pmsg - PocketPC messenger idea

pocket messenger
Chat through bluetooth, Wi-Fi, IrDA
More of a learning project than anything useful (use IRC, XMPP, email…)

Ideea: on first launch program should prompt you to make a (device-local) user account.

The program will need a local cache directory: make it in the current running directory (most likely program files) and put stuff there.

That user account will be local only and will contain:

• Username (doesn't have to be unique since we can't track it anyway)
• * ID
• 1. How we actually track users between conversations; This must be unique
• 1. Maybe generate it from Wi-Fi mac address + device name? Something like that
• 1. Or get it from device S/N, anything identifiable
• 1. Hash it and send it along with any message
• * Profile picture
• 1. Something small with reduced colors, probably 64×64 and 4-bit colour
• 1. Send this along at the start of the chat maybe to reduce bandwidth needs?
• 1. If somebody joins in a group chat after a user they won't see their profile picture
• 1. Solution: Just send it (announce it, like a gratuitous ARP) whenever someone joins
• 1. This could cause performance problems if there are a lot of people in a group chat and everybody sends their profile picture
• 1. First, the client will have to check if they have a locally cached version of a user's profile picture based on their ID
• 1. `Program: Do I have this profile picture in my cache directory?`
• 1. `Program: If I do, I won't ask for a profile picture`
• 1. Whenever a user changes their profile picture, they will announce it after a random amount of time to reduce bandwidth needs.