Flexible and secure computer-based assessment using a single zip disk

Electronic examination systems, which include Internet-based system, require extremely complicated installation, configuration and maintenance of software as well as hardware. In this paper, we present the design and development of a flexible, easy-to-use and secure examination system (e-Test), in which any commonly used computer can be used as a platform for a computer-based assessment. In our scheme, the e-Test program and the other associated data files, which include questions and answers, user registration information and configuration database as well as score files, are all stored in a single Iomega Zip disk. To ensure security, all the data files are encrypted and can only be decrypted by the e-Test program. Also, during initialization, the e-Test program will attempt to detect and identify the globally unique physical address of the network card of the test computer used. Only those computers with a pre-registered network card will be able to run the test program. In addition, the system developed also provides friendly user interfaces for the examiners to change the test questions, adding and deleting student names and computers for the assessment as well as other system parameters. The system developed has been successfully used in a randomized multiple choice examination in a course on analog and digital signals involving more than 5000 full time second-year students.