anyone here a java programmer?

I have a project I've been working at off and on for the last few years. I'd like to get it ramped up and get something put together to give to the community. this year, I started rewriting the program in java, which I believe is a good choice. I've had many working and functional versions in the past, but never anything I was happy enough with to release. it was written in an older language, which is only supported on windows and eventually wont work at all on modern versions of windows. java is a more modern language, and the compiled jar should run native on windows or linux as a desktop app or a server. I've also made the project open source and posted the java source this year. I'd still like to find a way to have a pay version for many reasons, but I believe open source is the best way to go for the benefit of both the community and the project.

this program is for computer automation of green houses and grow rooms. my vision has always been to be an extremely powerful program that can be customized to do most anything imaginable. it's also meant to be comparable to commercial systems which cost $1000+, but focused on the hobbyist who would assemble the parts themselves. I focus on the arduino microprocessor, but it will support many other types of hardware. for a large multi-room setup, it would probably cost under $100 in parts to build, and all documents and how to guides will be provided online for free. the circuits I've designed for the project are simple enough for beginners to build, but still safe and reliable.

what I have so far, in the java rewrite, is only a server. it runs in a shell or in the background, loads config files and plugins, and has a console to type in commands or manually execute something. I have ideas and mock-ups for a client side gui, but this is something I'm very new to in java. the client will connect to the server over a tcp port (possibly encrypted) or run the server itself for a standalone desktop. the main window has device widgets which can be moved around or customized. for example, a light timer would be one of these widgets, and would load its information from the server, which would do the actual work of commanding the hardware. on the server side, the actual communication with the hardware is always done by a plugin. say you click a toggle button on a light timer, the command goes from the client gui to the server, to the plugin, out to the hardware, then usually a relay which finally controls the light itself. with the new arduino due, it may be possible to do the timing and scripting right on the arduino itself, or have it run as a backup if the server fails.

anyway, I enjoy talking about my project. I'm looking for anyone who knows java to join in and help with the project, or even just to talk with people about it.

I guess people like pictures. the first screenshot, here's the server running in debug mode. just ignore the junk at the bottom. just temporary var dumps for dev testing. k is an alias for the kill command which shuts down the server without saving anything. that too is temporary. as you can see, it's loading a plugin and listening on port 1142 for a client/gui/dashboard program. the second screenshot, this is the first window I've made for the client. nothing fancy yet, but it's clean and functional. the list box at the top saves your connection info. the username/password are optional, depending if the server is set to require a login. I'm starting out using just a plain text protocol, but ssl will be added for secure connections over the interwebs. the next window I make will be the main dashboard where all the device controls will be. this window will be much harder to make, especially with how picky I am about it needing to be perfect, and very functional. I have plenty of good ideas for it, and I know I'll get it all figured out. something else I'm starting on, the client will automatically download any plugins it needs right from the server. once the first connection is established and logs in successfully, it will make a second parallel connection (if needed) to do the larger transfers, for things like plugins or web cam video. this way, the status updates and real-time info can keep going back and forth between the client and server. something else I could do, while files are being downloaded over the second connection, the first could continuously send ping commands back and forth to monitor the ping rate, and throttle back the download automatically when needed. people with slower internet connections using the program over the internet, it should keep everything in perfect sync without much lag.