also be a Windows client (possibly in J# for .NET) that 
      may be used to interact with the service. 
v.    As a concerned parent of teenage children, I have provided my children 
      with cell phones, so that I can contact said children when I need to.  
      One situation I have often found myself in, though, is that I would 
      like to remind my children of an event in the future, without having 
      to wait for that time.  For example, I would like to be able to remind 
      my children of their midnight curfew without having to be awake at 
      midnight to send the reminder.  This system would allow me to do just 
      that; to send either an email message or an SMS message at (for example) 
      10PM, but request that it be delivered at midnight.  I can also then 
      use this application to remind myself of any event via my cell phone; 
      my children’s events; dental appointments; etc.  Although I think this 
      would be an interesting project in and of itself, I also want to 
      investigate the feasibility of creating applications like this on the 
      web; therefore, I want to investigate the ability to support 
      applications like this with relatively inexpensive ISP’s, what it 
      would take to provide a billing mechanism to users, and how usage 
      information could be tracked for billing purposes.  Also, using XML as 
      the data store seemed like a very interesting technical issue; I have 
      used relational database management systems for years, and I am 
      interested in trying out an XML-based system.  By providing a web service 
      interface, and developing a Windows-based client, I hope to cover the 
      entire area covered by what most “real” applications would provide.
vi.   I will need to have a web server running Tomcat to provide servlet 
      services, Java, several XML-based technologies (fully detailed later), 
      and access to the server in order to run code on the server.  I will 
      also need the ability to create Windows-based applications in J# .NET.  
      Hopefully, the entire project will use Java as the programming language, 
      and will use XPath/XQuery, etc. for data manipulation.  The 
      technologies that will be used include Apache, Tomcat, JavaMail, Ant, 
      Eclipse, JAXP, Axis, SVG, XSL FO, XSLT, and, of course, Java itself.  
      I will need to learn about SMS and how it works, what APIs are 
      available for it, how different cell phone service providers provide 
      an interface for SMS messages, and whether there is an e-mail interface 
      available.  I will also need to learn quite a bit about writing 
      “scheduler” software, and how to create time-driven events happen.  As 
      this will be a multi-user application, concurrent access and controlled 
      access to shared resources is something I need to research.
      My general plan of attack is to get the XML database system running,
      and then learn about how to use it properly, and then to define the 
      schema I will need to accomplish the objectives of the project.  After 
      that, I will begin developing the registration process pages.  Then,
      I will create the page where a new message is defined and stored.  At
      that point, I should be able to begin working on the "background task"
      that does the scheduling / message sending component.  I can then
      create the web service, and finally, the Windows client application.
      During all of this, I will be monitoring what I need to use, and 
      checking to see if it is something that can easily be deployed to
      existing ISP's.
vii.  One of my goals with this project, beyond using XML and Java, is to 
      investigate ways to “deploy” XML and Java applications at existing ISPs.  
      This would involve determining which ISP’s provide access to which 
      technologies, overall cost, etc.  I also want to determine if there is 
      a simple framework (either available today or that could be written 
      [by me]) that would allow easy deployment of applications in an ISP.  
      Does this seem like a reasonable goal, even though it is not directly 
      related to Java itself?  Essentially, what I want to determine is this: 
      can I, with relative ease and low cost, deploy applications on the 
      Internet that could be used to generate income?  Another goal is to 
      learn about SMS; any information available on SMS that you could 
      provide me would be appreciated.  I also want to investigate the 
      ability to “charge” people via PayPal; any information on PayPal API’s 
      would also be appreciated.