The Old Joel on Software Forum: Part 4 (of 5) - Integrating web site with telnet software?

Integrating web site with telnet software?

Hi, I am developing a very large e-commerce site with PHP and MySQL and the client has a piece of software in their office called Anzio (anzio.com) that controls all their inventory and stuff. He wanted to know if there was any way to integrate the MySQL database to "talk" with that piece of software.

I contact the anzio people but they didn't really help me.

Can it be done? Any suggestions? Have you ever done anything like this before? Am I insane?

King Hercules
Wednesday, May 5, 2004

Can it be done? Yes. It's just bits after all.

How to do it? No clue - I don't know anything about that package. Do they use a database? Is there a programmatic interface? Is there a console interface, or only a gui?

There are lots of options, but you've got your work cut out for you.

Chris Tavares
Wednesday, May 5, 2004

It has a console interface -- it's pretty archaic to say the least. This is what the president of Anzio told me:

"Anzio is a terminal emulation (telnet) program. As such, it is just the
client by which they see their server, and the database is on the server.
I have no idea what database or language is used on the server. That would
be what you need to investigate next."

King Hercules
Wednesday, May 5, 2004

King Hercules. Do some research, all Anzio is a telnet client. Not a server of any sort. They have nothing to do with the inventory system your client is using.

GiorgioG
Wednesday, May 5, 2004

King Hercules,

Telnet should be outlawed. Whatever you do, if you want to talk to the inventory-system at your clients site, use SSH or HTTPS at the very least.

They use telnet to connect to their inventory system, which tells me they have a dead old probably UNIX based system.
Integrations like this will require custom programming to their inventory system at their end.

Find out what inventory system they are using, its probably some old proprietary system, in which case you are in for a real treat...oh, no, wait...nightmare.

Patrik
Wednesday, May 5, 2004

"They use telnet to connect to their inventory system, which tells me they have a dead old probably UNIX based system."

Which laughed at Sasser, by the way. You are probably correct, it is probably old and built prior to SSH.

Mike
Wednesday, May 5, 2004

Post what they do to see the data and we might be more helpful. Of course, we could be less...no wait.. ;)

MSHack
Wednesday, May 5, 2004

this may be of use:

http://discuss.fogcreek.com/joelonsoftware/default.asp?cmd=show&ixPost=79780

dilettante
Thursday, May 6, 2004