JSMS - desktop app to use your free text message allocation (multi-operator)

The Kid

Note that I had to make a new release of JSMS (version 3.3.1) this evening to address a couple of bugs sending texts for both Meteor and O2 users. As usual it can be found at http://jsmsirl.sourceforge.net

Hopefully there won't be any need for more changes for the next while...

Enjoy!

need assistance

Thanks for that install worked perfectly as per your suggestion. Handy little gadget

The Kid

need assistance wrote: »

Thanks for that install worked perfectly as per your suggestion. Handy little gadget

Excellent! Enjoy... :-)

The Kid

need assistance wrote: »

Have make power Book Pro with leopard installed, can't seem to get this working, is leopard supported?

I had a number of Mac users get back to me saying that the Mac installer didn't work. It turns out that the Mac OS X installer hadn't been uploaded to the project site correctly. I've uploaded a new Mac OS X installer for version 3.3.1 and tested downloading and installing it to a MacBook. It should now work OK again. .

Note that we currently only build installers for Windows, Linux (i386) and Mac OS X. If you require a build for a different operating system, please log a support request to our support tracker (https://sourceforge.net/tracker/?func=add&group_id=196351&atid=957109).

We can (theoretically anyway!) also provide installers for the following platforms:
- Linux IA64
- Linux PPC
- Linux s390
- Solaris Sparc
- Solaris Intel
- FreeBSD 4.x
- FreeBSD 5.x
- FreeBSD 6.x
- FreeBSD 6.x 64 bits
- OpenBSD x86
- HP-UX
- AIX
- ARIX

dal

Brilliant, brilliant application.

I did notice though that international numbers aren't supported for O2 through JSMS.

I got the source code and changed it for myself, but you might want to do the same for a future release.

Here is the line that prevents international sending:

String number = "353" + destinationNumber.substring(1);

You could first check that the number needs to be internationalised (ie is only 10 characters long - 0857xxxxxx) and then execute the above code, otherwise, just leave the number as the user has entered it (in my case it is already internationalised in my phonebook as 4477xxxxxxxx).

The actual "country=353" variable in the url for O2 is ignored so this can stay fixed as 353 even if the destination number is to a non irish mobile.

Thanks a million for this wonderful application. And thanks for making it in Java cos i'm using linux!

The Kid

dal wrote: »

Brilliant, brilliant application.

Thanks Dal. We've got lots more features planned to make JSMS much more useful, all we need is to find the time to implement them!!!

dal wrote: »

I did notice though that international numbers aren't supported for O2 through JSMS.

That would be my fault. I accidently removed support for the internationalised numbers - I hadn't realised that O2 users could send free international texts (lucky buggers!) at the time... It'll be fixed in the next release.

dal wrote: »

Thanks a million for this wonderful application. And thanks for making it in Java cos i'm using linux!

No worries mate. I use both windows and Linux myself so I also appreciate the multi-platform aspect.

And Apple users out there - I'm hoping to be able to provide a better installer for you guys. I'm trying to pu8t a DMG disk image together, but it's been taking me a while seeing as I'm trying to build it on a Windows box...

meanpeoplesuck

Hey The Kid,

I've downloaded the program and double clicked it to install. Then I get this error:



I googled Java to get to their official website, and did their verification and it says I have Java installed. Do I need to downgrade to 1.5 or something?

Thanks!

The Kid

fbradyirl wrote: »

For all you Meteor Ireland customers out there, I have created a small program you can use to send free texts via Meteor website without
having to log in each time. You dont even need to open a web browser.

JSMS now supports Vodafone and O2 customers as well as Meteor customers.

To send free SMS messges from any PC, simply download the app from http://jsmsirl.sourceforge.net

Keep up-to-date with us on this thread:
http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055177821&highlight=jsms

The Kid

meanpeoplesuck wrote: »

Do I need to downgrade to 1.5 or something?

Yes, JSMS currently requires Java 1.5... You see JSMS runs on *all* PCs, not just Windows - and to make this interoperability possible we still use an older version of Java (Java 1.5/Java 5). This is because the Apple Macintosh does not yet officially support the latest release (Java 1.6/Java 6).

You can get the Java 5 JRE from here:
http://java.sun.com/javase/downloads/index_jdk5.jsp
Download and install the installer called "Java Runtime Environment (JRE) 5.0 Update 14".

I'm going to be making a new release of JSMS with some new features in the New Year and I was thinking of providing an installer that includes it's own JRE. I'm also considering making a separate build using Java 1.5 for apple users and then Java 1.6 for everybody else, but I need to tweak around my development environment a bit to make that possible... Whatever way I go, I hope that the next release will make it easier to ensure that all users have the correct JRE.

Anyway, cheers for trying out JSMS - and let me know if you have more difficulties getting it running and I'll get you sorted!

Happy Christmas to you all and have a great New Year...

The Kid.

The Kid

fbradyirl wrote: »

Just in case you don't know, JSMS is now working with Vodafone, O2 (via the AFT server) as well as Meteor.

http://meteorjsms.googlepages.com/

Cheers
Finbarr

I just spotted this old thread from Finbarr...

JSMS is now hosted on the worlds biggest open source site - sourceforge... You'll find us at:
http://jsmsirl.sourceforge.net

And you can follow the news on this thread:
http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=54727296
It's worth subscribing to the thread as we have lots of new features and updates planned...

Have a geat Christmas all and have a great 2008...

The Kid

meanpeoplesuck wrote: »

Do I need to downgrade to 1.5 or something?

Actually no - I was thinking about this some more and you shouldn't need to downgrade to Java 1.5...

Your problem is most likely just with the installer. Download the jsms_3.3.1_jar.tar.gz release instead of the windows installer from the downloads page (https://sourceforge.net/project/showfiles.php?group_id=196351)

You'll then need to unzip the files into a new directory (e.g. C:\Program Files\JSMS). You should be able to run the app by double clicking on the Jar file.

That should save you having to mess around with your installed Java JREs.

meanpeoplesuck

That has worked a treat!

Fantastic little program, all is going well so far, thanks for your efforts

Happy Christmas and New Year The Kid, and everybody else!

The Kid

meanpeoplesuck wrote: »

That has worked a treat!

Fantastic little program, all is going well so far, thanks for your efforts

Happy Christmas and New Year The Kid, and everybody else!

Excellent stuff! Spread the word!

:-)

fatal

thanks a mill.Great little programme

The Kid

fatal wrote: »

thanks a mill.Great little programme

Cheers mate! Spread the word...

And fair play to those of you who have already being doing so - it looks like we've had about 500 downloads of the latest release. And I'm sure every one of those people who took the time to download it will be delighted to know that Finbarr has sold his wee car at last! :-) No more will that cute little 305 be staring down at us as we go looking for the latest download of JSMS!!! :-)

The next release is in progress - I'm just trying to find time to put the finishing touches to the new features and bug fixes... Watch this space!

dal

The Kid wrote: »

The next release is in progress - I'm just trying to find time to put the finishing touches to the new features and bug fixes... Watch this space!

Any clues as to what those features might be?

One thing that I really, really like about JSMS is it's simplicity. From a usability aspect, the UI is fantastic. No unnecessary bells, whistles and everything is where you'd expect.

One obvious improvement (though you're probably working on it) is the phone book editing. Works fine for a techie, but not so intuitive for Joe Bloggs.

The Kid

dal wrote: »

Any clues as to what those features might be?
One thing that I really, really like about JSMS is it's simplicity. From a usability aspect, the UI is fantastic. No unnecessary bells, whistles and everything is where you'd expect.

I agree about the simplicity aspect. That's also what sold it on me on JSMS. I do want to add more bells and whistles, but you're right, I'll be hoping that they are *not* at the cost of the simplicity of the UI.

OK - here's a snapshot of some of the things to expect:

- The big one is that we now support spell checking. To facilitate people who write texts in their own "text abbreviation" languages, it can be enabled/or disabled simply by pressing a button on the main screen. But this feature should be useful for anybody who finds themselves typing proper English when sending texts using JSMS. It can be used in either (or both) of two ways - highlight spelling errors as you type (like MS Word does) and/or just before you send your message. And we use the dictionaries provided by OpenOffice.org, so we can support hundreds of different languages - all for free...

- I've updated the installer and have hopefully fixed the issues people have had trying to find the correct Java JVM to use.

- I've done some work on trying to provide a more "native" Apple Mac DMG installer. It's not the easiest thing to do from a Windows workstation, and I need to do more testing on it, so I have my fingers crossed.

- I've added the ability to set your proxy settings from the preferences. And the ability to test them to ensure that JSMS can access the internet with the entered settings. This should be useful to people you use the application from work and will replace the proxyConfig.txt config file.

- I've added the ability to change the look and feel of JSMS. The feature is hidden away in the preferences, but it lets you change the app from using the default Java look and feel (called "metal") to look like an app native to your Operating System. The number of different look and feels available will depend on the Java JVM you are using. It's just a wee thing to help make the app look a bit better.

- I'm tidying up the way we save user preferences. This will allow us to sort preferences on a per user basis (among other things). For example, Janice and Jackie both use the same installation of JSMS but Janice likes to have the enter key send the message, whereas Jackie does not.

- I've added proper logging support so that should help us in debugging problems/bugs that will inevitably arise as we add more features and more people start using it on more Operating Systems.

- Bug fixes.

dal wrote: »

One obvious improvement (though you're probably working on it) is the phone book editing. Works fine for a techie, but not so intuitive for Joe Bloggs.

I totally agree - I haven't tackled this issue in this release yet - for a couple of reasons:

1. I want to be able to store different phone books on a per user basis. My girlfriend gets annoyed if she changes user to her account and finds all my numbers in her phone book! :-) When I enhance the phone book, I intend that this will no longer be an issue. The updates to the way we store user preferences in the forthcoming release paves the way to being able to do this.

2. My work on JSMS is the only experience I have of GUI programming, so I'm still learning the ropes a bit. I've deliberately held off on designing a phone book until the release after this one until I improve my GUI skills a little bit. Plus I've held off from using a GUI builder tool like netbeans as I don't want to have to include all of the jar files that it uses when designing GUIs.


We do have a list of other improvements that can be made for future releases - so if the app continues to grow in popularity, we will continue to provide them!

The possibilities include the following (but keep in mind many of these proposals may never see the light of day!):
- Providing JSMS as a Windows Vista gadget and/or a MAC OS widget.
- Saving a history of sent texts. I would only provide this feature on the basis that the texts are stored encrypted with the user's phone number and password so that only the user that sent them could read them. Security conscious we are!! :-)
- Automatic updates. I would like to be able to have JSMS update itself simply by the user pressing a button. I've already been looking into tools that should help make this possible.
- Documentation. I'm conscious that we have no documentation or help feature. I believe that the simplicity of the GUI currently allows us to "get away" with this - it doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out how to use JSMS - but I'd still like to provide some sort of documentation at some stage.

Cheers!

witnessmenow

Did any one ever try make this a midlet ?

would you mind if i gave it a go? No experience at it but with your source code (and you permission!) how hard could it be?!

The reason i would like it is that the Psp now supports java thanks to pee jay

Psps have built in wi-fi , it would make a winning combination i think!

dal

There is a midlet for java enabled phones called AFT which currently does more or less what you want. You could download this to see if it works on the PSP.
The biggest difference between AFT and JSMS is that AFT routes the message through and additional server to cut down on the data costs.
Now because the data costs aren't an issue with the PSP (wifi), you could try to merge the code from JSMS and AFT. So it would have the AFT UI (which uses java mobile) but the JSMS connection code (which communicates directly with Vodafone, O2 or meteor).

The Kid

witnessmenow wrote: »

Did any one ever try make this a midlet ?

I agree with Dal, it would be far simpler to get AFT running on your PSP rather than trying to port JSMS. AFT is written in Java Micro Edition (J2ME) which is specifically geared towards running on mobile devices and the likes. JSMS on the other hand is written in Java Standard Edition (J2SE) which is geared towards running on PCs. Looking at your link to Pee Jay, it seems that it is a port of J2ME onto the PSP. You could probably get AFT running on there with little or no hassle...

And as Dal suggested you can always take AFT and update it to use the JSMS message sending code instead of using the AFT servers. Our code works with the Vodafone, O2 and Meteor websites (Three don't give free webtexts). And JSMS is licenced under the GNU GPL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/gpl.html).

And if you end up improving our code in the process, we'd be delighted to take some of those improvements on board.

The Kid

witnessmenow wrote: »

Did any one ever try make this a midlet ?

If you still want to chase this up, it should be possible to use the JSMS message sending code independently of the JSMS frontend GUI. I'm not sure if it'll compile under J2ME or pee-jay for you but it's certainly worth trying... You could then use whatever front end you likesd or indeed just execute it from a command line...

Give me a shout if you need a hand figuring out what can and can't be done...

Stoned Hippy

The Kid wrote: »

The possibilities include the following (but keep in mind many of these proposals may never see the light of day!):
- Providing JSMS as a Windows Vista gadget and/or a MAC OS widget.

Sorry for brinigng the convo back a bit but I just wanted to say that a Vista gadget would be wonderful... just WONDERFUL! I thought seeing as no one else had mentioned it I would throw my vote in the hat.

I've just discovered JSMS and I love it, keep up the good work!

Stoned Hippy

The Kid

Stoned Hippy wrote: »

I just wanted to say that a Vista gadget would be wonderful...

We've thought of it alright. And Mac widgets as well... I'm not even sure how easy or difficult it might be to do...

As far as I'm aware to make a Java app run as a Vista widget you need to build some kind of a .NET wrapper for it... There's a whole learning curve there for me!!!

As for a Mac widget - I have no idea what's involved there... To be honest I'm still having hassle building a DMG installer on my windows box!

I'll have a bit of learning to do before I could take on a project like either of these! :-)

But I'll keep a look out for ways to make gadgets/widgets - there must be people out there who have developed generic wrappers for Java apps...

I've just discovered JSMS and I love it, keep up the good work!

Cheers! Glad you find it useful - and thanks for the feedback - it's all appreciated... As we keep saying - spread the word!

P.S. The new release of JSMS is currently under test... We're just ironing out the wrinkles so to speak!

:-)

The-Baron

Hey just wondering is it possible to access this via command line?
If so how?

Would like to use this with a script and mackers o2sms doesnt has support Meteor for the time being.

The Kid

The-Baron wrote: »

Hey just wondering is it possible to access this via command line?
If so how?

Hey Baron - running JSMS from the command line has already been proposed by one of the guys helping us with the new release.

It'll be in the upcoming release - I'm about to implement it right now!!!

:-)

The Kid

I've implemented a mechanism to send messages from the command line using the JSMS jar.

If anybody wants to take a stab at building a midlet, gadget or widget then this capability might be of interest to you. All we ask is that if somebody does decide to take on such a task that they let us know and we'll package it up with the main application, host it up on sourceforge, etc.

The-Baron

Hey thanks,

Have you got this version up on sourceforge?
I wasnt planning on making a widget like thing with this, but Ill see what I can get going with this and let you know.

Cheers again.

The Kid

The-Baron wrote: »

Have you got this version up on sourceforge?

Not just yet. I've a bit of work to do to make sure the OSX DMG image works OK and I should be uploading it then. It should be only be a couple of days though...

I you want something sooner, send me a private message and pass on your email address and I'll send you on a pre-release build.

I wasnt planning on making a widget like thing with this, but Ill see what I can get going with this and let you know.

I understand that. There's been a number of others on the thread suggesting making a widget, midlet or gadget for JSMS -- this gives thm one option for doing that. They can develop the UI part natively and then use the JSMS jar to send their messages...

The Kid

Hi Folks,

We've just released the long-promised new release of JSMS. We've added lots of new features, including a spell checker, per user phone books and preferences and the ability to send messages from the command line.

As usual, the release can be downloaded from the JSMS website.
As usual, please report bugs to our bug tracking DB.

A fuller description of the changes follows. Note that this list contains info on how some of the features can be used.

JSMS 3.3.2

---

- Added ability to invoke JSMS from the command line:
Usages are:
* To launch the JSMS GUI:
java -jar JSMS.jar
* To print usage information:
java -jar JSMS.jar help
* To clear preferences (WARNING: This will delete your phone book!):
java -jar JSMS.jar clearPrefs
* To send a text from the command line:
java -jar JSMS.jar <Meteor | Vodafone | O2> <login> <password> <destinationNo> <message> [<proxyHost> <proxyPort>]

- Added spell checker. It can be enabled to check the text as you type and/or just as the text is being sent. To add new dictionaries download the required dictionary (for free) from the OpenOffice wiki (http://wiki.services.openoffice.org/wiki/Dictionaries) and save it in the JSMS/dictionaries folder. Note that currently the dictionaries must be in a .zip archive. We will provide an automated mechanism for installing new dictionaries in the next release.

- Updated the installer to fix the issues people have had trying to find the correct Java JVM to use. JSMS should now work with any Java Virtual Machine (JVM) version 5 or greater.

- Provided an Apple Mac OSX DMG installer.

- Added buttons for controlling spell check functions.

- Added button to clear text area.

- Fixed bug that preventing O2 users from sending to international numbers.

- Fixed problem when Meteor and Vodafone customers were not being shown the number of texts remaining.

- Removed download of Meteor address book as it hadn't been working since Meteor revamped their website. We will look into restoring this functionality in a future release.

- Proxy settings can now be set via the preferences dialog. And there is now also a button that allows you to test the Internet access. A connectivity check also happens in the background after the user logs in.

- Added ability to change the look and feel of JSMS. This lets you change the app from using the default Java look and feel (called "metal") to look like an app native to your Operating System. The number of different look and feels available will depend on the Java Virtual Machine (JVM) you are using.

- User preferences are no longer stored in config files. This is important for Vista users, as a default unmodified Vista installation will not allow a Java app write to the hard drive. Preferences are now saved on a per user basis, so each user can set JSMS up in the way that suits him/her.

- Added GUI window for editing the phone book.

- Added a tooltip to show the selected contact's phone number when the mouse hovers the contacts drop down.

- We now correctly store dialog sizes (on a per user basis) and will restore each dialog (and the main app) in the same position it was in when it was closed.

- We now support proper logging. If you are experiencing any problems, we can use this as a debugging aid.

dal

Thanks a million for this update.