Transite non-RFP

Transite non-RFP

<No, this is *NOT* a real RFP with $ at the end.>

Transite will be a package enabling multi-platform distribution of local
multi-media web sites on individual desktops or intranets using read-only
storage media like compact disks or DVDs. Transite might be used to
facilitate production and distribution of reference manuals, technical
manuals, textbooks and textbook supplements, interactive comic books, other
creative works, and adult content.

Transite must be built entirely of gratis-ware components. It is desirable
that components be open-ware or liberty-ware.

In the initial platform phase Transite will be targeted to the desktop. It
must run on current versions of Microsoft Windows, should run on Macintosh
OSX, and is desirable that in run on Linux Gnome and KDE environments. The
second platform stage will accommodate two-tier architectures where Transite
bundled content will be served from CD or DVD servers or from servers where
Transite and content are transfered to permanently mounted storage. In
platform stage two Transite must run on *nix servers, particularly Red Hat,
and MS Windows servers.

Transite will include a gratis-ware web server that runs on all platforms,
namely *nix and Windows servers in an intranet environment, and single-user
Windows and OSX consoles. The web server will support JVM application and
must support Java and Python. It must support PHP. It is desirable that the
web server support the MS Visual Basic Scripting language.

Transite will include a competent multi-platform, true multi-user, compact
relational database management system. It is expected that the RDBMS will
operate in a read-mostly capacity and that only occasional user preference
and site state data will need to be saved to persistent random access
storage. The RDBMS must support a robust SQL dialect. It must support large
objects, notably video, photo quality graphics, and audio. It must be
suitable for use in an intranet environment with multi-DVD service. It is
desirable that the RDBMS should able to manage transactions and use internal
stored procedures. It should also have support for XML, XPath, XQuery, and
XSLT.

While early versions will not be security oriented, Transite must be designed
to accommodate the following security extentions. It should eventually be
able to protect publisher intellectual property by allowing the publisher to
restrict non-console, server distribution. Transite publishers should
eventually be able to specify service to keyed consumers and to a maximum
fixed number of keyed consumers. Transite publishers should be able to
forbid printing and copying of Transite content. Publishers should be able
to specify impaired printing or copying or no restriction on printing and
copying content. Eventually Transite should support encrypted backup of a
Transite site and its content.

For internal enterprise deployments, Transite application administrators
should eventually be able to specify user roles and groups. Transite
administrators should be able to control access by individuals to content at
at least the 'page' level. Ideally administrators should be able to control
individual's access with XPath/XQuery resolution.

Transite should come bundled with a standard gratis-ware browser. The browser
must work on Windows and OSX. It is desirable that the browser work on Linux
and other graphics enabled *nix systems.

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Background Motivation.

I am a poor person and thus *have* to use Linux. Also I cannot afford a web
site with the creative control that I want.

But I created a website (see http://www.geocities.com/allianceforprogress ).
To do it the way I want, I *need* to administer and develop my own database.
I *can* put Apache, PHP, and either MySQL or Postgresql on my machine, but
then I cannot really publish. (By the way, I have a substantial preference
for Postgresql over MySQL.)

Now if I had a product that would create website-on-CD-ROM, my impoverished
self could develop a sophisticated website *and* publish the same.