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BusTel


Disclaimer

This essay does not describe an existing computer program, just one that should exist. This essay is about a suggested student project in Java programming. This essay gives a rough overview of how it might work. I have no source, object, specifications, file layouts or anything else useful to implementing this project. Everything I have prepared to help you is right here.

This project outline is not like the artificial, tidy little problems you are spoon-fed in school, when all the facts you need are included, nothing extraneous is mentioned, the answer is fully specified, along with hints to nudge you toward a single expected canonical solution. This project is much more like the real world of messy problems where it is up to you to fully the define the end point, or a series of ever more difficult versions of this project and research the information yourself to solve them.

Everything I have to say to help you with this project is written below. I am not prepared to help you implement it; or give you any additional materials. I have too many other projects of my own.

Though I am a programmer by profession, I don’t do people’s homework for them. That just robs them of an education.

You have my full permission to implement this project in any way you please and to keep all the profits from your endeavour.

Please do not email me about this project without reading the disclaimer above.

This idea is not so pressing now people mostly use the Internet in preference to the telephone for first contact.

This has been an idea I have had for many decades. It is no longer such a hot one now we have the Internet for exchanging information.

BusTel is a way of rapidly full-duplex exchanging name/address/credit information during a voice call. This fits in with the Common Phone design contest (see BIX (Byte Information Exchange) telecomm.tech/phone.co) which will implement the BusTel protocol in desk phones. You tap the heart/trust key to exchange names/addresses. You tap twice to exchange credit card info. You tap three times for direct debit exchange. This project has potential to generate big bucks. Basically it works by exchanging vCard packets full duplex in the middle of a voice call. There is an API (Application Programming Interface) for applications to extract the vCard information. The default version just displays it with a standard vCard viewer. have a device for tying two phones back to back simulating a telephone exchange that would be useful in debugging such a project.

The other form of BusTel is to exchange encrypted vCards over the Internet for shopping cart use. You and the vendor exchange information about each other.

Security

But what is to stop someone from lying to you about who he is? Everyone who wants to prove his identity buys a code signing certificate. To prove identity, each end digitally signs a random challenge phrase and sends it to the other who when checks the digital signature using the public key. Think how many scams could be averted. You might not even pick up the phone until buscards are exchanged and verified. Nobody could harass, con or threaten you without first giving sufficient ID to make a police complaint.

JavaPhone
Tel-ID
vCard
vCred

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