MADE Mobile Agents based system for Distance Evaluation

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MADEMobile Agents based system for Distance
Evaluation

• Vikram Jamwal
• 99329009
• KReSIT, IIT Bombay
• Guide Prof. Sridhar Iyer

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Contents

• The application
• Motivation
• Domain
• Existing Schemes
• Distributed system structuring
• Prevailing paradigms
• Mobile agent approach
• Mobile agent frameworks
• Our model
• Experimentation
• Conclusions

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Distance Evaluation

• Emergence of distance education
• Need for distance evaluation mechanisms
• Alternatives to paper-based exams
• Computer based and Internet based
• Scheduled and uniform exams

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Types of e-testing mechanisms

• Where does the database reside?
• Locally
• Computer Based Testing (CBT)
• Examples
• GRE and GMAT
• Remote
• Internet based testing
• Examples
• www.eexam.com
• www.netexam.com
• Any Time exams

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Computer Based Testing (CBT)

• Different Question-Paper for each examinee
• Generated dynamically
• Adaptive
• Different weights given to different questions
• Next question decided on the basis of
• difficulty level and
• correctness of answer to previous question

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Existing Internet Based Testing Schemes

• Front End
• Mostly HTML - form based
• answers sent using GET and POST methods
• Java applets, flash
• Back End
• CGI scripts
• Java servlets
• Security
• Authentication done using login - password
• May use https for secure exchange
• Some issues
• Web Servers are basically stateless

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Important Points

• Existing models are basically
• Pull based
• Client-Server
• Extending Internet based evaluation techniques
• Push model
• Different kinds of content
• Dynamic organization of content
• Off-line examination V/S on-line examination
• Subjective answers (not just objective)
• Key technical issues
• How to deliver the exam content?
• How to evaluate the answers?
• Our solution
• Use Mobile Agents

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Distributed System Structuring Mechanisms
Call to server procedure
Data
Client
Server
results
Procedure
Client Server
Procedure
Data
Client
Server
results
Remote Evaluation
Data
Client
Server
Procedure
Code on Demand
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Procedure State
Data
Client
Server
Procedure State
Data
Server
Procedure State
Procedure State
Procedure State
Mobile Agents
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How Mobile Agents Help?

• Map directly to real life situations
• Need a generic execution environment
• Can work in both modes
• push
• pull
• Can work off-line
• Provide local interactions
• Provide multi-hop solutions

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Typical Mobile Agent Framework
Server
Laptop
System Resources
Data Base
Desktop
User Application
Legacy Software
Execution Environment Mobile Agent Service
Agent Application Agent Migration Local
Communication Global Communication
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MAFs

• Components
• Life Cycle
• Navigation
• Communication
• Security
• Classification basis
• Type of migration and code shipping mechanism
• Agent tracking and directory service
• Resource access control mechanism
• Communication
• Local, global, communicating partners
• Systems Surveyed
• 50 frameworks
• Notable Aglets, Concordia, Voyager,
  Grasshopper, DAgents, Mole

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Voyager - Our Choice

• Better remote messaging
• Generalized distributed object computing platform
• Compatibility with latest java version
• Easy creation of remote objects
• Moving objects
• relative and absolute
• Other
• Federated directory service
• Different kinds of messaging (sync, one-way,
  future)
• Object and agent persistence support
• Distributed event handling
• Security manager
• Compatible with CORBA and DCOM

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Examination Process (Three Stages)

• Exam setting
• examiners set the question papers
• Distribution and testing
• question papers are presented to the students
• Evaluation and result compilation
• answers are collected and results compiled
• Design guidelines
• Automate as much as possible
• Simplify requirements of infrastructure at
  different ends
• Reliability

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Examination Setting Overview
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Examination Setting Details
NS
Launcher
Controller GUI
NS Name Server N Paper Setter Node
Fetch Agent
Install Agent
Cloning
GUI
N-1
N-2
NS
NS
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Dynamic Upgrade
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Dynamic Upgradation
RemoteSetterGUI
FetchAgent
InstallAgent
NamingService
new RemoteSetterGUI()
register( )
getGUIName()
getGUIReference()
new EnhancePanel()
addEnhancePanel()
removeEnhancePanel()
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Distribution and Testing
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Evaluation and Result Compilation
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Stage 2 and 3 Details
Examiner 2
Examiner 1
Paper Coordinator
Result Publishing Server
Answer Paper Agent
Evaluation Center
Objective Question Evaluator
Question Paper Courier Agent
Distribution Server 1
Distribution Server 2
Student- 1a
Student- 1b
Student- 2a
Student- 2b
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Salient Features of the Design

• Generic execution environments on each machine
• Remote code installation
• After distribution and before collection
• The students work off-line
• Agent creation by distribution servers
• Not student machines
• Workflow between examiners
• Automated compilation of results

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Measuring Response Times
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Incorporating Dynamic Contents

• MQPs can be organized into various skill levels
• Once a person has finished one level, a new level
  2 can be sent

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Conclusions

• Mobile Agents provide effective and flexible
  mechanisms for structuring distributed systems
  like distance evaluation
• Advantages
• Student response times
• Handling objective and subjective contents
• Application level multicasting
• Dynamic upgradation of applications
• Support for heterogeneous execution environments
• Centralized control and management of logistics
  and security of examination process
• Some Issues
• Reliability
• Persistence
• Security
• Infrastructures

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Questions ?Thank You ?