Corey Leong, GR8C Executive Director
This past weekend I submitted our online application for a new user registered port with IANA. Here is a simple client server model depicting requests and responses.
The protocol, Multiple Listing Service Network (MLSN), will involve online users and applications querying a real estate database of listings.
I’ll post more diagrams and information regarding this protocol/port as we draw closer to our application being approved. 
This is a first pass at building a use case model for real estate project management. As you can see on the left side of the system, there are five actors: the project manager, salesperson, administrative assistant, buyer, and the seller. On the right side of the model are three external systems which interface with the model. They are Google Wave, SalesForce, and OpenProj.
The system’s use cases are self-explanatory and may need refactoring. Again, this is a first pass. In addition, I’m sure more use cases will rear their heads so I expect the number of use cases to grow.
Feel free to leave comments and suggestions for this model is open for public comment.
–Corey
Continuing from Part 1, this modeled diagram represents components of a concept reputational application. As do most web applications, the system is comprised of three tiers: client, application, and the database layer.
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The user of the system interfaces with a browser on a desktop computer or an application on a mobile device. The middle tier is comprised of JBoss Application Server and Apache’s ServiceMix. I chose JBoss AS to allow for enterprise javabeans to be used along with all of the lovely enterprise features such as remoting, security, transaction management, presistence, messaging, resource pooling, concurrency control, and directory services.
I included a servicemix implementation component to jboss for deploying a webservice to external webservice clients. In addtion, servicemix allows for xmpp implementations along with messaging services over Java Messaging Service (JMS).
For authorization, an OpenID provider is accessed for warehousing usernames and passwords. Having users’ credentials stored by an OpenID provider removes the potential possibility of a security breach regarding usernames and passwords.
Lastly, I selected PostgreSQL for the application’s database layer. I have used PostgreSQL with many projects previously while the zero licensing cost to implement is most ideal.
To continue this development drill, I will next blog activity diagrams from using the potential use cases.
–Corey
As a non-profit organization, the gr8c’s central purpose is to help the real estate community. One way to help is to create awareness for the global real estate community with a designated day called Global Real Estate Day.
As always, I am open to ideas so please feel free to post comments.
The day will be announced in the coming days.
–Corey
Here’s a list of my resolutions for 2010.
I resolve to:
I look forward to accomplishing these goals for 2010.
– Corey
One of the sore spots in the Real Estate Industry is a missing reputational model for evaluating professionals and their services. Since there isn’t an open and neutral model which already exists, I started modelling a potential application. Below is a use-case diagram modelling potential actors, scenarios, and associations for an application:
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As you can see, I’ve defined just three types of Actors: Professionals, References, and Guests. I’ve also defined two external entities, OpenID and a web service. The scenarios listed are a first pass and expect to refactor their associations while adding/removing some. I won’t go into detail here regarding the scenarios, but if you would like to follow the wave and/or offer comments, please feel free to contact me on google wave. My gwave account is corey.leong@googlewave.com.
My next step in this process is to create component, deployment, and behavioural diagrams. I’ll post these also to my blog in the future.
–Corey
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| A Sony PSP connected to an HDTV Sharp Monitor via component av cable. |
For the past two seasons, I’ve been experimenting with the idea of showing and reviewing game video to my players at practices for instructional purposes. My players are between the ages of 9 to 12 and are heavily into video gaming such as Modern Warfare 2 and NBA 2k10. So integrating
video with a gaming device seemed like a perfect match for displaying our film footage from games.
In creating a solution I decided to use a handheld PSP, a component av cable, and an HD 19″ monitor. The specific hardware follows:
Once I have the previous game encoded into an mp4 format I then connect the psp to one my macs via usb cable. I then copy the mp4 file to the memory stick on the PSP. The average size for an mp4 game file is about 200mb.
After disconnecting the PSP from the mac, I then connect the PSP to the HDTV with the component AV cable. On the HDTV, I select the correct input. And finally, on the PSP navigate to Settings > Connected Display Settings > Switch Video Out > Select ‘Yes’ when asked if you want to display output on a connected device? > Video > the mp4 game file.
To playback, fastforward, or rewind just use the navigational keys and video options on the PSP.
For a future direction, I look forward to Apple’s tablet being released in 2010. A tablet would eliminate the need for a stationary monitor and separate handheld device and merge the two together.
–Corey
It’s nice to know there are still some people who can think logically and not just follow what everyone else believes, keep up the good fight!Thanks,Tom
Of late, I’ve been doing quite a bit of research and work on enterprise type applications specifically speaking, Enterprise Application Integration (EAI). An EAI system allows applications to “talk” to one another via a messaging model even though the two applications are completely different. An example would be a cobol legacy app needing to exchange financial information with a java web application.
My EAI research led me to two real world models: SWIFT and HL7. From the SWIFT about page:
SWIFT is the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication, a member-owned cooperative through which the financial world conducts its business operations with speed, certainty and confidence. Over 8,300 banking organisations, securities institutions and corporate customers in more than 208 countries trust us every day to exchange millions of standardised financial messages.
From the HL7 about page:
Founded in 1987, Health Level Seven (HL7) is a not-for-profit, ANSI-accredited standards developing organization dedicated to providing a comprehensive framework and related standards for the exchange, integration, sharing, and retrieval of electronic health information that supports clinical practice and the management, delivery and evaluation of health services. HL7’s 2,300+ members include approximately 500 corporate members who represent more than 90% of the information systems vendors serving healthcare.
As I read more about these two models I wondered if a secure messaging model could be used within the real estate industry. The first use case I came up with was a global referral network for professionals needing to find other professionals for real estate referrals. Currently, there isn’t a global network which allows this particular model (and facebook doesn’t count). Obviously, Metcalfe’s Law factors in:
the value of a telecommunications network is proportional to the square of the number of connected users of the system (n2).
So for Real7 to be of value to its users, a number of users would need to have access and use the model, but this is always the rub for any online service. But I believe this type of service would not only solve the referral challenge, but also create a greater efficiency regarding time savings in searching for other real estate professionals to refer a buyer or seller client. I’m certain more use cases will be applied to a messaging model as others join in on the discussion, but for now I’m just concentrating on one use case to begin.
I created a google group called Real7 to begin discussions on security, grid computing, and other related technologies needed for a global real estate messaging infrastructure. If this topic is of any interest, please join the google group for posting and receiving discussions on real7.
–Corey
I was listening to a Diggnation podcast the other day and the acronym FUD came up during the show. I don’t recall in what context, but it stymied Kevin Rose, one of two hosts, for awhile for a definition of FUD. I believe he was stalling so he could google it, but I’m just guessing. 
Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt (FUD) is a tactic of rhetoric and fallacy used in sales, marketing, public relations, politics and propaganda. FUD is generally a strategic attempt to influence public perception by disseminating negative information designed to undermine the credibility of their beliefs.[1]
Normally, if I’m not quite certain about a term or acronym I will then look it up on Wikipedia. Now I was very sure of FUD having been in IT for years, but curiosity was too much for me so I browsed the term anyway over on Wikipedia.
After reading the initial definition, I scrolled down to read more about the derivation of FUD and was suddenly taken back by what I then saw.
Real Estate Agents. In response to a growing number of homeowners forgoing the use of real estate agent services during the sale of their homes, National and Regional real estate boards have adopted a strategy of fear, uncertainty and doubt. Ads reinforce consumers anxiety over legal paperwork, and suggest that consumers are weak, intellectually lazy and fearful. That consumers can’t possibly learn; and that it would be much safer to leave the process to a real estate agent. [1]
It all made sense now. The tweets. The facebook updates. The ads. Everything.
I see these fud-like sales tactics streamed across sites where once only located in newspapers or park benches. So instead of offering a one-off opinion, what is the action item then to curb fud selling or marketing?
This is where I am with this issue, simply asking questions. I forsee a case study for researching this issue with a published online white paper. Time to get to work…
–Corey
Reference
1. Wikipedia
GR8C Biz Card created with Inkscape
For my upcoming trip to Icann Seoul, I needed a new set of business cards for networking purposes. One of the tools I’ve been using to create business brochureware for many years now is Inkscape. It’s an open source vector application which practically mirrors the functionality and features of Adobe’s Illustrator, but not the $599 cost to purchase.
Here’s how I created the card:
–Corey
Kelley Martin are discussing. 
Kelley Martin 7:54 am on 2010/01/06 Permalink |
couple things I am thinking at this point to possibly add is:
1. more responsibility for admin assistant: as far as logging activity with buyers and sellers, AND communicating with sellers regarding getting feedback, and information, scheduling for buyers, etc
2. buyers and sellers more vested in their portion of the project……. they have to want this to happen and need to be contributing a bit as well, there are things that they provide and their involvement.
coreyleong 8:16 am on 2010/01/06 Permalink |
I see something I missed. The project manager needs to update the project wave in gw. We need to add an include or extend from ‘Manage Project’ to the google wave actor. Revision number two will include this.