CHALLENGE:

OSU Ag Econ Department approached InterWorks to update an older educational software for students analyzing the cattle meat market.

SOLUTION:

InterWorks built a multiplayer game system using the .NET Framework 2.0.  The server is a multithreaded remoting service that uses a Microsoft SQL Server Express 2005 database.  Additionally, InterWorks built a custom remoting client for the PDA applications.  User authentication and other security issues were developed to keep players from exploiting the system for unfair advantages.  Various reports and features were built into the clients, particularly the administration client.

RESULTS:

The clients are now able to successfully run games on 21 total devices and have been able to improve their course’s effectiveness, as the instructors can spend less time managing the process of the games and more time with students while the game is running.  They are also better able to data mine their games for economic research value and general feedback about how to improve their teaching methods.