Authentication
blackboard > about blackboard > blackboard vs. webct > authentication
Make use of cookies and students' EIDs.
The process should be technically elegant and quick .
WebCT
- Uses a flat file/directory structure that makes the authentication process much more technically complex
- With each upgrade, the solution would need to be re-implemented
Blackboard
- Gives customers the Application Program Interface (API)
- Uses a database system to hold information, simplifying the technical solution to authentication
- It may be possible to use cookies for identification and eliminate passwords
Conclusions
While this item is a high priority and necessary for functionality, it is not
the primary focus of the project itself, and therefore should not require a
solution that uses a large percentage of man-hours. While authentication using
WebCT was not impossible, the solution arrived at by the group involved the
creation of an Apache module and an alteration of the WebCT program itself.
The preference was to be able to "set a cookie and let the program go."
Outcome: Blackboard wins.
Support materials for Bb 9 are available at:
https://wikis.utexas.edu/display/bbsupport/
Blackboard is a campus-wide initiative of:
comments about the site to: Malaika Boyd: mboyd@mail.utexas.edu.
