System Requirements

If you encounter any difficulty, please check the following:

Operating system and browser

• Basic requirements for Mastering
• Requirements for editing and creating content (Instructors only)

System settings and Internet connection

• Screen resolution
• Pop-up blockers
• Cookie filters
• Javascript
• Internet connection

Players, plugins, and unzipping files

• Flash player
• Shockwave player (MasteringBiology)
• QuickTime player (MasteringBiology, MasteringChemistry)
• Unzipping files (MasteringBiology)

About updating your computer to meet requirements: You may need administrative access to be able to install applications or make other changes to your computer. If the computer you are using is not your own personal property, you may need to contact your organization's IT department to make such updates.

Operating system and browser

Basic requirements for Mastering

Clicking a browser name below opens a page where you can download that browser.

Windows XP, Vista, Windows 7
Supported browsers:
Firefox 3.0, 3.5
Google Chrome
Internet Explorer 7.0, 8.0
Safari 3.x, 4.0

MacOS 10.4, 10.5
Supported browsers:
Firefox 3.0, 3.5
Safari 3.x, 4.0

Ubuntu 8.10
(Although not fully tested, other Linux distributions may also work.)
Supported browsers:
Firefox 3.0, 3.5

Requirements for editing and creating content (Instructors only)

The Simple Editor and the Advanced Editor (also known as the Authoring Tool) enable you to produce custom assignable items. Requirements for these editors are a bit more strict than for Mastering.

Simple Editor

• Windows XP, Vista, Windows 7 users: Internet Explorer 7.x or 8.0 or Firefox 3.x
  If you notice some slowness in editing with Internet Explorer, please use Firefox instead.
• MacOS users: Firefox 3.x

Advanced Editor

• Windows users: Windows XP, Vista, or Windows 7
• MacOS users: You need a Windows emulator. Recommended emulator(s).
• Browser: Regardless of your operating system, you MUST use Internet Explorer (version 7.x or 8.0).
• Internet connection: Broadband is required. (Dial-up is inadequate.)

System settings and Internet connection

Screen Resolution

Minimum screen resolution: 1024 pixels wide by 768 pixels high
To check and adjust screen resolution:

• MacOS users: Go to the Monitors Control Panel.
• Windows users: Start > Control Panel > Display > Settings > Screen Resolution

Pop-up windows must be allowed for the site.

To allow pop-up windows in Firefox:

1. Click Tools > Options > Content.
2. Check to see whether Block Popup Windows is on.
3. Click Allowed Sites to the right of Block Popup Windows and type the appropriate URL, as it applies to your site: session.masteringchemistry.com, session.masteringbiology.com, etc.
4. Click Allow, then Close, then OK.

To allow pop-up windows in Internet Explorer:

1. Click Tools > Pop-up Blocker.
2. Click Pop-up Blocker Settings.
3. Type the appropriate site URL in the Address of Web Site to Allow box, as it applies to your site:
   session.masteringchemistry.com, session.masteringbiology.com, etc.
4. Click Add.

To allow pop-up windows in other browsers: Check your browser Help.

You may have other pop-up blockers enabled:
For example, pop-up blockers may be active through the Yahoo Toolbar or Google Toolbar. If so, you must either disable these (may not be preferable) or set these to allow pop-ups from your Mastering site (such as session.masteringchemistry.com, session.masteringbiology.com, etc.).

Cookie Filters

If you filter cookies, you must allow session cookies to be set for your Mastering product.
Click here to learn how.

Javascript must be enabled.

Click here for instructions on enabling Javascript for various browsers.

Internet Connection

56kbps modem minimum. Broadband cable, high-speed DSL, or other equivalent is recommended for multimedia content. (Multimedia content may be used in assignments or may be available in a self-study area.)

Players, plugins, and unzipping files

Flash Player

ALL Mastering products require that you have the Adobe Flash Player installed (version 10.0.42.34). Linux users: Flash Player version 10 is required.

MasteringBiology users: You also need the Shockwave Player. You can install the Flash and/or Shockwave players from the same location.

• To test whether the needed player is installed on your computer, go to: http://www.adobe.com/shockwave/welcome/.
• To download: Go to http://www.adobe.com/downloads/ or click a link from the test page. Then, test again to make sure the player has been installed.

QuickTime Player (MasteringBiology, MasteringChemistry)

Download the latest QuickTime free player from: http://www.apple.com/quicktime/download/. (Note: The QuickTime Pro upgrade is not required.)

Unzipping files (MasteringBiology)

Some animation files you download from MasteringBiology are in a compressed format (.zip). A zip/unzip utility may be included with your operating system. This utility may be triggered automatically. If not, you will need to identify which utility to use to extract (unzip) the files in the .zip archive. Unzipping files literally takes just a few seconds.

If you don’t have such a utility or don’t know how to unzip files, search the Internet for: unzipping files