Re: Lilypond Server

[Giancarlo Niccolai]

Alle 08:26, domenica 13 marzo 2005, Szabó Árpád Zoltán ha scritto:
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Joshua KooOOoOOo" <address@hidden>
>
> > Possibles of disadvantages of HTTP upload method I think of is 1) Slower
>

Hello. Plz forgive me for jumping in, but I have noticed a strange attitude of 
the lilipond developers in being able to turn easy things into complicated 
ones.

Installing lilipond from scratch is hard. Installing it on a non-updated linux 
system is harder. Installing the bleeding edge lilipond requires a Wizard 
(having a lot of time to spend at that). Installing the bleeding edge 
lilypond on windows is a nightmare, and a Warlock may not be enough.

With this in mind, I sense it is quite essential for lilipond to survive and 
grow to provide this service.

I have seen a similar thing implemented for LUTE tabulature (don't have the 
reference handy; search lute tabulature email service). Actually, they have 
provided a mail service: you send the source lute tabulature file (which are, 
btw, a little less fuzzy in grammar than ly) as an attachment via e-mail to a 
bot. Then, it makes the .PDF (or .PS on request via some e-mail body 
command), and it sends it back to you via e-mail.

This method has the advantage to allow very sparse CPU power at server side, 
and zero on-line responsiveness. Actually, all the process (from input to the 
final rendered service) is done batch, by a bot that can be configured with a 
few perl (or even bash) commands, using the preferred account.

Also, IMHO the on-line PHP method may go, but it would require bandwitch, CPU 
and higher security constranits... and after all, it would be probably less 
useful to final users, unless they need ly to get a 3 bar test score. But for 
a serious composition (i.e. 8 page orchestration at least), you are probably 
better trying to offer the service via mail. 

HOWEVER, doing that via HTTP would be quite cool, if the requirements are met. 
I heard someone talking about java enabled browsers (?), and socket servers 
(??) but I don't think anything like that is needed. A single PHP script can 
get the upload, have it parsed by lilypond, remove the temporary files and 
send the result as a application/x-pdf or anything MIME reply, having the 
user to save it for later view or to display it in its integrated PDF viewer 
(windows, konqueror, mozilla, you name it).

Bests,
Giancarlo Niccolai.