[Chicago] Testing Submitted Python Scripts

[skip at pobox.com]

    Walter> I think the best thing to do would be to distribute a tester
    Walter> program, let the students run it, and on a successful check of
    Walter> the code they've written pop out a random-looking code they can
    Walter> enter in the website to prove they've solved the problem.  I'd
    Walter> like this because I'd be able to avoid the whole 'execution of
    Walter> foreign code on my server' thing.

    Walter> That'd be great, but I can't really come up with a clever way to
    Walter> generate a secret code without exposing the secret code itself
    Walter> in the tester program I'd be distributing.

Maybe have it contact your server, get a token (which might be
time-dependent), then combine that token with their credentials to generate
a "secret" code?

How bulletproof does this have to be?  Nobody's getting college credit for
the class are they?

-- 
Skip Montanaro - skip at pobox.com - http://www.smontanaro.net/