This assignment is to create a prototype auction site like this one. As usual, you are free to copy the HTML generated by this program in building your own.

FeaturesYour program should have the features listed here. Feel free to run the example program to help figure out what I'm talking about. You are not required to use the same layout and screens as the example program, so long as you implement all the features in a reasonable way.

1. Maintain a list of user accounts.
   1. Users may log on or log off, and many features are available only to users who are logged on.
   2. Each user has a login name and a human name. The login name must contain only letters and digits. The user logs in by entering the login name.
   3. Anyone may create an account. The creator must choose a login name and provide a human name. If the chosen login name contains illegal characters, or already exists, refuse to create the account and give reasonable feedback to the user.
   4. Optionally, you may implement account passwords. If so, allow the user to set a password when the account is created, and to change it later. Require a correct password for login. (Obviously, a serious system would have this feature. Since there's already enough to do here, I am not requiring passwords.)
2. Maintain a list of items for bidding.
   1. Each item is an auction. It has an owner, a closing date, and a (possibly empty) collection of bids.
   2. Any logged-in user may add an item. Require the user to enter a description and closing date, and set the list of bids initially empty. As you may notice, the demo accepts entry of an auction length and computes the closing date from that.
   3. Any logged-in user may delete any of his own items; an item may be deleted only by its owner.
   4. Present a list of items currently available. For each one, show the owner, description, closing date, number of bids and high bid (if any).
3. Maintain a list of bids for each item in the item list.
   1. Any logged-in user may bid on any item which has not closed.
   2. The bid must be an integer amount and must exceed the current high bid, if there is one.
   3. When a bid is submitted, you must check that it meets all requirements. If not, generate an appropriate message and do not record the bid.
   4. Each allowed bid creates a record containing the bidder, the amount of the bid, and the date and time the bid was submitted.
   5. Anyone may display the list of bids for any item. This listing shows the bidder, amount and date for each bid, in chronological order.
   6. An item's list of bids is deleted when the item is deleted.
4. Any data entered by a user which is sent back in HTML, such as item descriptions, must be escaped so that it displays literally. This is both an appearance and a security issue.
5. Be sure that your program cannot be broken or compromised by mal-formed input data. Generally, you will need to check that input is what it should be (integers are integers), or at least be sure the consequences of bad data are minor.