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Buggy Racing

Where to run the app?

Or… where do the students do their dev work?

You can choose what works best for you or your students. It might be best that all students do this the same way, or maybe you let them choose what works best for them.

There are three main options:

  • Run locally (student works on their own machine)
    This includes working on machines in a college or a library.
    This is the simplest method provided the student can install Python3 and navigate the file structure well enough to get to work.

    Pro: students can work offline using their own tools.
    Con: there can be a lot of variation in environment between students; can be difficult to share/access student work.

  • Run in the cloud
    This approach bypasses the problem of setting up a Python environment because there are services out there that already come pre-installed.
    Two examples in detail:

    Pro: dev environment is ready to roll (and is the same for all students); supports remote sharing.
    Con: students cannot easily work offline.

  • Run on a remote server through VSCode
    This is a complete but complex solution, which might work for you if you want to use your institution’s infrastructure (which may allow you to exploit other services already in place for students and management).

    Pro: full control over activity on your own network.
    Con: more complex set-up; students cannot easily work offline.