Technical Requirements

Software

The following software is essential for using Blackboard:

• Web browser
  • The recommended web browser by Blackboard is Microsoft Internet Explorer 6.0 and above. The latest version is Internet 7.  Check the Bb Gateway section on Browser Requirements for more information on browsers.
  • A 6.0 or better version of Microsoft Internet Explorer or Firefox web browsers can be used.  It must accommodate both Javascript and Java for some functions of the course.
  • Other browsers, such as AOL or Opera, may function but are not officially supported by Blackboard.
• An e-mail account
• Anti-virus software

The following software is used in most classes:

• Word processing application, such as Microsoft Word
• Adobe Acrobat Reader 7.0 or higher for viewing PDF documents. The free Acrobat Reader is available for download at the Adobe website. http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep2.htm

Also check the Course Information section in each course for course specific requirements.

Hardware

Your PC must support the requirements for your web browser.  For example, Microsoft Internet Explorer 6 SP1 has the following minimum requirements:

• PC with a 486/66 MHz or higher processor (Pentium processer recommended)
• PC Memory is based on the operating system used
  • For Windows 98: 16 megabytes (MB) of random access memory (RAM) minimum
  • For Windows NT 4.0 with SP 6a and higher: 32 MB of RAM minimum; you must be running Service Pack 3 or later
  • For Windows Me: 32 MB of RAM minimum
  • For Windows 2000: 32 MB of RAM minimum
  • For Windows XP: 32 MB of RAM minimum
• A monitor capable of at least 800 x 600 resolution.  Scrollbars at lower resolutions may interfere with the interface.  For best performance, Blackboard recommends a resolution of 1024 x 768.
• Modem or Internet connection.  For minimum acceptable performance, Blackboard recommends at least a 56K modem connection.

Note that these are the minimum requirements for the browser.  If you have several applications open at the same time, the minimum memory requirements would be higher.

The recommended system configuration to use Internet Explorer 6 SP1 is Microsoft Windows 2000, Windows Me, or Microsoft Windows NT on a computer running with a Pentium III processor and 128 MB of RAM.

The following components may be required in some courses:

• Sound card with speakers or headphones
• Telephone for audio conferencing