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Prepare Your Computer
To ensure success when you're taking Web-based courses, you have to ensure that your computer and its Internet properties are also up to the task. Please take the time to go through the options listed below to check your computer: Let's start with browsers . You must use Internet Explorer (IE) 5.x and above and Netscape Navigator or Communicator (NN or NC) 4.5 and above but not 6.x. Other browsers are not recommended! In addition, you should download both IE and Netscape. Conflicts with one browser may arise that are easily solved by switching to the other browser. Yes, it is annoying to have to use two different browsers, but if you encounter problems during an exam or an important assignment with a due date, you'll be glad you have the other one handy. You can download IE at http://www.microsoft.com/windows/ie/ and NN or NC from http://browser.netscape.com/ns8/. It's important that your browser is set up properly to handle WebCT. You should note the following: - enable all your Java options (see below)
- set your cache to always reload a page; this insures that you are always viewing the latest pages
- when taking exams, close all programs except WebCT.
- avoid using Instant Messenger programs or other memory-resident programs while using WebCT
- when clicking on WebCT buttons, click them deliberately ONCE, then wait; if nothing happens, click them again. Multiple clicking can confuse WebCT >:-{
- make sure you always use the breadcrumbs ; never use the forward and back button on your broswer when using WebCT. That will really mess things up (more on this later).
The tables below, from http://webct.com/, guide you through the process of setting up your browser for Java and page caching. | Netscape Communicator (Navigator 4.5 and higher) | - Select Edit --Preferences
- Select Advanced
- Make sure the Enable Java and Enable JavaScript boxes are checked
- Click OK
| Internet Explorer 4.0
and higher | - Select Tools --Internet Options
- Select the Advanced tab
- Locate Microsoft VM
- Make sure the Java console enabled and Java logging enabled boxes are checked
- Click OK
- Restart your computer if you checked the Java console enabled box
| Netscape Communicator (Navigator 4.5 and higher) - Select Edit --> Preferences
- Click the + sign next to Advanced to see more options
- Select Cache
- Select the Every Time radio button at the bottom
- Click OK
Internet Explorer 4.0 and higher - Select Tools --> Internet Options
- Select the General tab
- Select Settings from Temporary Internet Files
- Select the Every Visit to the Page radio button
- Click OK
If you use America Online (AOL) for Web access, you will need the AOL version 4.0 or higher client and the Internet Explorer 5.0 browser. Do not use earlier versions of the AOL client with earlier versions of Internet Explorer, as you will have difficulty accessing many of WebCT features. For best results with AOL: - Connect to the Internet using AOL version 4.0 or higher
- Open a private chat within AOL (this allows the AOL client to remain open, without asking if you wish to disconnect while minimized)
- Minimize AOL
- Launch a recommended browser
When trying to save a file using Internet Explorer 5.5, it will not save properly unless you follow the following directions: - When saving a file, when first prompted to download the file in Internet Explorer 5.5, select 'Open this file from its current location' and click OK.
- You will now be prompted to save the file again. Select 'Save this file to disk'; click OK.
Check the version of your browser and to get directions for checking your Java settings, you may go to this URL ( Uniform Resource Locator or web address ) on the WebCT home site: http://webct.com/tuneup Plug-ins are small software applications that work with your browser to allow you to use and display various multimedia files on the web. All of them are free and install very quickly on your computer. Make sure you download the plug-in specific to your operating system (Windows or Mac) and version (Win95, Win98, WinME, etc) and any your browser (Internet Explorer or Netscape) and version (I.E. 5.x and above, Netscape 4.5 and above but not version 6.0). While you may get along okay without the plug-ins listed below, chances are that your instructor will post a file in one of these formats and/or send you to a web site that uses these formats. To be completely prepared, you should download and install all of the following plug-ins: Adobe Reader lets you read files saved in PDF format; download from http://www.adobe.com/prodindex/acrobat/readstep.html Shockwave and Flash Viewer lets you view Shockwave animations or interact with Flash multimedia used on many of the better educational web sites; download from http://www.macromedia.com/shockwave/download Real Player lets you hear/see Real audio/visual files, such as sounds and movies; download from http://www.real.com/products Quicktime lets you hear/see Quicktime movies and animations; download from http://www.apple.com/quicktime You will also want to consider purchasing and installing anti-virus software on your home computer. Viruses are programs that are intended to do damage to you computer and can be unintentionally downloaded to your system along with other downloaded files. Anti-virus programs are designed to try to detect these viruses before they have a chance to cause any harm. Brands such as McAfee or Norton can be purchased at almost any computer store. Depending on your particular course, you may need programs that provide these functions: - word processing
- e-mail
- spreadsheets
- presentations
- image processing
- web page authoring
Make sure you check with your instructor to insure that your computer has the proper software installed for you to complete your course assignments. If not, you may find such tools available in the computer labs or you may need to purchase and install the software. In any case, it's always best to find out before your assignment is due than to scramble to find the proper software a few hours before the deadline. The WebCT home page also contains links to their own browser tune-up pages. We have found that there may be problems accessing it with Netscape. But you might want to go there too for additional information. The URL for that page is: http://webct.com/tuneup
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