MFTP
MFTP is google group based notification service that subscribes the notices from Training and Placement noticeboard of IIT Kharagpur. The service aims to simplify the hassle of viewing notices and updates by removing the web-login hassles of ERP with email notifications. But personal deployments can be made on Heroku, from the code on GitHub.
History[edit | edit source]
MFTP was conceived by Vikrant Varma and Vivek Aithal in a fit of frustration with the T&P noticeboard interface in ERP, during their placement season in 2015. At this time, it was required to repeatedly reload the ERP interface to check for new notices, which led to them missing several important notices, and nearly missing an urgent notice about a change in interview timing.
MFTP works by repeatedly logging into ERP using some user's credentials, downloading the last few hundred notices, diffing them with previously fetched notices, and constructing updates out of new or changed notices. Notice attachments are also diffed, and are attached directly to the emails sent out. Email updates are easily filtered by a user's mail client. The mail + attachment format also has the advantage of being easily searchable in most mail clients.
The first design involved users subscribing for email notifications directly on an MFTP web interface. However, Ppsreejith proposed the idea of using a Google Group, which seemed far simpler, and this was used for the final implementation. The Google Group has the disadvantage that anyone, including people from outside KGP, can ask to join the group. A simple question requiring knowledge of KGP serves as a minor gateway for entry into the group, to discourage casual outsiders from joining.