| On-going Funded Projects |
Virtual Programming Lab for On-Line Distance Learning
In this project, we design and implement a generic Web-based Virtual Programming Lab for on-line distance learning. The powerful features of the WWW, especially the integration of most widespread Internet protocols, allow us to design software to facilitate the access to almost existing resources available on the Internet in an integrated fashion. In addition to navigation through hypermedia documents, using the remote access capability of the Internet technology, various software programs can be executed remotely through WWW. In our design, the underlying setting is a collection of computers hosting education and programming software. Students use personal computers at home to access over the Internet one of the Lab servers, which is typically located at a school. Each student is presented with a virtual desktop in the virtual lab. The Lab server performs functions to accommodate the various requests from the student, ranging from configuring lab environment for individual students, downloading software from the school lab servers, working through interactive sessions and/ or submitting a program for execution on a Lab computer using specified software package. The collection of computers forms a virtual programming laboratory because the machines can be located in different buildings and even at different campuses. It facilitates resource sharing among different schools and overcomes the limit of geographical distances. With such a platform, students and instructors alike may access the virtual teaching and laboratory environment through the ubiquitous access of the web.