Technical Requirements for Taking an Online Course

Technical Requirements for Taking an Online Class

In order to participate in one of the Online classes, you need a computer that meets the following minimum requirements. Some classes may have additional hardware/software requirements to those listed below. Please consult your instructor or class syllabus to find out if your course has additional technical requirements.

HARDWARE

Recent PC or Mac (last 3 years)
Minimum of 256 MB RAM memory
Minimum of 500 MB free disk space
Modem, 56 kbps or faster OR Cable or DSL Modem
Sound card and speakers/headphone
SVGA Video card (set to 800 x 600 resolution or higher and to display 16 million colors)
CD-ROM or DVD Drive (for some classes)

SUPPORTED OPERATING SYSTEMS

(PC) Windows 98, NT, 2000, XP or Vista OR Linux
(Mac) System 7.5 or higher

SUPPORTED BROWSERS

Internet Explorer 6.0 SP2, 7.0 (PC) or Internet Explorer 5.1 or higher (Mac)
Netscape 8 or higher
AOL 7.0 or higher (PC & Mac)
Firefox 1.5 or higher
Safari 1.3 or higher (Mac)

You must have Java installed and Cookies enabled in your browser to use Blackboard. You also should disable any Pop-Up Stoppers.

To check your Browser compatibility, test it at Blackboard's Browser Tune-up.

PLUG-INS
Not all of the following plug-ins are required for every class. Check on your class syllabus for specific requirements.

Java 1.5 or higher (Required), Flash (Required), Shockwave (Required), Windows Media Player (Required), Acrobat Reader (Recommended), RealPlayer (for some classes), Quicktime (for some classes)

INTERNET ACCESS
You will also need regular access to the Internet through an Internet Service Provider (ISP), like Microsoft Network, AOL, Charter, etc., preferably at access speeds of 56,000 bps or faster. You can use a public access to the Internet connection, but remember that for study purposes, you may need to spend many hours per week online, accessing your learning materials and using e-mail.

OFFICE SOFTWARE

For many courses, it is helpful to have some version of Microsoft Office (97 or later) for writing papers. Office 2007 is required for specific coursework in some classes; check the instructor's syllabus for more information. When taking specific software courses (Access, Excel, Word, etc.), you should have the same version of the software installed on your computer. All SCC instructors’ computers are MS Word XP or later compatible.

ANTIVIRUS SOFTWARE

You must have some kind of current updated Anti-Virus software installed on your computer, such as products by McAfee, Symantec, or AVG (free version available). The latest version of AOL also includes antivirus protection.

For more information or support, contact SCCOnline Technical Support.

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