The game of Bingo has been
around for many years. The idea behind
Bingo is to match randomly picked numbers with those on a player’s card. When a pattern of numbers in a row or column
has been matched, the player wins and yells BINGO.
The concept of the Bingo
game can be used in a school classroom too.
However there needs to be some connection with learning rather than just
having fun. This can be accomplished by
having a player earn each of his numbered squares by answering a set of questions
correctly.
Computer
Bingo uses computer technology to implement the Bingo game and combines it with
an exciting and challenging question format.
The computer creates a Bingo card’s number sequences automatically and
also displays several Bingo cards at once on a computer screen.
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Computer Bingo has two
operating modes. It can be played on
just one computer in stand-alone mode or on a network of
computers in classroom mode. In both modes each player (student)
would have his own computer. The difference
would be in the location of the question files. In classroom mode the question files would be located on
the master computer. In stand-alone mode a copy of the question files
would have to be loaded on each computer.
In classroom mode
the classroom computers are connected together using a simple serial port
network. The network consists of a
master computer connected to the remaining player computers via standard
telephone cable. One COM port is
utilized on each computer. Any number
of computers can be connected this way.
The Computer Bingo system comes with enough cabling hardware to connect
12 classroom computers plus the master computer.
B
|
I |
N
|
G |
O
|
|
5 |
20 |
32 |
46 |
61 |
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10 |
16 |
34 |
50 |
66 |
|
8 |
24 |
35 |
51 |
75 |
|
7 |
27 |
31 |
57 |
64 |
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12 |
30 |
42 |
49 |
70 |
Software is provided to
enter and edit questions. The questions can be grouped into sets and question
sets can be typed into the master computer in advance and recalled as
needed. The questions can pertain to
any one subject or a variety of subjects.
You may wish to have the questions in the B column pertain to
science and the questions in the I column pertain to history. Shown to
the right is a typical Bingo card.
Each player uses his mouse
to select the numbers on the card. A
selected number would invert the color scheme.
When numbers are called
they are combined with a column letter.
For example the number B10 might be called. In this case the number 10 in the B column would be selected or
marked as shown. Note the inverted colors of B10.
The computer also checks
that called numbers match selected numbers and prevents players from making
incorrect selections. This will prevent a player from thinking he has won and yelling
BINGO at the wrong time.
The master computer
contains the software necessary to run the entire Bingo game. It can generate the Bingo numbers randomly
and even pronounce each letter and number through its sound card using wav
files. It sends each number called to all the classroom computers where it gets
displayed. Players can then locate and
select the numbers on their Bingo cards.
Error checking is used at this point to prevent players from selecting
the wrong numbers.
Each player has 3 cards
with 3 B columns. If there are 5
numbers in each B column then there are 15 numbers total (3 X 5). The numbers in the B column go from 1
to 15. The numbers in the I
column go from 16 to 30. This
cycle repeats with the remaining columns, each containing 15 numbers.
When a match occurs on a
player’s computer a question appears and the player must answer it correctly to
keep the selected number. Questions are
worth points and players can accumulate a point total. When a Bingo number is first called a
countdown timer is started. By default
it starts at 15 seconds, meaning a player has 15 seconds to answer a question. At the moment the player answers the count
on the countdown count will be converted into points and added to a player’s
point total. So the faster a player
answers the more points he will accumulate.
The questions are stored on the master computer and questions are sent
to all the classroom computers as needed.
The master computer is in
control at all times and continuously communicates with the classroom
computers. Each classroom computer has
a unique ID and is also identified with the player’s name. The master computer contains a table of the
player’s names and keeps track of questions answered, point totals and number
of games won. This information can be
stored and printed out later for analysis.
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Item |
Description |
Price |
|
CBING |
Complete Computer Bingo system including all hardware and
software for 12 players plus master. |
$169.00 |
|
CBING1 |
Single player Computer Bingo - allows Computer Bingo to
be played on one computer. |
$39.00 |
Shipping and handling
charges are 5% of total price. PA
residents must include 6% sales tax.
We welcome any questions
that you may have concerning this product.
Contact us
COMPUTER PRODUCTS FOR EDUCATION
PO Box 1694,
Kingston, PA 18704 USA
Copyright © 2004 by Computer Products
for Education