The MINIMUM hardware and software requirements for this course are higher than for most other internet courses. They are:

A PC (Not a Macintosh) with a 600 Mhz Processor, 128 MB of RAM (256 MB recommended), a CD-ROM or DVD-ROM drive, and at least 1 GB of free hard disk space. A sound card and speakers (most computers have these).

Your computer MUST use the Windows XP Professional (highly recommended), Vista, Windows XP Home, Windows 2000 operating systems. If you do not have one of these operating systems on your computer, Windows XP Professional can be ordered from the LCCC Bookstore or from another educational reseller (a list is available at HERE).

The Microsoft Access 2007 software is required for the course and must be purchased separately from your textbook. Earlier versions of Microsoft Access are not acceptable for use in this course. As an LCCC student, you may purchase Microsoft Office 2007 Professional (includes Microsoft Access 2007) for about $200 or just the Microsoft Access 2007 upgrade for about $110. Students may order this software from the LCCC Bookstore or from another educational reseller (a list is available at HERE).

ZIP Files: Projects are posted as zip (compressed) files for students to download from the course website. When students complete projects, they must zip up their completed project folder and files and upload the resulting zip file to the course website for grading. Students MUST be able to comfortably work with zip files - both in terms of being able to extract from an existing zip file and to create a zip file that includes the required folders and files. Windows XP comes with the native capability to work with zip files. Students using other Windows operating systems will need to use WinZip software (available free at The WinZip Download Site) in order to work with zip files.

Adobe Acrobat Reader 6.0 software is also required (available free at The Acrobat Reader 6.0 Download Site).

All student writing must be done in .doc or .rtf formats. Word processors that can create .doc and .rtf formatted files include Microsoft Word (Word 2000 or later), or Microsoft WordPad (WordPad is included free with Windows), and OpenOffice (available free at http://www.openoffice.org/).

Please be advised that because of the highly technical nature of the course material, this course tends to be more difficult for many students than the same course taken in the traditional classroom environment. If you have any reservations about your ability to learn technical concepts without the interaction offered in the traditional classroom setting, please consider registering for one of the non-internet sections of this course.

Please contact the instructor by email before class starts if you have any questions about the course.