The purpose of this is to minimize the number of puppy deaths. Every time you login to the fronter webpage, a puppy dies. Every time you login to fronter with this tool, however, a puppy gets a treat.
- Python >= 2.7
- python-lxml
- (IPython, for filesystem tab completion)
Run it in the terminal like this (*nix):
./pyshell
If you're using Windows or whatever, eh ... , try this:
python pyshell
It will ask for username and password. Your local username will be used if you leave the username field blank. If login succeeds, you are asked to select a room:
./pyshell
Username: (myuser) usernameAtFronter
Password:
return <Ctrl-D>
[1 ] Fellesrom for BIO4600 og BIO9600 2014-vår
[2 ] UNIK4450/9450 - Fellesrom 2014-høst
[3 ] FYS1000 - Fellesrom 2014-vår
[4 ] FYS2150 - Fellesrom 2014-vår
[5 ] FYS2150L - Fellesrom 2014-vår
[6 ] FYS2150 - Fellesrom 2015-vår
[7 ] FYS2150L - Fellesrom 2015-vår
> select a room <index> :
Currently, there are three tools implemented: RoomInfo, Members and FileTree. After selecting a room, you will be asked to select a tool:
> select a room <index> : 6
* FYS2150 - Fellesrom 2015-vår
return <Ctrl-D>
[1 ] Rom
[2 ] Deltakere
[3 ] Kursmat. og prelab
[4 ] Rapportinnlevering
[5 ] Lego Watt-vekt
> select a tool <index> :
The first entry is a RoomInfo tool, the second a Members tool and the last three are FileTree tools.
Note that you can always go back by pressing Ctrl-D. While inside a tool, you can exit the pyshell by typing exit. To abort a command like , press Ctrl-C.
Commands that requires text editing, like put, mail and eval, will open up the default text editor. On *nix systems this is defined in the VISUAL and/or EDITOR environment variables. If not set, nano will be used. The editor will open up a temporary file with prefix fronter_. It's IMPORTANT that you save to this file.
The RoomInfo tool lets you read messages posted by teachers. Teachers will also be able to post new (not implemented yet), edit and delete messages.
> select a tool <index> : 1
* Rom
RoomInfo commands:
return <Ctrl-D>
exit exit
h print commands
ls list messages
get <index> print message
put <index> edit message
del <index> delete message
>
The ls command shows all messages in descending order, meaning that the latest messages appear at the bottom:
> ls
[1 ] Rapport 1 som skal leveres 13.02. ... put, del, get
[2 ] Feil i de to første prelab-oppgavene ... put, del, get
[3 ] Vi har funnet ut at siste prelaboppgaven for Lengd ... put, del, get
[4 ] Undervisningsplan ... put, del, get
The last column shows the available actions for each message. The put and del commands are used to edit or delete and will only be availible to teachers and admins. Plain text and light HTML messages can be viewed in the terminal. Let's have a look at the latest message (index 4):
> get 4
Undervisningsplan
Jeg har lagt ut en undervisningsplan for semesteret:
Kursmat. og prelab > 0 Kursinfo > Undervisningsplan_studentversjon_2015.pdf
Hilsen ******
raw html: file:///tmp/fronter_ZNrjtx.html
While this message displays nicely, notice the raw html thingy at the bottom. If the message looks like codswallop or you see !! badass table, you should open the file-link in your browser to display it properly.
The Members tool lets you list all members of the room and compose an email to one or a group of member(s):
> select a tool <index> : 2
* Deltakere
Members commands:
return <Ctrl-D>
exit exit
h print commands
ls list members
mail <index/label> send mail to a (group of) member(s)
>
Before you try to send emails, please make sure that the correct server, domain and port are set in fronter.conf. Let's list all the members:
> ls
[1 ] Tro, Lo lol@jiofwq.com eier
[2 ] Blarg, Blæh blah@nfiha.com slette
[3 ] Ku, Mø møøø@nifwq.com skrive
[4 ] Flofsesen, Flofs flofs@djoifq.com skrive
>
The last column shows the group label. The mail command can either take a space separated list of indices or a label as argument. It also understands inverse label selection, ![label]. Examples:
> mail 2 3 # selects 2 and 3
> mail !skrive # selects 1 and 2
> mail eier # selects 1
The FileTree tools allows you to traverse folders, and list, download, delete, upload and evaluate files:
> select a tool <index> : 3
* Kursmat. og prelab
FileTree commands:
return <Ctrl-D>
exit exit
h print commands
ls list content of current dir
cd <index> change dir
get <index> download files
post upload files to current dir
del <index> delete files
eval# upload evaluations from xml
eval <index> read and edit evaluation
>
The ls and cd commands are similar to the shell commands. Note that ls does not take any arguments. It only list the contents of the current directory. Let's try it:
> ls
/
[1 ] Kursinfo
[2 ] Matlab
[3 ] test
[4 ] readme.txt eval, del, get
>
Directories are shown in bold text (well, obviously not in this README ... ). To go up one directory, type cd ... But since we're already at root, let's enter the test (index 3) directory:
> cd 3
> ls
/test/
[1 ] SG5Vspreg.pdf eval, del, get
[2 ] IR_TXRX_EXTREFLCT.pdf eval, del, get
[3 ] ExtreflctParts.txt eval, del, get
>
The rightmost column shows the available actions for each file. The eval command is really only useful for assignments, so we will skip that for now. The del and get commands deletes or downloads the file. They take either a list of indices or wildcard * as argument. The wildcard selects all files for download/deletion. For download, you will be asked where to download the files:
> get 1
> select folder (/home/myuser) : /tmp/
* /tmp/SG5Vspreg.pdf
>
Now, let's delete all the crap in test:
> del *
> delete all in /test/? (y/n) y
* SG5Vspreg.pdf
* IR_TXRX_EXTREFLCT.pdf
* ExtreflctParts.txt
> ls
/test/
>
Let's try to upload some shit:
> post
> select file(s) (/home/myuser) : /tmp/SG5Vspreg.pdf
* /tmp/SG5Vspreg.pdf
> ls
/test/
[1 ] SG5Vspreg.pdf eval, del, get
Wohoo! Note that file select accepts wildcards. For example, ./blah/*.pdf will upload all pdf-files from ./blah/. Students can use post to upload their assignment to a task folder.
If you have IPython installed, you will probably find its tab completion capabilities useful for selecting a folder and for uploading files.
As mentioned before, eval is intended for assignments. This lets admins evaluate, grade and comment on student assignments. Let's go back and choose a FileTree with tasks:
> select a tool <index> : 4
* Rapportinnlevering
...
> ls
/
[1 ] test
> cd 1
> ls
/test/
[1 ] NA Lo Tro NA
[2 ] 2015-02-13 Mø Ku not evaluated
[3 ] NA Blæh Blarg NA
[4 ] NA Flofs Flofsesen NA
>
Note that if you're a student, you will only see your own assigmnent, and you will only be able to read the evaluation. There is only one student that has uploaded her assignment ... To download it, type get 2. Okay, looks like a nice assignment. Let's evaluate it:
> eval 2
Evaluering: Ikke evaluert
> edit evaluation, grade and comment? (y/n) y
[1 ] Godkjent
[2 ] På god vei
[3 ] Ikke godkjent
[4 ] Ikke levert
[5 ] Ikke evaluert
> evaluation <index> : 1
> grade : A
[ text editor ... ]
> comment:
"""
Nice work!
"""
> upload file with comments? (leave blank if not)
> select file(s) (/home/myuser) :
>
It is often convenient to write comments directly into the assignment (e.g. by using a pdf editing tool), instead of referring to this page and that line and so on. The last prompt lets you upload a file. Just leave it blank if you only want to upload a text comment.
To automate the evaluation process even further, you can use the eval# command. It will ask for an xml file. The xml file must comply with the following format:
<THISTAGCANBEWHATEVERYOUWANT>
<student name="Tro Lo" grade="" eval="Godkjent">
<comment path="/home/myuser/fronter/tro_lo_comments.pdf">
Some additional comments ...
</comment>
</student>
<student ...
...
</THISTAGCANBEWHATEVERYOUWANT>
The only required attribute is name. You will get a warning if both path and text are missing in comment. If you are too stupid to correctly spell the name or eval string ("Godkjent" or "Ikke godkjent" or whatever ... ), fuzzy string matching will probably save your ass.
Surveys are sort of like files and can be accessed from a directory within a FileTree:
> ls
/1.1 Tid og frekvens/
[1 ] skript og filer til bruk på lab og prelab
[2 ] Prelab 1. Tid og frekvens
[3 ] tid_frekvens.pdf eval, del, get
In the example above, the second entry is a survey. Surveys are listed after directories, but before regular files. Use the cd command to enter a survey:
> cd 2
Prelab 1. Tid og frekvens
## loading questions ...
This tool is different for students and admins. Admins can go directly to Evaluating replies.
When entering a survey, students are presented with the following menu:
Survey commands:
return <Ctrl-D>
exit exit
h print commands
lr list replies and scores
get <index> read comments to a reply
ls list questions
go take survey
goto <index> go to specific question
post review and submit answers
>
The command go takes you through the survey, question by question. At any point, you can press Ctrl-C to interrupt. After each question, you will be asked to give an answer. The hint above the prompt tells you whether there is just one correct answer or multiple. If you can't figure out the answer, just press ENTER to go to the next question. Some questions are exercises (e.g. write a script), and you will be asked to open an editor with a temporary file. Example:
> go
Q #1 Informasjon
some info blabla
Q #2 Spørsmål 1.1. Hvilken påstand er riktig?
[1 ] foo
[2 ] bar
[3 ] baz
one answer
> answer <index> : 1
Q #3 Spørsmål 1.2. Hvilke(t) av forholdene under har innvirkning på
presisjonen i målingene?
[1 ] foo
[2 ] bar
[3 ] baz
multiple choice
> answer <index index ... > : 1 3
Q #4 Skriv et MATLAB-skript som ...
written answer
> open editor? (y/n) n
To list all questions, use the command ls. The box at the right of each question indicates whether you have given an answer to that question or not. Note that some "questions" are really just pieces of information or whatever, and they will appear as checked questions. Assuming we didn't answer the last exercise (write a script), it should look like this:
> ls
[1 ] Informasjon ... [*]
[2 ] Spørsmål 1.1. Hvilken påstand er riktig? ... [*]
[3 ] Spørsmål 1.2. Hvilke(t) av forholdene under har innvirkning ... [*]
[4 ] Skriv et MATLAB-skript som ... ... [ ]
>
Question number 4 is missing an answer. To go directly to that question, type goto 4. Once you're happy with your answers, submit them with post. The list of question will be printed again, but instead of boxes with stars, the rightmost column displays your given answers, for a final review:
> post
[1 ] Informasjon ...
[2 ] Spørsmål 1.1. Hvilken påstand er riktig? ... 1
[3 ] Spørsmål 1.2. Hvilke(t) av forholdene under har innvirkning ... 1 3
[4 ] Skriv et MATLAB-skript som ... ...
"""
print 'halla'
"""
> submit? (y/n) y
Score: 50%
>
Note that text/script exercises have to be evaluated by a teacher; don't despair if the reported score is low.
The lr command is like ls, but it lists your replies (attempts) instead of questions:
> lr
[1 ] 01-19 14:24 Student 100% Godkjent
[2 ] 01-18 13:45 Student 60% Ikke godkjent
If you made any errors, the teacher should leave helpful comments for you. Use the get command to print them:
> get 2
Poeng: Begreper
Prosentvis poengsum: 100%
Lærerens kommentar til besvarelsen:
Bra!
Poeng: MATLAB-skript
Prosentvis poengsum: 50%
Lærerens kommentar til besvarelsen:
Skiptet fungerer, men det mangler ... bla bla bla
Final score and comments
Prosentvis poengsum: 60%
Lærerens kommentar til besvarelsen:
Du må jobbe litt mer med skriptet
Totalt for prøven: Ikke godkjent
>
Note that comments are made per page, not per question, which might be a bit confusing ...
When entering a survey, admins are presented with the following menu:
Survey commands:
return <Ctrl-D>
exit exit
h print commands
ls list replies and scores
get <index> read reply, comment on errors and evaluate
eval <index> evaluate reply
del <index> delete replies
clean delete all but the best reply for each student
up refresh replies
>
To list all replies, use the command ls:
> ls
[1 ] 01-26 15:43 Student1 80.0% Godkjent
[2 ] 01-26 13:38 Student1 50.0% Ikke godkjent
[3 ] 01-25 11:36 Student2 70.0% NA
[4 ] NA Student3 0.0% NA
Student1 has already gotten their reply approved, while Student3 has yet to respond. To read a reply, use the command get. Since comments are given per page in Fronter, you will be taken through each page and asked to give a comment. Just leave it blank if there is nothing to comment.
> get 3
Q #1 Hvilken påstand er riktig?
Student's answer(s):
* foo
Q #2 Hvilken påstand er riktig?
Student's answer(s):
* bar
* baz
Correct answer(s):
* foo
* baz
> comment : bla bla ...
If the student replied correctly to the question, you will just see their answer. If not, the correct answer(s) will be shown as well. Depending on your color scheme, the wrong answers should stand out (in mye terminal: red). Press ENTER to continue to the next page:
> comment : bla bla ...
******
Q #1 Skriv et MATLAB-skript som ...
Student's answer(s):
"""
foo = 2;
bar = 1;
baz = foo + bar;
"""
Score: 0.00
> score (min=0, max=5) : 3
> comment : bla bla ...
This page requires the teacher to score manually. The score must be within the [min, max] interval printed in the prompt. At the end, you will be shown the total score and asked for a final evaluation/grade and comment.
> comment : bla bla ...
******
Total score: 15.00/20.00
> evaluation/grade: Godkjent
> final comment : bla bla ...
>
In case you just want to do the final evaluation/grading and comment, use the eval command. Before you start commenting and evaluating, be sure that you have an updated list of replies. Use the up command, which is equivalent to the reload button in your browser.
Students usually have several goes at a survey. The del command takes a space separated list of indices as argument and lets you delete all the crappy replies. Even more badass, the clean command removes all but the best reply for each student. As a safety precaution, del and clean print all replies to be deleted and ask for confirmation.