Re: Randomizing packets

<<Is there some program that will randomize
the questions, or do you have to do it by
hand?>>

I don't know how most people do it, but I've found
that WordPerfect will (more or less) do it for me: it
can sort paragraph-by-paragraph by the Nth word
(e.g., by the 17th word; if the 17th words are the same,
then it sorts by the 24th word, etc.). I have found
this to be a quick and effective substitute for actual
'randomization' of packets.

The only caveat with this is
that, for this to work properly, there must be *no
breaks* between the start of the question and the end of
the question; otherwise, the parts get split up (this
is why the guidelines call for NO blank lines within
questions).

Then, after I have done a preliminary sort, I quickly
look over the packet to make sure that (a) the packet
is not mis-balanced (e.g., that all the science
didn't end up at the back), and (b) that there isn't a
clump of questions in the same category (e.g., three
lit boni in a row). If one of these problems comes
up, I can either move one or two of the offending
questions, or re-randomize on a different set of
words.

Of course, then, after I'm done, I have to go
through and number the questions (which is why I ask that
they *not* be numbered a priori).

The only
caveat I have is that this *may* be a feature unique to
WordPerfect--while it may exist in other word processors, I honestly
don't know.

--STI

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