Re: [seul-edu] Online Test System

["David C. Moore" <dmoore@mbhs.edu>]

On Thu, 3 Feb 2000, Doug Loss wrote:

> > I used MySQL because it was stable and usable at the time I started coding
> > AUC.  However, EduML and/or XML would be an excellent addition to AUC.
> > However, it seems to me that EduML is not standardized to the point that I
> > could begin integration.  Long term though, I think it's the right
> > approach.
> > 
> In what way not standardized?  What would you need to see added,
> changed, or expanded upon to reach the point where you could begin
> integration?
> 

I guess what I'd like to see is a GPL library that parses EduML and has a
standardized API.  I admit that I haven't read a whole lot into EduML.
I'm assuming that a standard XML parser like libxml could parse an EduML
document into a usable data structure.  I guess what I'd like to see is a
library that adds another layer of transparency to the process with an API
well-suited to an educational environment.  Or perhaps using EduML in a
production environment is easier than I think.  Would someone with good
insight into this clarify for me?

> Great!  Now we _really_ need to see your API!  David Culp, Bradley
> Burnside, and Justin Maurer, you all have gradebook projects listed on
> our projects page.  Let's see about getting something together to work
> within AUC!  Steve Tonnesen and Jim Lynch, maybe K12Admin and Roster
> should be considered here too.  Perhaps we should now set up a mailing
> list for the administrative software task group too.

Okay, I've made some initial API information available.  Go to the
download page for AUC at http://auc.sourceforge.net, and take a look
at the sample plug-in I've provided.  It should be helpful in spurring
some AUC plug-in development.

> 
> > Yes, I think AUC as a scaffold is my goal as well.  Plug-ins already work
> > to a limited degree, and I plan to improve the API later.
> > 
> This brings SEUL/edu full circle in that one of the very earliest
> discussions we had was on the need for an "educational software
> launchpad" that would allow various educational programs to be run from
> a consistent interface and would keep track of a student's progress.
> 

Great!

If anyone has questions regarding the AUC API, please feel free to email
me or the auc-devel mailling list.

Good luck!

-David

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  David Moore       California Institute of Technology
 <dcm@acm.org>             http://www.mbhs.edu/~dmoore
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