Robot

Constraint Model for a Web Robot

The introduction has been put on a separate file to make this page a working page for Manolis Kamvysselis.
The Links are the information gathering places to understand the robot and the library
The Status is my everyday summary of what is going on in reverse chronological order
The Goals and Deadlines are the initial hopes of work done (as realistic as possible)

History

This is the entire history of the robot, the last week will be found at a section named Status.

Week 1: Round, Round, Get Around, I Get Around

Until June 3rd My work up to now has been browsing around, learning stuff here and there and understanding the library. More serious work should start coming in this week.
Tuesday June 4 Meeting with Tim Berners-Lee on the Web and W3C, Anselm on Java and Jigsaw, Arthur on Information Gathering. Afternoon: Reading on libwww, printing out files.
Wednesday June 5 Meeting with Henrik on HTTP, Jim on PICS and social issues, Dan on Web Tools and the W3C site. Afternoon: created the homepage you are now reading
Thursday June 6 Meeting with Dave on HTML, Rohit on Web security, Sally on Web Design. Afternoon: How to get started writing an application. A first touch to Tcl and Tk. Downloading, installing, running demos, reading documentation.
Friday June 7 Created my first Visual C++ application. Started Reading the Manual for Visual C++ version 4.0

Week 2: Let's see what happens if we press this button...

Monday, June 10 Experimenting compiling the library, PICS, the LineMode browser. Tried to fix some errors that make the line mode browser crash. Reading Inside Visual C++
Tuesday, June 11 Still cannot get LineMode browser to work correctly. Started reading to understand the insights of the library.
Wednesday, June 12 Continue Reading on the library. Looked back at the source code, going through every line.
Thursday, June 13 Looking at the source code of the LineMode browser, setting up the .mak file of the robot, trying to make it work, without the actual library.
Friday, June 14 Reading on the Library. Understanding the functionality

Week 3: Waiting for the Miracle to Come

Monday, June 17 Trying to make the robot compile under Windows
Tuesday, June 18 Included the missing files in the new version of the library. LineMode browser again
Wednesday, June 19 Eric came and saw the LineMode browser that didn't work here. Download new version of the library.
Thursday, June 20 Going through the code of the robot in Unix and Windows and trying to figure out why the @#!$! windows version doesn't work.
Friday, June 21 Rebuilt webbot.mak from the beginning. Still doesn't work. Know that it's getting some data.

Week 4: And I think to myself "What A Wonderful World"
Monday, June 24 Robot still doesn't work. Redownload new version of library. Start poking around.
Tuesday, June 25 The Robot (finally) worked under windows. The error was residing in preprocessor directives to the compiler.
Wednesday, June 26 Testing the Robot, making it work by executing a Tcl command webbot with arguments. This example of Tcl interface is really basic
Thursday, June 27 Finished writing the .mak and makefile for the new release of the Library.
Friday, June 28 Reading on Tk to develop the user interface of the Robot

Week 5: Tic Toc... Tic Tak... Tcl and Tk

Monday, July 1 Making the cute little window to accept user input and to return the Robot's results
Tuesday, July 2 Keep working on the user interface. Got the trace input, path, navigation method (not working) in.
Wednesday, July 3 Working on the new version of the Library. Making a new .mak file for the robot and the library.

Week 6: Run Forest, Run

Monday, July 8 Getting some more options of the webbot in the user interface
Tuesday, July 9 Finishing up with the functions of the webbot
Wednesday, July 10 Compiling the library and rebuilding robot and linemode browser.
Thursday, July 11 Finishing up the .mak files. Testing. Ok.
Friday, July 12 Going over the code of the Robot. Understanding HTList, HTRequest etc...

Week 7: Getting the Beta-3 Out
Monday, July 15 Continue working on the Robot user interface
Tuesday, July 16 Paths and Preferences for the user interface
Wednesday, July 17 Saving preferences in a file
Thursday, July 18 Menus and buttons up and ready
Friday, July 19 Finishing up the preferences for the User Interface. Release of Beta-3. Included first version of user interface. Henryk leaves for a two-week vacation. CVS crashes.

Week 8: Getting the Beta-3 Out of the ...
Monday, July 22 Working with Eric in Recovering files from the CVS crash
Tuesday, July 23 Fixing up Library and LineMode browser. Recompiling, reediting and recompiling.
Wednesday, July 24 The Library and LineMode work. Still much work to be done.
Thursday, July 25 Start working with Tcl again. Working with strings and matching patterns.
Friday, July 26 Working with lists and arrays of lists of strings... Matching patterns.

Week 9: 90-hour-week Nightmare
Monday, July 29 Microsoft classes start. Classes go from 9 to 5, work goes from 6 to 2. Thinking on the representation of rules, urls, contraints, patterns.
Tuesday, July 30 Continue working on the representation of Urls and rules.
Wednesday, July 31 Parsing of rules, matching of Strings works.
Thursday, August 1 Finished designing the Url representation. Implemented selectors and constructors of Urls and rules.
Friday, August 2 Recursion of rule interpretation. Combining rules with AND, OR and NOT. Testing. Works. Microsoft classes end.
Saturday, August 3 Incrementing Url indexes. Understanding parents and children.

Week 10: When the cat is back, the mice start documenting
Monday, August 5 Henrik comes back. Start documenting the Constraint Model as it is now.
Tuesday, August 6 More functionality added for handling Urls. Documenting.
Wednesday, August 7 Searching for matching Urls, and Children implemented.
Thursday, August 8 First version of Rule updating for children using nav (dumb, deep, large, strategic)
Friday, August 9 First version of the graphical representation. Recompiling Library and Installing new computer environment. Moving my files from form.w3.org to the server, and changing to windows NT4.0b2, Pentium Pro from 95 and Pentium.

Week 11: Let's Make the thing run
Monday, August 12 Updated the homepage, the History of the robot, deleted the Changes.html and Guide.html pages. Moving Robot.tcl Rules.tcl Results.tcl from form.w3.org to the server.
Tuesday, August 13
Wednesday, August 14
Thursday, August 15
Friday, August 16

Week 12:
Monday, August 19
Tuesday, August 20
Wednesday, August 21
Thursday, August 22
Friday, August 23

Week 1: Round, Round, Get Around, I Get Around
Until June 3rd	My work up to now has been browsing around, learning stuff here and there and understanding the library. More serious work should start coming in this week.
Tuesday June 4	Meeting with Tim Berners-Lee on the Web and W3C, Anselm on Java and Jigsaw, Arthur on Information Gathering. Afternoon: Reading on libwww, printing out files.
Wednesday June 5	Meeting with Henrik on HTTP, Jim on PICS and social issues, Dan on Web Tools and the W3C site. Afternoon: created the homepage you are now reading
Thursday June 6	Meeting with Dave on HTML, Rohit on Web security, Sally on Web Design. Afternoon: How to get started writing an application. A first touch to Tcl and Tk. Downloading, installing, running demos, reading documentation.
Friday June 7	Created my first Visual C++ application. Started Reading the Manual for Visual C++ version 4.0
Week 2: Let's see what happens if we press this button...
Monday, June 10	Experimenting compiling the library, PICS, the LineMode browser. Tried to fix some errors that make the line mode browser crash. Reading Inside Visual C++
Tuesday, June 11	Still cannot get LineMode browser to work correctly. Started reading to understand the insights of the library.
Wednesday, June 12	Continue Reading on the library. Looked back at the source code, going through every line.
Thursday, June 13	Looking at the source code of the LineMode browser, setting up the .mak file of the robot, trying to make it work, without the actual library.
Friday, June 14	Reading on the Library. Understanding the functionality
Week 3: Waiting for the Miracle to Come
Monday, June 17	Trying to make the robot compile under Windows
Tuesday, June 18	Included the missing files in the new version of the library. LineMode browser again
Wednesday, June 19	Eric came and saw the LineMode browser that didn't work here. Download new version of the library.
Thursday, June 20	Going through the code of the robot in Unix and Windows and trying to figure out why the @#!$! windows version doesn't work.
Friday, June 21	Rebuilt webbot.mak from the beginning. Still doesn't work. Know that it's getting some data.
Week 4: And I think to myself "What A Wonderful World"
Monday, June 24	Robot still doesn't work. Redownload new version of library. Start poking around.
Tuesday, June 25	The Robot (finally) worked under windows. The error was residing in preprocessor directives to the compiler.
Wednesday, June 26	Testing the Robot, making it work by executing a Tcl command webbot with arguments. This example of Tcl interface is really basic
Thursday, June 27	Finished writing the .mak and makefile for the new release of the Library.
Friday, June 28	Reading on Tk to develop the user interface of the Robot
Week 5: Tic Toc... Tic Tak... Tcl and Tk
Monday, July 1	Making the cute little window to accept user input and to return the Robot's results
Tuesday, July 2	Keep working on the user interface. Got the trace input, path, navigation method (not working) in.
Wednesday, July 3	Working on the new version of the Library. Making a new .mak file for the robot and the library.
Week 6: Run Forest, Run
Monday, July 8	Getting some more options of the webbot in the user interface
Tuesday, July 9	Finishing up with the functions of the webbot
Wednesday, July 10	Compiling the library and rebuilding robot and linemode browser.
Thursday, July 11	Finishing up the .mak files. Testing. Ok.
Friday, July 12	Going over the code of the Robot. Understanding HTList, HTRequest etc...
Week 7: Getting the Beta-3 Out
Monday, July 15	Continue working on the Robot user interface
Tuesday, July 16	Paths and Preferences for the user interface
Wednesday, July 17	Saving preferences in a file
Thursday, July 18	Menus and buttons up and ready
Friday, July 19	Finishing up the preferences for the User Interface. Release of Beta-3. Included first version of user interface. Henryk leaves for a two-week vacation. CVS crashes.
Week 8: Getting the Beta-3 Out of the ...
Monday, July 22	Working with Eric in Recovering files from the CVS crash
Tuesday, July 23	Fixing up Library and LineMode browser. Recompiling, reediting and recompiling.
Wednesday, July 24	The Library and LineMode work. Still much work to be done.
Thursday, July 25	Start working with Tcl again. Working with strings and matching patterns.
Friday, July 26	Working with lists and arrays of lists of strings... Matching patterns.
Week 9: 90-hour-week Nightmare
Monday, July 29	Microsoft classes start. Classes go from 9 to 5, work goes from 6 to 2. Thinking on the representation of rules, urls, contraints, patterns.
Tuesday, July 30	Continue working on the representation of Urls and rules.
Wednesday, July 31	Parsing of rules, matching of Strings works.
Thursday, August 1	Finished designing the Url representation. Implemented selectors and constructors of Urls and rules.
Friday, August 2	Recursion of rule interpretation. Combining rules with AND, OR and NOT. Testing. Works. Microsoft classes end.
Saturday, August 3	Incrementing Url indexes. Understanding parents and children.
Week 10: When the cat is back, the mice start documenting
Monday, August 5	Henrik comes back. Start documenting the Constraint Model as it is now.
Tuesday, August 6	More functionality added for handling Urls. Documenting.
Wednesday, August 7	Searching for matching Urls, and Children implemented.
Thursday, August 8	First version of Rule updating for children using nav (dumb, deep, large, strategic)
Friday, August 9	First version of the graphical representation. Recompiling Library and Installing new computer environment. Moving my files from form.w3.org to the server, and changing to windows NT4.0b2, Pentium Pro from 95 and Pentium.
Week 11: Let's Make the thing run
Monday, August 12	Updated the homepage, the History of the robot, deleted the Changes.html and Guide.html pages. Moving Robot.tcl Rules.tcl Results.tcl from form.w3.org to the server.
Tuesday, August 13
Wednesday, August 14
Thursday, August 15
Friday, August 16
Week 12:
Monday, August 19
Tuesday, August 20
Wednesday, August 21
Thursday, August 22
Friday, August 23

Manolis Kamvysselis, manoli@mit.edu,