I don't think I'm qualified for this job

[MMock]

I received this job description from a consulting firm. I don't know what a lot of this is. I am a vb.net/asp.net programmer with a pinch of vbscript and a fair amount of sql server 2000 and 2005. I've developed Windows applications and web applications. The location of this position sounds good to me, but I think it is too much of a stretch. What do you think about it? Is it something I could learn, or something you need vast experience in to be successful at it?

Our client is seeking a resource to work within a .NET 2.0/ASP 2.0 Framework using JavaScript(Java) to create a web based plug-in for an existing software product. The main focus of the project is in looking to protect images and content inside a web survey page. The Javascript developer will need to deter the casual web user from taking images from web plug-ins they create. The specific characteristics of the plug-in that this Javascript developer will need to adhere to are as follows….

Prevent the copy and distribution of an image/video/content from a survey page by…

- Prevent saving (right-clicking) and copying of images

- No dragging or dropping images

- Suppress identifiable code in the HTML source for tracking images filenames

- Only allow an image to be opened if it's coming from a specific domain (no local viewing of images)

- No Printscreening (Ctrl-PrntScrn/PrntScrn), copy to clipboard and pasting into an image editor

- No Screen capturing of images or videos (Snagit, iQuick Screen Capture…etc)

- No printing to a File through browser’s File - Print function

- No spider grabs of images

- Hide or disable viewing generated source code

- Build for use across multiple browsers (opera/firefox/safari/ie)

- Build for use across multiple OS platforms (mac, linux, windows)

[si_the_geek]

It's JavaScript rather than a VB based language, so would mean a bit of re-training. It may be possible for you to learn in a reasonable time, but I'd recommend finding another opportunity that suits your experience a bit better.

In addition to that, the majority of requirements listed are either extremely hard or technically impossible, so even a JavaScript expert would have trouble keeping the job.

[JuggaloBrotha]

That's a lot of extremely difficult requirements, some of them are impossible to do. I don't think anyone's capable of accomplishing that (in this century).

[MMock]

Thanks to you both for the reply.

I talked to the recruiter yesterday and told her pretty much that, at least that I wasn't qualified. She said the company wanted experience with plug-ins. Well, eventually the company may have to settle, based on what you've said, but I'm glad I opted out.

[Kasracer]

JavaScript(Java)

JavaScript is not Java

Prevent saving (right-clicking) and copying of images

Not possible. You can use JavaScript to basically "disable" right click but it only works in a few browsers. However, they're looking to block the casual user so I guess to them it's doable.

No dragging or dropping images

*Not possible.

Suppress identifiable code in the HTML source for tracking images filenames

Easy to do; use an ASP/ASP.Net page to basically write out the image files. Pretty inefficient, in my opinion.

Only allow an image to be opened if it's coming from a specific domain (no local viewing of images)

Using referrers and the method I mentioned above; this should be easy. It's also easy to "spoof" but they only care about the casual user.

No Printscreening (Ctrl-PrntScrn/PrntScrn), copy to clipboard and pasting into an image editor

*Not possible.

No Screen capturing of images or videos (Snagit, iQuick Screen Capture…etc)

*Not possible.

No printing to a File through browser’s File - Print function

*Not possible.

No spider grabs of images

Possible and not possible. It's possible if the spiders appropriately follow the bots text file otherwise there is no stopping it.

Hide or disable viewing generated source code

I don't even know what this means. If they're talking about the HTML source then this isn't possible. If they're talking about server-side code... then I don't understand; it's already hidden...

Build for use across multiple browsers (opera/firefox/safari/ie)

Easy, following CSS / Html / JavaScript standards

Build for use across multiple OS platforms (mac, linux, windows)

Um... it's the web....


* All starred Not possibles are technically possible if you have full control over the user's machine and you can either disable the items you want or write an ActiveX component to do so. Both solutions, while horrible, would make multiple platforms practically impossible to support and ActiveX would only work in IE.

So they basically want the impossible. They want to control all of this stuff but also have it work on everything. That's not the way the web works and I'd be wary on working with them; they may not believe certain things are impossible because someone showed them how it works in IE.

[mendhak]

I think it's good that you didn't go for this... the company clearly has no idea about what they're doing, so they would have created a huge tangled mess and taken you along with them.

Consider it a belated Christmas present.

JavaScript(Java)

I laughed.

[chris128]

No Printscreening (Ctrl-PrntScrn/PrntScrn)

haha I love it. They want you to create a web page that disables standard built in windows functionality

Hide or disable viewing generated source code

I assume that this means they are expecting some kind of server side app (ASP etc) to generate the actual HTML code, which is fine, but then saying that they dont want anyone to be able to view this generated code is an absolute joke. If no one can get at the HTML code then neither can web browsers... so they want someone to create a web site no one can see basically. Sounds great
I think you did good not going for that one as others have said

[Nightwalker83]

haha I love it. They want you to create a web page that disables standard built in windows functionality

Hackers would be in heaven if there was a way to disable Windows like that! The easiest method of disabling Windows.

[oceanebelle]

I think they want you to create a totally new revolutionary browser.

edit: Forget what I said. they did say they want it to work on all browsers... and I suppose this job requires that it should work across all version of all the browsers?

This reminds me of my previous work place (The impossible requirements). Lole!

[Blakk_Majik]

If they're that concerned about people stealing the images, they shouldn't be putting them on the web in the first place.

[Bopo]

Um couldn't they just watermark images to deter users, that's quite effective.