I have spent allot of time thinking about OpenXBridge and trying to work out the best solutions for allot of its problems.
I feel the biggest issue to it and the reason its so unfriendly to new comers is the web interface.
When I first started writing OpenXBridge it was intended only as a command line PHP tool that could run unattended, which in its self has been the biggest barrier to entry for anyone wishing a simple and easy to use tool. There is still a vast understanding required to install and set-up OpenXBridge correctly and while I have attempted to attach a web interface it is nether sufficient nor adequate for the job.
The reason I am reluctant to redesign the interface or expand on it is I feel regardless of how well AJAX and PHP can be made to work together to provide user feed back, these tools were never designed to run tasks that can take upwards of 2-3 hours.
Another reason for the wish to step aside from PHP is cross compatibility. I wrote OpenXBridge for PHP 5 and while PHP is now stable and installed on the majority of hosts not everyone has it installed or the ability to get it installed. The second factor is Unix/Windows.
I run a Debian host which OpenXBridge was again written for and with. I have no access to ether a Windows hosting nor, in the rarer instance, a Mac hosting platform. I there for have no way of testing OpenXBridge on these systems or knowing if, once set-up is done correctly, OpenXBridge will even run correctly. My feeling is there are or might be system specific quirks in ether installation or configuration of PHP that could make OpenXBridge non-functional.
So these are the problems I have been working on during the last three months.
My final solution is to rewrite OpenXBridge in Java. Java is, as many will know, a cross platform language that should mean that the final software will be runnable across all platforms. The second step is move away, but not remove, the command line/automated origin of OpenXBridge. This new version of OpenXBridge will have two running methods.
Ether running on the local host in a command line manner which will allow it to be full automated and executable as a scheduled task.
The second method of operation will be as a standard GUI interface you can run from any PC and administer an OpenX installation remotely.
So these are my ideas for the future of OpenXBridge. My goal is have a working alpha version ready with in the next few weeks, but I ask for the help of the community.
The new OpenXBridge is now in the earliest stages of design and development and I would ask anyone with ideas for the functionality they are looking for in this application to make them known to me now. OpenXBridge was originally written to solve a problem I was having with Commission Junction and OpenX, this version is being written to solve the problems the community at large are having and I would like to hear from you about what you are looking for.
You can contact me ether by replying to this thread on the OpenX forum or if you would prefer to remain anonymous you can send me a message using this contact form http://www.stuartanderson.eu.com/feedback I have set-up on my own site where you need not tell me your name or email (if you proffer)
Yours Gratefully,
Stuart McCulloch Anderson,
