Here is my first contribution:
I have included a XML file
Can we create a larger example set for future Moodleformulas users?
by Ton Boerkoel -
Number of replies: 24
I think it would be wonderful if there were a great set of examples that future users can refer to, I remember learning the most from a book called "TeX by examples". I think new moodleformula users might benefit from such a collection.
Here is my first contribution:
I have included a XML file
Here is my first contribution:
I have included a XML file
In reply to Ton Boerkoel
Re: Can we create a larger example set for future Moodleformulas users?
by Marcus Green -
The question type does ship with some examples
https://github.com/dbauer-ets/moodle-qtype_formulas/tree/master/samples
Though it would be good if it was obvious they are there and it was made easy to import them.
I am commenting on this as the creator of other question types with a desire to do the same for mine. I have played with various bits of code to offer a way of indicating to the user that examples exist and offering a single click import rather than going around the core moodle xml import menu system.
https://github.com/dbauer-ets/moodle-qtype_formulas/tree/master/samples
Though it would be good if it was obvious they are there and it was made easy to import them.
I am commenting on this as the creator of other question types with a desire to do the same for mine. I have played with various bits of code to offer a way of indicating to the user that examples exist and offering a single click import rather than going around the core moodle xml import menu system.
Speaking in general, the site archive.moodle.net has collections of quiz questions which people can use and adapt. And you are welcome to create an account and share your XML file in the community Sharable quiz questions on our new sharing site Moodle.net
Mary,
The community Sharable quiz questions is great.
Marcus,
More obvious and easier to import the sample questions. Noted. However, these are about thirty very simple sample questions to help get started with the Formulas question. They do not constitute a question bank.
Ton,
Like you, I think a Formulas question bank is a good idea. Here is a first draft ↗. Feel free to contribute and give me
your comments on the proposed format.
Great! I'd be happy to participate, and post examples. I have been creating a solid set of problems of various degrees of complexity for my Linear Algebra class.
So far I have been making formulas problems for an old version of Moodle. My school is working on updating to the latest version sometime next year. I noticed that one of the problems of mine that you posted doesn't quite display correctly. I can only assume that this is because it was created for the older version of Moodle. Should I wait for the new version before I participate? I don't want my contributions to look subpar.
e.g. on my edition of Moodle these look good
but I don't know how they will look on the current version. Is there anyway to try them out on a current version?
I think the rendering depends on the default format of the tables which can change from one installation to the next. It would just be a styling issue that can be easily resolved. I'd be a little surprised if the rendering of TeX equations changes from one Moodle version to another, but it might be worth checking out if necessary.
If adjustments are needed with new versions of Moodle, the examples in the question bank can be updated. But in fact, I don't think it will be a problem.
It would be helpful if you defined the variables used in your questions and added some explanation. For new questions, could you also indicate under which subject you would like them to be classified.
By the way, your way of adjusting the sign of the coefficients of the equations of the planes is excellent.
If adjustments are needed with new versions of Moodle, the examples in the question bank can be updated. But in fact, I don't think it will be a problem.
It would be helpful if you defined the variables used in your questions and added some explanation. For new questions, could you also indicate under which subject you would like them to be classified.
By the way, your way of adjusting the sign of the coefficients of the equations of the planes is excellent.
Here is a question for the Moodle Formulas question bank. Probably for the category Matrices and Vectors.
I included annotations for the variable selections ( I used the pick function to pick from a pre-selected collection of 56 vectors (to keep the numbers small and the matrices nice),
and for the grading formulas ( For example: if a line is asked for, like 3 x + 4 y = 15, it also counts .75 x + y = 3.75 correct, and gives partial credit for 3 x + 4 y = 0 etc. I use the round function round(_1,4) to 4 decimals, since I require my students to round to least 4 decimals).
Here is what it looks like:
Thanks Dominique, looks great. I'll submit more.
Here is another question we can put in the question bank (Geometry, linear algebra, barycentric coordinates)
I included some annotations. XML file included.
Hello Ton,
I included some annotations. // Excellent!
I included some annotations. // Excellent!
It would also be useful to define your variables. See Guidelines ↗ for some important thoughts on coding style.
Here is another problem, illustrating horizontal radio buttons, different sized boxes and partial credit. I included some annotations.
I have included the XML file
Of course you can make it as elaborate and interesting as you want.
Here is a 3D example.
Here is a 3D example.
Of course the challenging part is to create semi-randomness for the points, and still have answers be nice fractions
(and one on an edge, one on a face and one inside/outside etc. and have these permute amongst part (a) (b) and (c) )
What you posted doesn't quite look like what I submitted.
Hello Ton,
Your contribution is greatly appreciated and I am sure your questions will be of great help to many users.
Like any editor, I must ensure the quality of the questions and a certain consistency in their presentation. This is why I asked you to add comments and the definition of variables, as well as to follow the Moodle guidelines. I cleaned up the code for this question and would ask you to do it next time before submitting your questions. Also, I don't recommend putting all the text in Latex math mode, it's better to just insert the variables and equations into the normal text.
If you've ever submitted an article for publication in a scientific journal, you know that the publisher's editing is perfectly normal and very important. Authors should not be offended.
Your contribution is greatly appreciated and I am sure your questions will be of great help to many users.
Like any editor, I must ensure the quality of the questions and a certain consistency in their presentation. This is why I asked you to add comments and the definition of variables, as well as to follow the Moodle guidelines. I cleaned up the code for this question and would ask you to do it next time before submitting your questions. Also, I don't recommend putting all the text in Latex math mode, it's better to just insert the variables and equations into the normal text.
If you've ever submitted an article for publication in a scientific journal, you know that the publisher's editing is perfectly normal and very important. Authors should not be offended.
I am not quite sure why my pointing out that the problem shown in the question bank did not quite look like the problem I submitted, indicated that I was in anyway offended. I was merely pointing out that it was different: a line was repeated several times. I see it has been corrected now. Great.
I am familiar with editorial stylistic preferences. Most editors in mathematical journals though do use TeX for all text as well, so as to guarantee a uniform look. Having formulas and text in different fonts is usually frowned upon. In all my publications I use TeX for text and formulas as well as in pictures.
Hello Ton,
I see it has been corrected now.
I see it has been corrected now.
Ideally I should be working on two sites, an unpublished development site and a published production site, so that the published site is always in the completed and final form. With the time I have, I have to skip the development site step. So you will see some changes to the activities when I edit them. I am sorry for this inconvenience.
Most editors in mathematical journals though do use TeX for all text as well, so as to guarantee a uniform look... In all my publications I use TeX for text and formulas as well as in pictures.
This is very good and it is normal. However, in Moodle, we only have the Latex math mode. Latex normal text mode is not available. You may occasionally need to insert regular text into an equation and this is possible in Moodle. But putting all the text in math mode is awkward and surely not what you do in your publications. So I suggest to insert, as is usually done, the equations in normal text. In the absence of the Latex normal text mode and its default typeface, the HTML tags and the Times New Roman font do the job perfectly.
In other words, use HTML tags for the main text, with the Times New Roman font, and only use Latex to insert the equations into the text. This way the uniform look of the font is maintained and the text is structured in HTML as it should.
Thanks for the info. I started learning Moodle formulas this summer. And have been very frustrated with the lack of instructions for it. I was always puzzled why the interface didn't have a font and font-size button. It only has these choices
So at first I ended up with ugly looking text and beautiful TeX-ed formulas. The work around for me was to use \ text{ } so that everything looks uniform. The more I learn about formulas, the more I realize, that you really need to know HTML, CCS and Java script. At first the Formulas Plugin looks like it has an interface that can be used by anybody without that skill set. It is like getting a car and first thinking that you can just drive it, and then finding out that you are are actually expected to be a car mechanic too. It would be great if there was an owner's manual. It seems to me that all information is scattered over forum posts, and several moodle sites. I find it very hard to locate anything when I need it. That's why I asked if we could start building a larger problem bank so that we would have a resource for future users. Now I also think we should start building a better instruction manual. It would have been nice if I had known about lots of stuff that I had to discover and figure out the hard way. Just as you, we all have time constraints. I am teaching full time and with covid our school went online. I have been spending my time...full time, including weekends...trying to convert all the problem sets for my classes, and the tests, the quizzes and labs to Moodle Formulas in a few months (and they were all beautifully done in LaTeX, and in PDF form and had been created over many years of teaching) . And I must say I love Moodle Formulas: I love the randomization, the instantiation, the ability to check problems, insert and check answers, and create almost all the questions I would want to create (up to a point) ... and the fact that Moodle can grade things instantaneously. But in the beginning most of my time went into trying to figure out how to do things. For example how to create nice inline matrices with answer fields, how to place radio buttons where you need them, how to deal with partial credit, how to get TeXed formulas in multiple choice answers etc. It would have been great if I had known about how to change the font, three months ago. And of course you probably know a reference to it and can give me a link. But what I would really want is a manual, or even just a beginner's manual. I know there is 'some' stuff online, but it is sketchy and sometimes just not clear. Only after months of figuring something out I re-read some of the 'instructions' and think, 'oh that is what they meant' and 'why didn't they say so?", or "give an example'. The forum is a big help ... but not ideal either. It is great that there are knowledgable people there who are willing to help, but sometimes they too seem frustrated with answering the same questions, or can get irritated if you don't know something that they have known for years. It would be great if all that knowledge could be posted as a manual. Lots of people could contribute short instructional modules about everything (including examples). With so many knowledgable Moodle formulas experts each contributing a one paragraph instruction module, we could create a great online manual in a couple of years ... just a thought.
Anyway, Dominique, thanks for your help these last few months. I really appreciate it. I have learned a lot. Au revoir!
By the way, I do want to thank you for all the changes you have made to the moodle formulas site the last few months. It has improved tremendously. Thanks!
Here is an example of the use of the
join str and pick functions
to avoid fractions like 1/-1 and 1/1
In those cases we don't want to use the \ dfrac{ }{ } TeX function
It would be much nicer to have instead
or
and in case of a regular fraction
Here is the code using join, pick and str
I have included an XML file.
(Of course this is not a particularly interesting example of a quiz problem; but it is intended to illustrate an interesting example of how to use the pick str and join functions [in avoiding 1/1 and 1/-1].)
In reply to Ton Boerkoel
Re: An example of the use of join, str and pick functions
by Dominique Bauer -
Hello Ton,
Thank you for your comments and suggestions.
For example how to create nice inline matrices with answer fields, how to place radio buttons where you need them, how to deal with partial credit, how to get TeXed formulas in multiple choice answers etc.
Well, I don't know if you will understand, but these topics "didn't even exist" some time ago.
Of course, things could be different and better depending on each other's opinion. I would love to be able to make a lot of improvements to the site, and maybe they will be done someday, but with the resources and time available this is the best I can do. If you think you can do better, don't be shy and do it, write a manual.
Thank you for your comments and suggestions.
For example how to create nice inline matrices with answer fields, how to place radio buttons where you need them, how to deal with partial credit, how to get TeXed formulas in multiple choice answers etc.
Well, I don't know if you will understand, but these topics "didn't even exist" some time ago.
Of course, things could be different and better depending on each other's opinion. I would love to be able to make a lot of improvements to the site, and maybe they will be done someday, but with the resources and time available this is the best I can do. If you think you can do better, don't be shy and do it, write a manual.
Thank you for thanking me for the changes made to the moodle formulas site "the last few months". Obviously, you don't know what you're talking about. But it doesn't matter. You would quickly realize that things are different if you were on the other side of the fence, although I doubt you would ever cross.
Anyway, your contribution is very useful and certainly appreciated by many users.
As for the manual, if you think of something like a pdf document, I don't think that is the best way to convey information to users. Everything that touches on the Formulas question is moving too quickly to freeze it in such a document. I advocate that the moodle formulas site "is" the manual, and there are advantages to this. The site can be updated, changed, improved quickly, and it is interactive. Of course, it is not "yet" perfect, but it is constantly improving.
If you want to contribute to the development of the site, I will certainly not refuse your help. For example, if you think any of the topics you mentioned above should be explained and illustrated, please do so. With the resources available, the easiest way is to include your explanations and examples in the existing site. Of course, your contribution will be duly and proudly acknowledged.
Anyway, your contribution is very useful and certainly appreciated by many users.
As for the manual, if you think of something like a pdf document, I don't think that is the best way to convey information to users. Everything that touches on the Formulas question is moving too quickly to freeze it in such a document. I advocate that the moodle formulas site "is" the manual, and there are advantages to this. The site can be updated, changed, improved quickly, and it is interactive. Of course, it is not "yet" perfect, but it is constantly improving.
If you want to contribute to the development of the site, I will certainly not refuse your help. For example, if you think any of the topics you mentioned above should be explained and illustrated, please do so. With the resources available, the easiest way is to include your explanations and examples in the existing site. Of course, your contribution will be duly and proudly acknowledged.
I'll just remind you that everything about Moodle is done on a voluntary basis for the benefit of the international educational community, which includes the work of all moodlers, many developers and maintainers as well as, unfortunately 
, yours and mine (without even a simple recognition from the institutions for which we work).
Hi Mary
Yes, archive.moodle.net is still very useful.
One thing I miss though: A demo (Moodle) site for people to try out the quizzes/questions before they import them to their sites. In the former moodle.net, at least a part of the public courses were hosted by their creators, so that people could have a look first.
Yes, archive.moodle.net is still very useful.
One thing I miss though: A demo (Moodle) site for people to try out the quizzes/questions before they import them to their sites. In the former moodle.net, at least a part of the public courses were hosted by their creators, so that people could have a look first.
Some of the content from archive.moodle.net is in a course on school.moodledemo.net here: https://school.moodledemo.net/course/view.php?id=57
Alternatively, People can download some content and upload it to sandbox.moodldemo.net or school.moodledemo.net and try them there I guess.
Alternatively, People can download some content and upload it to sandbox.moodldemo.net or school.moodledemo.net and try them there I guess.
I know, small thing for Moode admins. But most of the teachers can not create new courses on their own. So a hosted version is very practical.
There is one more thing. As time goes on, new Moodle releases, themes come in, and these courses break. If the creators stay in the original, they automatically maintain them, rather than each teacher later. I noticed that again in this current test site: https://demo.schoolweb.ch/. (A translation will come soon, till then https://moodle.org/mod/forum/discuss.php?d=414124&parent=1669472.)
There is one more thing. As time goes on, new Moodle releases, themes come in, and these courses break. If the creators stay in the original, they automatically maintain them, rather than each teacher later. I noticed that again in this current test site: https://demo.schoolweb.ch/. (A translation will come soon, till then https://moodle.org/mod/forum/discuss.php?d=414124&parent=1669472.)