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Collaboration Exercises

Leader Instructions and Troubleshooting

I. Get the Participants Started

  1. Have the group follow the Player Instructions available on your web site or that you have printed out beforehand.

- While they are getting set up, you can proceed to start the server and game

II. Start the Game Server

  1. Click on the Start button in the lower left corner of your Windows screen

- A list of program options will appear

  1. Click on the Run option

- A dialog box will open

  1. In the Open field, type: telnet rvcc2

- A telnet window will open and you will see a prompt for you to enter a login

  1. Enter your login and password

- You will get a “Welcome to AIX” message followed by a ‘$’ prompt

  1. Enter: cd public_html

- You will get a ‘$’ prompt

  1. Enter: cd collaboration

- You will get a ‘$’ prompt

  1. Enter: cd maze (or “cd pattern” or “cd pong” depending upon the exercise)

- You will get a ‘$’ prompt

  1. Enter: java MazeServer (or “java PatternServer” or “java PongServer” depending upon the exercise.) Note, you must type the name exactly as above with an initial capital letter and a capital S for Server.

- You will see the message “Welcome to the Game. Waiting for Game Master”

  1. The server is now running and waiting to begin a game.

III. Go to the Your Collaboration Web Site

  1. Go to the web site you have created that contains the instructor applications.
  2. Maximize your browser window by clicking on the maximize icon in the upper right side of the browser window
  3. If a Lion’s Den window is open, close it.
    - This is important so that it will not interfere later with the exercise

IV. Starting a Game

  1. Click on the exercise you will be doing

- It may take a few seconds for the game to download to your computer

- You will be prompted for a password

  1. Enter your password

- You will now see a window asking you to input data for the game.

  1. Enter the data for the game

- Please enter the data requested. It will assist in the collaboration research

  1. Click on the “Give Instructions” button

- You will see a new window with the game instructions

  1. Tell the participants that they may login into the game

- Wait for everyone to enter the game. There will be a counter on the screen telling you how many people have logged in.

- When everyone has logged in, a “Start Game” button will appear.

  1. Read and explain the instructions to the participants. Emphasize that they need to work together as a team.
  2. Click on the “Start Game” button.

V. During a Game

  1. If you need to end a game early, click on “End Game”

VI. After a Game

  1. Discuss the exercise with the group. Sample questions are in the Instructor’s Guides.
  2. If you want to play another game, click on “Replay”

-  The Pattern exercise does not have a Replay button. You can restart a game simply be refreshing the browser window.

-  The enter data screen will appear again. The window may take a few seconds to fully appear.

  1. You can change the particular exercise. E.g. in the maze game, you can select a different maze (See the Instructor’s Guide) or you can change the number of players.
  2. Continue as above for a new exercise.

VII. Starting a different Exercise

  1. Open the telnet window.
  2. Enter a cntrl-c.

- This stops the running server

- You will get the ‘$’ prompt

  1. Enter: cd .. (Note the space and two dots after the “cd”)

- You will get the ‘$’ prompt

  1. Proceed as above at step II.7

VIII. All Done

  1. Open the telnet window
  2. Enter a cntrl-c.

- This stops the server

- You will get the ‘$’ prompt

  1. Enter: exit

- The telnet window will close

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Troubleshooting

Symptom / Problem / Solution
Game freezes for a moment / RVCC MIS is running programs in the background on the PC / There is no solution. The exercises are designed to
catch up quickly once the
MIS work is done.
Can not restart a new game / The server is stuck in a bad state / Restart the server by going
into the telnet window and typing cntrl-c to stop the running server and then type “java MazeServer” (or whatever game you are
running) to restart it.
Refresh the browser of the master and login again.
Players that see a login button do not need to refresh but should wait to login until the master sends the instructions. Players with problems should refresh their browser.
Can not connect to the server / Either (a) you have not started the server or
(b) your master or participant is trying to contact the wrong server / (a) Check the telnet window
to see that the server is
running and waiting for the master.
(b) The server, master, and player programs are all “matched” and unique to a master. You can not use another instructor’s master or player program with your
server and vice versa.
Be sure you are using the programs set up for you.
Can not log in / (a) Java is not enabled for the browser
(b) The player did not enter all the data required,
(c) The player program does not match the server, or
(d) More players are trying to enter the game than was specified / (a) Have the person close all their windows and then
follow the instructions above
to enable Java
(b) Have the player check that all the information requested
is entered
(c) See above solution to the “Can not connect to the server” problem
(d) You need to stop the game and restart with the correct number of players
While waiting for all the players to log in, you want to restart. But there is no button to push. / Waiting for all the players to log in is a “sensitive” time for the programs and currently there is no fix for this. / Restart the server by going
into the telnet window and typing cntrl-c to stop the running server and then type “java MazeServer” (or whatever game you are
running) to restart it.
Refresh the browser of the master and login again.
Players that see a login button do not need to refresh but should wait to login until the master sends the instructions. Players with problems should refresh their browser.
Other problems / Restart the server by going
into the telnet window and typing cntrl-c to stop the running server and then type “java MazeServer” (or whatever game you are
running) to restart it.
Refresh the browser of the master and login again.
Players should refresh their browser and re-login.