Virtualizing Software for Remote Classes During COVID19

Some classes are easier to move online than others. When Princeton University decided in early March that the coronavirus pandemic would empty every lecture hall, seminar room, and teaching lab, it wasn’t easy for lectures and precepts to move online, but they made do. The ubiquity of video conferencing, email, and online teaching tools meant that the path to virtual classes—while difficult and disruptive—was relatively clear for these traditional teaching formats. But for MAE 321: Mechanical Design, an important course in the Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Department’s core curriculum, the path was much less obvious.