HRCE ATM and Server Now Open Source

The HRCE L$ Exchange ATMs, key relays, and the centralized server are now available as open source. Since I won't be running the exchange anymore, I'm making these available for those who may want to find out how it works.

Nominal fee, available at SLEX

The fact you gave something like this away for free is generosity beyond hope of repayment. The fact you don't want to answer every little question on it is understandable as well.

Thanks for the new toy for me to rip apart!

Geez Hank there ya go mixing up the metaphors again. Living your SL from Beta Daze, seeding our world with contents, then being a capatilist by making $ on your currency exchange, then turning around and providing your vision via. open sources.

Damn, how will we be able to piegon hole you with such irrational behavior as this!

All I can say is -

Excellent!

Wow Hank, that's very kind of you! I am sad to see you leaving the currency business

That said, I'm glad I'm already established! Heh.

Hank and I have discussed operational stuff many times in the past. If you don't want to use Hank's preferred method for handling IPNs (the service charges a small fee), I have one that you can run on your own PHP/MySQL server. It's already been modified for use with an ATM (I would remove that portion for security reasons but if you know a bit of PHP it should be no trouble at all to see where to stick in your LSL transport).

So, since we're all in the mood for giving, feel free to give me a shout and I'll provide you with a nice set of PHP scripts and MySQL database construct.

You can see how my system operates at www.instantlindens.com.

--Jack Lambert

NOTE: If you don't know much about PayPal IPN handlers and are feeling gung-ho to write one, be quite sure that you plan for every possibility, such as users clinking the IPN handler link several times, spamming it with bogus transactions, modified URLs, etc. I have had plenty of attempts to falsify transactions but luckily have a good system in place.

Thanks Jack

Just a quick note, the server I have here has no outside communication. All it does is have a central server with a "database" of 16-digit codes that people could redeem at ATMs that were distributed throughout the world.

All of the IPN stuff I did outside of SL was contained through an IPN processing service that dolled out the pre-made 16-digit codes that people would redeem inworld.

Felt like bumping this

Ohhh i missed this the first go around, i'll have to get a copy.

(wonders if the bump is related to current going ons with GOM)

Forgive my ignorance.. What exactly does this ATM do? Thanks for help!

Basically it's a code-redemption system. You have a centralized server where you can store codes that people can redeem for L$ cash inworld. People buy the codes outside of SL (using some sort of store, PayPal IPN, whatever), and then come inworld and just say the code near an ATM to redeem their L$ cash. No server to real-world communication necessary (i.e. no email or RPC).

The system supports an unlimited number of ATMs that can be spread around the world, and requires a server to be placed somewhere inworld.

I also added in a way for people to sell you L$ via the ATMs, and you would manually pay the person via PayPal (or whatever, like a check or something) at your leisure.

This thing is merely an example of a previously working system (that I don't have time to support or run anymore) that demonstrates how to do...

1. Worldwide communication
2. Secure storage of keys in a script (i.e. the keys aren't stored in the script itself, but in a notecard in your avatar's inventory)
3. UI examples

Enjoy

Oh cool! Thank you for the explanation Hank!

If its free than how come its saying it costs 500L for a copy?

It's Open Source anyway, I'm setting one up free to grab in my home in EverLite.

I think the expression "Free as in beer" is a bit muddled up, but I understand it as meaning you buy the beer but it comes with a recipe telling you how to make it, so here you buy the ATM and you also get the script.

It is not very clear, but if you edit the object, you can get pull out the enclosed objects without buying the L$500 object.

Complaints about freely-open scripts that cost a very small amount of L$ to purchase is why people distribute closed scripts. *sigh*

While the GPL does support the selling of source, it wasn't how you advertised the script. For 50% of the user base 500L$ is alot of money (the median user only has 800$L).

100L$ is more in the range of small amount.

For the median user 500L$ is more then half thier L$.

This is a system that sells L$ for US$. Hardly something for the median user with L$1K on their account.
500 would have been a steal even without mod on the scripts.

well sorry if I don't get the free (as in beer) comment. I don't drink and I've got friends who have found ways to never pay for alcohol so its just over my head.

Also has anyone had any experience setting these up? I turned around a bought a copy, but it comes with no instructions on how this system is suppose to work. I know Hank is not giving out any tech support on this, but a manual of some kind would be extremely helpful. I'm not a scripter so I don't know how to reverse engineer every line of his code to figure out how the keys notecard is suppose to look or how to change the block sizes that I plan on buying/selling.

It's a cute little phrase the open source movement uses to distinguish between the two meanings of "free" in English.

there's "free beer", gratis, without charge. and "free speech", libre, without restraint.

If this is free as in free beer (as stated) then it shouldn't be 500L$, it should be 0L$; if we take GNU's meaning of "free software" they say it's free as in free speech not free beer. Wikipedia has a good explanation: Gratis versus Libre

The scripts are open in that you can modify and use the scripts as you would like. They are "open source". I do charge a small L$ fee to obtain the scripts, to help compensate me for the work I did on them. They are not products, but examples of working systems I once had that other new or other scripters might benefit from looking at to gain ideas or snippets of code they like.

You can obtain, for FREE, a copy from a friend. I don't stop that. I do hope that people don't take my scripts and resell them or just give them away free, but I can't stop that. My point is that I'm giving them away, and just hoping to make a minor amount of L$ to compensate me for releasing code I worked hard on. If you don't like that I maybe make a tiny bit of L$ for work, then don't look at my code.

So my scripts are like some distributions of Linux. You can get free copies from people, you can help support the distributors of that form of Linux by giving them some $, or you can take the coe and call it your own and make L$. You can also tell me to piss off and tell me that I'm a money grubbing capitalist. Sorry to try and make a tiny bit of L$. If I charged L$10 for them, you'd still scream. Ugh.

Questions

1. If I distribute my code so that the scripts are open and so that people can freely incorporate my code into their works of art, can I not call it "Open Source"? As opposed to GNU.

2. Do I not deserve to sell my code collections at any price I desire? They are my unique works of arts, not anyone elses. Can I not expect to make even a tiny bit of L$ to cover the work I put into my works of art?

3. Does all code have to be FREE (free as in beer, i.e. no $ cost whatsoever)?

I'm only screaming because your calling it free as in free beer. Free beer meaning free without charge, as in you don't have to pay to aquire it. If you charged 10$L i'd overlook that; if you charged 50$L i'd grumble but still overlook it. Charging people more then half the money they have and calling that free (as in beer) is wrong.

Questions

1. If I distribute my code so that the scripts are open and so that people can freely incorporate my code into their works of art, can I not call it "Open Source"? As opposed to GNU.

You can call it free software or open source. GNU is just a group that helped define those terms; i'm not screaming because your software isn't GPL, LGPL, or to that matter any other open source lisence.

2. Do I not deserve to sell my code collections at any price I desire? They are my unique works of arts, not anyone elses. Can I not expect to make even a tiny bit of L$ to cover the work I put into my works of art?

You have a right to charge anything you want for you code; but you can't advertise it as free of charge to aquire if you do that. In some places in the RW "Buy one get one free" is illegal advertising (since you have to buy one to get the second, the second really isn't free at all) they have to print "Buy two for the price of one". Likewise you have printed that your code is free as in beer (meaning free to aquire) but when we arive at the location it's not free to aquire. This is false advertising. People get sued in RL for this. You have a right to sell your work; if you do sell it you can't call it free (as in beer).

3. Does all code have to be FREE (free as in beer, i.e. no $ cost whatsoever)?

I'm a commercial scripter just like you; if we gave away our scripts we wouldn't have any money. But the difference here is that i don't advertise my scripts as free (as in beer) and then charge for them.

Two simple solution to this problem
A) Formaly state the scripts aren't free as in free beer but free as in free speech; Like the gnu definition. Either post it below or correct the thead head.
B) Make the script free as in beer. It's what you advertised.

The median user has 800L$. It's not up to us to decide what someone would want to do with this script; or restrict their use of this script because of their economic status. This script was advertised as free and for those users it's no where near free. Sure 500L$ is a good price but thats not how it was advertised.

Post modified as it was originally free, but not now. It's still open-source.