🚀 Comic-Con Terminal Management System

Description

The Comic-Con Terminal Management System is a full-stack, cyber-themed desktop application designed to manage convention scheduling, guest itineraries, and secure billing. It bridges a high-performance C++ backend for efficient data structure management with a sleek, terminal-inspired Python Tkinter graphical user interface using Inter-Process Communication (IPC).

📑 Table of Contents

• Features
• Technologies Used
• Installation
• Usage
• Project Structure
• Contributing
• License

✨ Features

• Cyberpunk UI: A visually striking, terminal-inspired GUI built with Tkinter featuring custom color schemes.
• Role-Based Access Control: Distinct operational modes for ROOT (Admin) and USER (Guest) accounts.
• Secure Authentication: User credentials are encrypted using salted PBKDF2-HMAC-SHA256 hashing.
• Efficient Data Management: The C++ backend utilizes advanced data structures including Doubly Linked Lists (Actor Schedules), Circular Linked Lists (Cosplayer Parades), and Vectors (Artist Alley).
• Cross-Language IPC: Seamless data pipelining between the Python frontend and C++ executable via stdin/stdout.
• Dynamic Ledger Routing: Integrated financial routing configuration and invoice generation for guests.

🛠️ Technologies Used

• Backend: C++11
• Frontend: Python 3, Tkinter
• Data Storage: JSON (Authentication/Banking), TXT (Convention Data)
• Build System: GNU Make

⚙️ Installation

Prerequisites

• Python 3.x installed on your system.
• g++ compiler (supporting C++11 standard).
• Make build utility.

Setup Instructions

1. Clone the repository:

   git clone https://github.com/mtepenner/comic-con-project.git
   cd comic-con-project
   

2. Configure Executable Path (Mac/Linux Users): By default, the Python frontend looks for a Windows .exe file. If you are on Mac or Linux, open frontend/config.py and update the execution path:

   # Change from "backend/backend.exe" to:
   CPP_EXECUTABLE = "backend/backend" 

3. Build and Run: Use the provided Makefile to compile the C++ backend and launch the Python GUI simultaneously:

   make all
   

💻 Usage

• Authentication: Upon launch, allocate a new account or log in. Choose the ROOT (Admin) privilege level to manage the convention or USER (Guest) to browse. You can also "Bypass as Guest" for quick access.
• Admin Portal: Use the mainframe to inject new Artists, Actors, and Cosplayers into the databanks. You can also configure the financial routing ledger.
• Guest Portal: Browse the official Comic-Con registry, multi-select events to build your itinerary, and execute a secure checkout using simulated credits (SECURE_NET or CRYPTO_LEDGER).

📂 Project Structure

comic-con-project/
├── Makefile                # Build and run configurations
├── backend/                # C++ source code for data handling
│   ├── Actor.h / .cpp      # Doubly Linked List implementation
│   ├── Artist.h / .cpp     # Vector implementation
│   ├── Cosplayer.h / .cpp  # Circular Linked List implementation
│   ├── Celebrity.h / .cpp  # Base class
│   └── main.cpp            # C++ Entry Point & IPC Controller
└── frontend/               # Python/Tkinter GUI application
    ├── admin_ui.py         # Administrator portal
    ├── auth_ui.py          # Login and registry UI
    ├── config.py           # Theme and path configurations
    ├── guest_ui.py         # Guest itinerary and billing UI
    ├── main.py             # Python Entry Point
    └── managers.py         # Authentication and Ledger handling

🤝 Contributing

Contributions, issues, and feature requests are welcome! Feel free to check the issues page.

1. Fork the Project
2. Create your Feature Branch (git checkout -b feature/AmazingFeature)
3. Commit your Changes (git commit -m 'Add some AmazingFeature')
4. Push to the Branch (git push origin feature/AmazingFeature)
5. Open a Pull Request

📄 License

Distributed under the MIT License. See LICENSE for more information.