Where have I been?
September 18, 2013 5:20I really don't know if anybody besides my friends and coworkers read this blog but.. after some entries in the first half of this year, everything got silent.
The reason is simple: I was working, and in my free time.. learning working again.
The project I mentioned (the mini sharepoint-like replica) got momentum and a deadline. I am really enjoying working on it; I am using and putting together a lot of great techniques and frameworks. Some of them were known to me (WF4 for workflows management, GPPG/Gplex for parser generation, ASP.NET MVC for web applications...) but some were really new (AngularJS.. wow I do like this framework!, Razor.. which is a joy to work with). It is tiresome to work, then get home (using my commuting time to read and learn) and then work again. Fortunately, my wife is super-supportive!
That, and my "regular" day-to-day work were we are also putting together some new and exciting applications. The most interesting, a "framework" for authentication and authorization from third-parties that uses a mix of OAuth, NFC and "custom glue" to authorize access to third-party applications without having to enter username-password (we use our smart cards as credentials).
Think about an open, public environment (a booth at an expo, or an one of the outside events for which our regions is famous, like the Christmas Market)
You have a booth where you are offering some great service subscription. You do want people to stop by and subscribe to your services, but you do not want to bother them for too long, so filling out forms is out of question; you do not even want them to sign-in on a keyboard (try to make people enter a password at -5C.. it's not easy).
I coded a simple prototype, an Android app that uses NFC to read the AltoAdige Pass that every traveler have (or should have :) ) as a set of credentials for authorization against our OAuth provider. The third-party app request an access toke, users are redirected to our domain and "log-in" using the card, by weaving it in front of an Android tablet. The process is secure (it involves the card processor and keys, mutual authentication, etc.) but easy and fast. They see the permissions and confirm (again weaving the card when the tablet asks them).
For now it is only a prototype, but.. I found it interesting when pieces of (cool) technology fall together to produce something that is easy to use and actually makes people's life e little bit easier.
With so many balls to juggle, time for blogging is... naught. But I will be back with more news on my projects, as soon as I have some time.
The reason is simple: I was working, and in my free time.. learning working again.
The project I mentioned (the mini sharepoint-like replica) got momentum and a deadline. I am really enjoying working on it; I am using and putting together a lot of great techniques and frameworks. Some of them were known to me (WF4 for workflows management, GPPG/Gplex for parser generation, ASP.NET MVC for web applications...) but some were really new (AngularJS.. wow I do like this framework!, Razor.. which is a joy to work with). It is tiresome to work, then get home (using my commuting time to read and learn) and then work again. Fortunately, my wife is super-supportive!
That, and my "regular" day-to-day work were we are also putting together some new and exciting applications. The most interesting, a "framework" for authentication and authorization from third-parties that uses a mix of OAuth, NFC and "custom glue" to authorize access to third-party applications without having to enter username-password (we use our smart cards as credentials).
Think about an open, public environment (a booth at an expo, or an one of the outside events for which our regions is famous, like the Christmas Market)
You have a booth where you are offering some great service subscription. You do want people to stop by and subscribe to your services, but you do not want to bother them for too long, so filling out forms is out of question; you do not even want them to sign-in on a keyboard (try to make people enter a password at -5C.. it's not easy).
I coded a simple prototype, an Android app that uses NFC to read the AltoAdige Pass that every traveler have (or should have :) ) as a set of credentials for authorization against our OAuth provider. The third-party app request an access toke, users are redirected to our domain and "log-in" using the card, by weaving it in front of an Android tablet. The process is secure (it involves the card processor and keys, mutual authentication, etc.) but easy and fast. They see the permissions and confirm (again weaving the card when the tablet asks them).
For now it is only a prototype, but.. I found it interesting when pieces of (cool) technology fall together to produce something that is easy to use and actually makes people's life e little bit easier.
With so many balls to juggle, time for blogging is... naught. But I will be back with more news on my projects, as soon as I have some time.