[RESOLVED] Some help needed for my online examination website

[akhileshbc]

Hi friends,
I am trying to develop a free website which will allow the users to practice certain online exams.

My website will let people to register for free. And then, they can choose the exam they want. Answer the multiple choice questions. Then view the report and overall rank. Also view his/her previous exam statics. That much.. :-)

The thing is, I want your opinions about doing this. That is, what you have in your mind for the best performance of my site.
1. In brief, I want to know which language I have to choose..
2. Which database system should I use
3. Should I have to buy a server for this or try other companies hosting plans
4. Should I have to enter the questions to a single table..
etc....

Please help me....

[abhijit]

That would largely depend on your skills and budget.

With mySQL & php, you don't need to buy any licenses, just pay for the hosting services. If you want to move to ASP .NET & SQL Server, you will have to pay licensing fees and the hosting fees.

[BrianS]

PHP and MySQL

[akhileshbc]

So, I have to use Linux hosting..???

[abhijit]

So, I have to use Linux hosting..???

In theory, you could use PHP + mySQL on a windows server. Apache runs on Linux as well as windows. Are you planning to get a host or host your own server?

[si_the_geek]

Thread moved to ' General Developer' forum

[akhileshbc]

I am having doubt. which one shud i use. My site will be managing lots of questions and user data... So, shud I use my own server

[si_the_geek]

I doubt you will have enough data to be an issue... most hosting plans allow a decent amount of data storage.

It is very rare for having your own server to be a good idea, because the costs and effort to get the same features that you would from a host are huge (the hosts spread the costs between lots of users).

There is not only the hardware/software costs (for the main server and any hot-backups etc), but also costs of electricity etc, probably much higher costs from your ISP (who usually limit the speed/quantity of uploading data), and several other things.


I would recommend going for a hosting plan which has the features you initially want (bearing in mind that you probably wont have many users for quite a while), and also has bigger packages (eg: less restrictive upload limits) so that you can easily upgrade later if needed.

[akhileshbc]

Thank you, abhijit and si...
My plan is to develop a FREE website.... which will allow users to practice some exams...
Do u have any suggestions si ?

[abhijit]

Thank you, abhijit and si...
My plan is to develop a FREE website.... which will allow users to practice some exams...
Do u have any suggestions si ?

My suggestion to you is, build this website locally on your pc/desktop first.

Then look for a hosting service.

[akhileshbc]

I haven't started the designing part.... Now I gathering required information... [] like what I asked in this thread...

[si_the_geek]

I recommend almost following abhijit's suggestion.

Start by looking for a hosting service, using the advice at the end of my previous post.

Then build the website locally.

When it is ready, actually sign up with the hosting service.

[abhijit]

Are you looking for help on the design or just information on the hosting services?

[akhileshbc]

ok i got that... But what about the rest of the things....
I will describe my idea...

> My website will allow users to register for a free account. Then they can select any of the available exams(it will be randomly selected set of questions from the data bank or previously prepared question sets). The questions will be multiple choice questions. Users can finish the exam and view the detailed report about the accuracy, marks scored, etc..
Then this info will be added to the users details in the database. The user can view it later. He/she can carry out practice at any time by simply logging in to their account.

Please Say your opinions about the implementation techniques that I have to use, details regarding any conflicts that can occur, etc...

[akhileshbc]

Are you looking for help on the design or just information on the hosting services?

I want the your opinion about the entire website... It will include, design, coding, hosting, etc...
I am asking only your opinions... :-) Because you guys are experts in this field....

[si_the_geek]

We have covered hosting.

Database design is the same as always. If you want help on that, check out the Design section of our Database Development FAQs/Tutorials, and create a thread about it if apt.

Coding is dependent on which language(s) are available to you, but is basically the same general idea as things you have done before.

[akhileshbc]

We have covered hosting.

Database design is the same as always. If you want help on that, check out the Design section of our Database Development FAQs/Tutorials, and create a thread about it if apt.

Coding is dependent on which language(s) are available to you, but is basically the same general idea as things you have done before.

I already went through some FAQs in DB....
What language should I use? ASP.Net or PHP...? Best for this purpose?

[abhijit]

I already went through some FAQs in DB....
What language should I use? ASP.Net or PHP...? Best for this purpose?

That depends on your skill. A general observation I have made is that Linux hosting plans are cheaper than Windows Hosting plans.

Stick with what you know. If you're comfortable with ASP .Net, use that, if you're comfortable with PHP, use that. If you don't know either, then decide which one would you prefer to learn?

[akhileshbc]

Below is my DB design, tell your opinion...

user table
> username
> pwd
> Name
> Email

questions table
>number
>subjectname
>question
>choice1
>choice2
>choice3
>choice4
>answer

userstatics table
>username
>lastexamdate
>marksscored



-----

The no. questions will be larger....

[akhileshbc]

That depends on your skill. A general observation I have made is that Linux hosting plans are cheaper than Windows Hosting plans.

Stick with what you know. If you're comfortable with ASP .Net, use that, if you're comfortable with PHP, use that. If you don't know either, then decide which one would you prefer to learn?

Ok... currently, i don't have knowledge in either of them... But some of my frnds have... And I am going to learn them... So, according to my knowledge(dont have too much ), if I want to use Linux hosting which will be cheaper, I have to use PHP with MySQL. If using Windows hosting, I have to use ASP.Net and SQL Server....
Is that right..?

[abhijit]

Below is my DB design, tell your opinion...

user table
> username
> pwd
> Name
> Email

questions table
>number
>subjectname
>question
>choice1
>choice2
>choice3
>choice4
>answer

userstatics table
>username
>lastexamdate
>marksscored



-----

The no. questions will be larger....

How do you keep track of the user's test? This structure doesn't give the user an option to return to take the test if he leaves it incomplete. Nor does it keep track of the questions which have been asked to the user.

You need one more table to keep that track.

[akhileshbc]

How? ...

[si_the_geek]

In addition to that you should also have a Subjects table (if you don't understand why, see the Normalisation article), and probably others about the user info (such as what results they got in all tests they've taken).

So, according to my knowledge(dont have too much ), if I want to use Linux hosting which will be cheaper, I have to use PHP with MySQL. If using Windows hosting, I have to use ASP.Net and SQL Server....
Is that right..?

Basically yes... there are other options, but those are the most common, so would be the best choices.

Among other things they will be easier to find (and switch later if needed), easier to get help with.

[abhijit]

Ok... currently, i don't have knowledge in either of them... But some of my frnds have... And I am going to learn them... So, according to my knowledge(dont have too much ), if I want to use Linux hosting which will be cheaper, I have to use PHP with MySQL. If using Windows hosting, I have to use ASP.Net and SQL Server....
Is that right..?

Akhilesh,
These are not the only options available. PHP appears to the most popular platform, from the number of companies that are offering it. You might want to compare hosting plans if the hosting budget is a constraint for you.

There's are various other options available on both windows as well as linux platforms. Off the top of my head, I can think of JSP, CGI PERL, PL/SQL Web toolkit and Cold fusion

[akhileshbc]

Thanks again...!

So, when the user selects a topic or exam, my web program should select random questions from the QBank or previously created question set.
>If it is randomly selected questions, should I have to use a temporary table for storing the random questions..?
>If it is previously selected question set(that will be already in the QBank), I have to use separate table for storing the questing set. Is it?

[si_the_geek]

It is up to you whether the questions are random, or come from a pre-made set.

>If it is randomly selected questions, should I have to use a temporary table for storing the random questions..?

That is likely to be the easiest way.

>If it is previously selected question set(that will be already in the QBank), I have to use separate table for storing the questing set. Is it?

Yes.

[akhileshbc]

I planning to give both random selection and previously made question set to the user.
I already told that the questions will be larger in number. So, if I choose to add them into a single table, will it cause problems..???

[si_the_geek]

No, but you should have the tables designed appropriately - such as the Subjects table having a field for whether the questions should be random or from a set.


What you really need to do (before you ask any more questions about it) is work out exactly what information you want/need in the database, in order to fulfil your requirements - and then try to work out what tables/fields you need to store that information.

At that point we can help verify that what you have come up with is apt, and suggest changes if needed.

[akhileshbc]

Ok... as you say... I will post with some more details and ideas...
Thanks for the help till now...
But I will be back... disturbing you guys

Good night... take care... (here it is night time)

[Smartacus]

1) Start out on paper what your schema is going to be. Look at what you have and run through scenarios of what you will need to give the user access to past tests etc.

One thing you probably want to include is: Date and Time test taken, increment count on Subject so you can display same test and score on different dates so they can see progress.

2) If you want your own domain to get there e.g http://www.myexams.com then you may want to take advantage of hosts that offer packages for free if you register the domain with them. A lot of them include MySQL for free and could only cost about $15.00 U.S. a year to keep your site up (less time expense). If you do not mind having something like http://Yahoo.com/sites/myexams then it may be totally free. You just have to go shopping to see what is available.

3) Those free hosting sites also offer online development using their tools which is usually PHP if Linux that allows you to also put in HTML snippets for your customization. Also includes MYSQL config and admin pages. And... It has built in registration and login already in place.... usually.

Finally Start your idea on paper, do not waste time trying to code something before you get a clear definition of what you are going to offer from Display, Navigation, Printing, History Recall, etc.

Building applications either Web or Desktop is like building a house. It is a lot easier if you build the foundation first before trying to put on the roof.

Edit: I agree with si_the_geek. I think we are trying to convey the same path you should take.

[si_the_geek]

Edit: I agree with si_the_geek. I think we are trying to convey the same path you should take.

Absolutely

[Smartacus]

Something to think about

questions table
>number
>subjectname
>question
>choice1
>choice2
>choice3
>choice4
>answer

tblExam:
ExamID varchar(15) ' number - I like to combo stuff like this in CHAR MSSQLv8Exam1
ExamTitle varchar(40) ' subjectname
fcQ1 varchar(40) ' Question
fcQ1MC1 varchar(50) ' Choice1
fcQ1MC2 varchar(50) ' Choice2
fcQ1MC3 varchar(50) ' Choice3
fcQ1MC4 varchar(50) ' Choice4
etc.
fdDateAdd DateTime
etc.

Create an Exam Key table and cross reference the exam, key and user results to grade the test.

Something else, If your exam will have 10,20 or 50 questions then your table could get wide (a lot of columns) try a table that has a row for each exam and question text and choice. This would cut down on the total columns needed. example:

tblExamHeader

ExamID, ExamTitle, fdDateAdded
MSSQLv8E1, SQl 2008 Exam 1, 10/23/2009 11:47:23
MSSQLv8E2, SQl 2008 Exam 2, 10/23/2009 11:47:42
etc.

tblExamQs
ExamID, fnQnumber,fcQtext, fdDateAdded
MSSQLv8E1, 1, Who makes Microsoft SQL?, 10/23/2009 11:47:23
MSSQLv8E1, 2, What is the characteristics of VARCHAR?, 10/23/2009 11:47:42
etc.


tblExamChoices
ExamID,fnQnumber,fnQchoose,fcText
MSSQLv8E1, 1, 1, Bob's Software Shop
MSSQLv8E1, 1, 2, Smartacus
MSSQLv8E1, 1, 3, Microsoft
MSSQLv8E1, 1, 4, None of the above

tblExamKey

ExamID, fnQnumber, fnValue
MSSQLv8E1, 1, 3 'references exam, question, correct answer

This needs alot more work but something to draw on

[Nightwalker83]

My suggestion to you is, build this website locally on your pc/desktop first.

Then look for a hosting service.

Yeah, and make sure the host allows you to upload it exactly the you created it. That is without needing to majorly rework the code from how it worked on your pc to how it should work on the hosting site.

[akhileshbc]

Ok thanks guys....