ParkingBan was created as an AOL Instant Messenger screen name in winter 2004—05. Throughout that winter, ParkingBan was operated manually and signed online only when a declared winter parking ban was in place.
The idea arose in summer 2005 for ParkingBan to become an automated AIM buddy. ParkingBan was first automated in October 2005 and developed for winter 2005—06 with a public release on December 1, the start of the winter parking ban season. ParkingBan was able to communicate with users; however, its conversational skills were limited. ParkingBan automatically processed notifications, but that process was initiated manually when the declared winter parking ban was put into effect.
ParkingBan was completely transformed for winter 2006—07; in addition to AIM, ParkingBan communicates via e-mail, text messaging, and this Web site. ParkingBan is housed on a dedicated external server. New conversation, interactive features, and a blog are among the many noticable upgrades; behind the scences, ParkingBan received major upgrades as well.
