Add a database of questions (Feature #54)

red sea wrote:

Proposed to add a database of questions, for use in the creation of tests in the coming years.

A database needs a database design and that would need design decisions and hence constraints. This can be done for a specific case but is had to do in general.
In my experience I am fully satisfied using the file system as a "database", a hierarchical one for that matter and have my several courses in different sub directories.
Then in the exam instances I simply include the questions I want to use I a particular exam instance.

Example: The exam looks like this:

\documentclass[a4paper]{article}
\usepackage[utf8x]{inputenc}    
\usepackage[T1]{fontenc}
\usepackage{times}
\usepackage{listings}
\usepackage[dutch,german]{babel}
\usepackage[completemulti,separateanswersheet,lang=DE,outsidebox]{automultiplechoice}
\def\CourseDir{/home/hom/fthv/hi/linux/trunk/40_exam}
\def\QuestionBaseDir{\CourseDir/questionsmk2}
\def\ExamInstanceDir{\CourseDir/builds/20120413}
\def\Lecturer{Pieter~van~den~Hombergh}
\scoringDefaultM{haut=2}
\scoringDefaultS{mz=2}
\newcommand\inputQ[1]{\input{\QuestionBaseDir/#1}}
\newif\ifNoShuffle\NoShufflefalse
\def\DECount{16}
\def\NLCount{4}
\def\Columns{2}
\input{\CourseDir/builds/coverpage}
\input{\ExamInstanceDir/processExams}

\end{document}

You see a macro there that includes a question file.
The questions are read in the part

\input{\ExamInstanceDir/processExams}

which contains as most important statement

\input{\ExamInstanceDir/questions.tex}

which contains a line for each question file like this

\element{general}{\inputQ{subject/chapter/o046.tex}}

In each question file you should have a unique question identifier that is used by amc.
The relevant line in the question is (example)

\begin{question}{lnx-chap06-o046}

.

This works for me and I have used that for year, even before I found this wonderful AMC software.

In short: do not put the questions inside the exam, but input the with

\input

and you can reuse them any way you like.

thanks.

regards

red sea wrote:

thanks.

regards

See the wiki entry, where you also find an example exam structure.