Technical Requirements for Online Learning

Before you decide to take an online course it is a good idea to look over these minimum requirements to determine if you have or can acquire what you will need before you start the course.

Some courses have additional requirements, please refer to the course descriptions in the course list for more information.

Here are a few ways to tell if you have what you need to take an online course:

  • Can you play Quicktime movies on your computer? If not, you can download Quicktime
  • Can you listen to and/or download music on your computer?
  • Can you write, save and file documents?
  • Can you upload and edit photographs? (Required for some courses.)
  • Can you surf the Web?

If you answered yes to these questions then you most likely have what is needed to take an online course.  Here are some specifics:

Hardware ( your computer )

Emily Carr supports Mac and PC users. Beyond that it will depend largely on the type of course you are taking. A course involving high- resolution images and video, for instance, might require a more powerful computer than one involving only discussion forums, text submissions and email communication. However, at a minimum, you will require a computer with CD-ROM and reliable Internet access.

The older and the slower your computer the longer it will take to up and download files (images, texts, audio or video). If you are patient then the speed of your computer may not be a problem.

Older computers may not support some of the newer browsers e.g. Firefox. Newer browsers allow you full interactivity in our online course environment (Moodle).

Required:

For APPLE MACINTOSH platform

  • at least MAC OS X (older systems do not run Firefox browser)

For PC platform

  • Pentium 3 or higher / 256 MB memory / 1 GB free disk space
  • Sound card and speakers

Software

Internet Server Provider (your ISP)

Required:

  • Required: 56 k band modem or greater (minimum) adequate for text based courses only

Recommended:

  • High speed internet connection (ADSL or Cable)

Browsers

Required:

  • Mozilla Firefox 2 or Internet Explorer 6+.

Recommended:

  • Internet Explorer 7 / Firefox 3
  • Mozilla Firefox is preferred for our Learning Management System and is available to upload free at FIREFOX.

Applications (the programs you have on your computer)

  • Word processing program like Microsoft Word (version 6.0 or higher); preferred Microsoft Office.
  • Photo-editing program where you can work with JPEGs, for most studio-based courses

See specific course descriptions for additional requirements.

Current operational anti-virus software

It is your responsibility to have adequate antivirus software installed on your computer.   There are many commercial and free options available.  Please refer to the ITS page on computer threats for more information.

Students are responsible for their own communication costs such as long distance telephone charges and subscriptions to an Internet provider, or any other communications service requirements.

Disclaimer

Emily Carr University assumes no liability for personal or work place computing equipment used during your course of study. We are not liable for damages caused by or thought to have been caused by the installation of software purchased from us, or obtained through links posted on our website. We are not accountable for issues you may have surrounding the installation and /or use of said software.