To start with, you probably need to do all the testing client-side. Network and server latencies are too variable, and they will swamp your data with noise.
That means either using Javascript, Flash, or Java to do the actual test, and then sending those results to the server. As such, any web host will do, and GAE is probably a good choice for a task like this because: - It won't cost you anything - Server-side programming in Python is crazy simple, even if you don't know any Python right now - The deployment tools rock If you know that all your users will have a current-generation browser and a reasonably fast desktop computer, then Javascript is a simple choice for the client-side of the application. If you might have to run in IE6 (ooh, just thew up in my mouth there a little) or other ancient browsers or netbooks, then Javascript will probably be too slow/variable, so you'll have to use Java or Flash to get good timing values. Which of those you choose depends on how much you want to invest in time and money. Java is free and easy for real programmers to work in. Flash is expensive and inscrutable to real programmers, but is relatively easy for non-programmers to understand. Most people have both Java and Flash installed, and if they don't, both are easy to get. So that should not impact your choice. (Java has the problem that it isn't necessarily pre-installed; Flash has the problem that people use Flash-blockers to stop ads and browser crashing; so you're not going to get 100% of the people with either approach.) If any of your subjects will be using iPadPodTouch things, then you have to use Javascript, since neither Flash nor Java will be available for those. -Joshua On Nov 4, 2010, at 11:10 AM, Tudor Popescu wrote: > Hi everyone, > > I am not sure if what I want to do can be accomplished with the Google App > Engine, but I'm hoping someone might be able to advise me. > > I have a script written in E-Prime for an experiment that measures subjects' > reaction times to a simple comparison task. The design of the experiment is > such that the subjects need to run the experiment daily for 3 weeks, which is > why I intend to have them run it from their homes, online (through a web > browser), rather than asking them to come each day into the lab. > > It's quite important that I be able to review the subjects' progress over the > course of the 3 weeks, by accessing the data files produced by the > experiment. I would not need tremendous accuracy for the measurement of > reaction times (+/- 100 ms would be fine). > > I realise there probably aren't many ways of converting the existing E-Prime > code into something that can be ran online, but since what the experiment > does is relatively simple, I could probably have a go at rewriting it myself, > even in a programming/scripting language that is new to me. > > I am quite confused as to where I should begin to put this experiment > online... any advice that might put me on the right track would be greatly > appreciated - many thanks in advance for any replies! > Tudor > > PS: I've also asked about this on the E-Prime and Adobe Flex forums, without > much success yet > > -- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "Google App Engine" group. > To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. > To unsubscribe from this group, send email to > [email protected]. > For more options, visit this group at > http://groups.google.com/group/google-appengine?hl=en. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Google App Engine" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected]. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/google-appengine?hl=en.
