CS 336/621

PROJECT #2                                 Due: 7:30pm, Tuesday 04/07/09


     The purpose of this project is to acquaint students with the use of
IP-multicasting in the design of a client-and-server application that is
potentially of interest to a college-student audience.  


			   PROBLEM STATEMENT	

     Use the Berkeley sockets API to craft a C++ application program for
keeping college students informed about the upcoming deadlines for their
assignment-submissions, or for the amount of time remaining to work on a
Midterm or Final exam.  Use 'deadline.cpp' as a filename for your source
code, and allow users to supply three program-parameters as command-line 
arguments which will be incorporated into the messages that will be sent
out to all the multicast-group subscribers by your deadline-server.  For
example:
	     $ ./deadline CS336 project2 7:30pm-07-April-2009
 
Your program's notification-message should resemble this format:

    +--------------------------------------------------------------+
    | Deadline for 'project2' in 'CS336' is '7:30pm-07-April-2009' |
    +--------------------------------------------------------------+
	
           Time remaining is: 18 days, 23 hours, 15 minutes 
 
    Program author: John Smith		Notification-ID: 0000000674 
    Server hostname: hrn23501.cs.usfca.edu


Notice that in an actual version of your program no useful purpose would 
be served by having such deadline-notices sent more often than once-per-
minute (and excessive network traffic can create congestion, which would
degrade performance and efficiency).  During development, however, it is
desirable to send the messages more rapidly (i.e., once every 5 seconds)
and in some manner have each message differ from the preceeding message;   
this is why, for instructor testing, we require displaying an ID-number.

In addition, you should also write a deadline-client application program
named 'timeleft.cpp' which will 'subscribe' to the multicast group being
used by your deadline-server and which will display all messages sent to
your multicast-group on the standard output device.  This program should
be launched without ant command-line arguments:   

			     $ ./ timeleft
  

In order to avoid other students's messages on the neterwork interfering
with your program development and testing, it is desirable that students
should use different IP-multicast group-addresses.  The scheme for doing
this will be explained during class.


			    WHAT TO SUBMIT

Your project-submission has two required parts: hardcopy and electronic. 

(1) a printout of your source-files ('deadline.cpp' and 'timeleft.cpp');

(2) copies of all of your project's files into your 'submit' folder; 

Use our 'ljpages' utility-program (under 'System Software' on our cs336
website) to produce your printout on a laserprinter in our classroom or
in one of the Harney Fifth-Floor CS Labs -- Be sure your printout shows
YOUR NAME as the project's programmer -- and turn in your 'printout' to 
your instructor's mailbox (Mathematics Office: Harney-222) or in class.  
________________________________________________________________________
Allan B. Cruse          University of San Francisco          Spring 2009