A Real-time Collaborative Distance Education System Based On RMI

With rapid development of the Web technology, the application of multimedia and distributed object technique to instruction cannot be neglected. Modern Distance Education is a new teaching mode coming into being in recent years. Its importance attracts more and more attention. Based on the research of the actuality of Distance Education at home and abroad, distributed computing technology is used to support teaching mode. In modern distance education, we set up the study goal, and put forward the real-time interactive collaborative personal learning P2P environment design. It was directed by the active-active interactive thoughts and based on Real-time interactive mode and collaborative learning mode, which implemented by using the flexible callback distributed object technique of RMI.The system employs three-tier based structure of Web server, RMI application server and database server. The implementation of multi-tier structure enables the system to have distinguished quality of flexibility, universal and compatibility. By building an open environment for teaching system, Modern Distance Education, which is based on Internet technology, overcomes restraints from time and space in traditional education, makes plenty of available teaching resources to be configured well so as to take full advantages of Modern Distance Education, and plays a very important role in Modern Distance Education System.This paper makes emphasis on real-time working implementation in this subsystem, It provides the function of whiteboard of teaching, online answering service, real-time collaborative working and real-time multimedia communication. This system also implemented two assistant subsystems of offline communication and teaching manager based on RMI and Servlet. It provides the function of mail transfer, message board, managing homework, online teaching Material bookstore, remote office, distributed query and management. This system supplies many methods by which users can communicate with each other. Especially it gives support to teachers and students' real-time teaching and communicating.