The following are recommended specifications to work with the online course system:

Platform:

• PC (Windows 2000/XP/Vista)
• Mac (10.2/10.3/10.4)

Hardware:

• 128 MB of RAM
• 2 GB of free disk space
• Sound card with speakers (for courses with multimedia)
• Ethernet or Wireless network card (for high-speed Internet connection) or 56K modem (for dial-up Internet connection)
• T1, DSL, Cable, or Satellite high-speed connection (56K dial-up will work, but the online course system will run slowly).

Software:

• **Java JRE plugin (very important so that everything in the system works properly!)
  
• Microsoft Office Viewers (for viewing and printing Word, PowerPoint, Excel, and Visio files)
  
• Adobe Acrobat Reader (for viewing and printing PDF files)
  
• Real Player (for viewing streaming video or listening to streaming audio clips)
  
• QuickTime (for viewing QuickTime video)
  
• Flash Player (for viewing animations or using interactive content)
  
• Shockwave Player (for viewing animations or using interactive content)
  
• Windows Media Player (for viewing streaming video or listening to streaming audio clips)

**Get Java (very important!)

1. Click here to download the correct Java version.
2. At the Sun Downloads site, click the Download button next to Java Runtime Environment (JRE) 6 Update 2.
3. Click to Accept the License Agreement.
4. Click Window Offline Installation, Multi-language.
5. Click Run to download. Be patient!
6. Click Run to install. Be patient!
7. Follow the prompts to install the Typical Java installation. Be patient!
8. Restart your computer to complete the installation process.

NOTE: If you are using a Macintosh, click here to download Java.

Browser:

For the most up-to-date browser support information, see the Browser Tuneup site at http://www.webct.com/tuneup. To figure out exactly which version of the online course system your institution is running:

1. Go to the website where you log into the online course system.
2. Before and after logging in, click the Check Browser link, in the top right corner of the browser window.
3. In the top right window of the Browser Checker, note the version number.

Examples of Check Browser links:

Windows Platform:

Course System Version	Browsers	Browser Versions
		Validated	Unsupported
CE 6.2 and Vista 4.2
	Microsoft IE	6 SP2; 7 see note	--
	Netscape	--	8
	AOL	--	--
	Mozilla	--	1.5, 1.6
	Firefox	1.5.x (PC only), 2.0.x	--
CE 6.1 and Vista 4.1
	Microsoft IE	6 SP1; 6 SP2; 7 see note	--
	Netscape	7.2	8
	AOL	9	--
	Mozilla	1.7.x	1.5, 1.6
	Firefox	1.0.x, 1.5.x, 2.0 (SP1 Hotfix 2)	--
CE 6.0 and Vista 4.0	Microsoft IE	6.0 SP1; 6.0 SP2 (XP SP2); 7 see note	--
	Netscape	7.2	8
	AOL	9	--
	Mozilla	1.7	1.5, 1.6
	Firefox	1.0, 1.5	--

Note: Internet Explorer 7, Mozilla 1.6 & 1.7, Firefox, AOL 9 browsers, where listed, may require an up-to-date Hotfix or Service Pack to be installed on the WebCT CE or WebCT Vista server. If you experience issues using these browsers, please contact us to ensure your WebCT installation has the latest update installed.

Macintosh Platform:

Course System Version	Browsers	Browser Versions
		Validated	Unsupported
CE 6.2 and Vista 4.2	Mozilla	--	Browsers running under Mac OS 9 and earlier; Firefox 1.5, Mozilla 1.5, 1.6, and 1.7
	Firefox	TBD with 1.0, 1.5, and 2.0
	Safari	1.3, 2.x; and 2.x for Intel x86 platform
CE 6.1 and Vista 4.1	Mozilla	1.7.x (OS X only)	Browsers running under Mac OS 9 and earlier; Firefox 1.5, Mozilla 1.5 and 1.6.
	Firefox	1.0.x (OS X only)
	Safari	1.2, 1.3, 2.x; and 2.x for Intel x86 platform
CE 6.0 and Vista 4.0	Mozilla	1.7 (OS X only)	Browsers running under Mac OS 9 and earlier; Firefox 1.5, Mozilla 1.5 and 1.6.
	Firefox	1.0 (OS X only)
	Safari	1.2, 1.3, 2.0 see note (OS X only)

Note: Some versions of the Mozilla, Firefox, and Safari browsers, where listed, require an up-to-date Service Pack to be installed on the WebCT CE or WebCT Vista server. If you experience issues using these browsers, please contact your system administrator to ensure your WebCT installation has the latest Service Pack installed.

AOL Users:

If you use AOL as your Internet Service Provider (ISP), do NOT use the AOL browser.  Minimize the AOL browser and open Internet Explorer.

Download a Browser:

To download supported browsers, please follow our browser links.  

If you download a new browser version, you will need to download it, close your browser, and reopen your browser again, and then follow the steps to configure your browser listed in the steps below.

Browser Settings:

Your browser settings will vary, depending on the browser you choose to use. There is a good  browser support site that will tell you exactly how to prepare your browser settings for your specific browser.

NOTE: If you followed the steps above to download and install Java, you do not need to follow these steps again that you will find again in the instructions below.

1. Go to the Browser Tuneup site: http://www.webct.com/tuneup

2. Click Start the Browser Tune-up.

3. Click the arrow next to your operating system:

3. Confirm your browser.

4. Click Prepare your browser settings for WebCT.

5. Follow the steps you see on the page to:

6. 1. Enable Java and switch to the Sun Java Runtime Environment.

   2. Enable Javascript in your browser.

   3. Enable cookies

IMPORTANT: Some browsers allow style sheets to be disabled. If your browser has this feature, do not set it to disable style sheets.

Browser Toolbars:

Uninstall Yahoo, Google, AOL, or any other Browser Toolbars

Although the browser toolbars are useful tools for searching the Internet, you must uninstall these for the course system to work properly. Open your browser. Your toolbar (if you have one) will be immediately under the line on your browser where you can type in a web address. 
  
To uninstall browser toolbars:

1. Click your computer's Start button.
2. Click Control Panel. (You may need to click Settings first, and then Control Panel.)
3. Double click Add/Remove Programs.
4. Click the appropriate toolbar and click Remove.

Pop-Up Blocker Programs: 

Turn OFF pop-up blockers.

Please disable any pop-up ad blocker programs if they are installed on your system. Pop-up blocker applications work in the background while you browse the internet. When they detect a pop-up window that may be an unwanted advertisement, they automatically close the window. This functionality will prevent the course system from performing properly.

Pop-up blockers may be installed as part of a browser toolbar, as part of your browser, as part of your virus protection software or even as a separate program. When you login to your course, and you have a pop-up blocker turned on, the Browser Checker will open and indicate that.

Examples of programs that may include pop up blockers include the following (you may want to click a link below to determine how to disable pop up blockers on your system):

• Google Toolbar
• Yahoo! Toolbar
• MSN Toolbar
• Internet Explorer browser
• Firefox browser
• Mozilla browser
• Netscape browser
• AOL 8.0 and later
• Safari browser
• ICQ Toolbar
• Norton Internet Security
• Zone Alarm Pro

If you have any further questions, please contact us for support. Thank you.