updated 01/21/08 01:47 PM

Platform and OS
The content for this course has been tested on Windows platforms running Windows 2000 or XP.  There may be incompatibility issues in viewing some files or running some applications when using other platforms or operating systems.

Plug-ins, Players and Viewers
Browsers use plug-ins and other helper applications to help them display web documents. If you encounter an element (such as video or animation) that requires one of these helpers, you may see a message that your browser isn't equipped for that content type. Listed below are the plug-ins, players, and viewers that are needed for this course. All of the programs in this category are free of charge.  Download links are provided.

Adobe Reader to read documents in Adobe's portable document format (pdf).

RealPlayer to view the streamed video clips. Be sure to download the free version.

Sun Java Runtime Environment (JRE) to run the multimedia problems as well as the video analysis software.  The JRE, available from Sun Microsystems, will run all the applets used in the course. Select the most recent non-beta version of the Java Runtime Environment.

Apple QuickTime to display video clips for video analysis.  Update, if necessary, to the newest version, since that is required in order to use video analysis software.  After clicking on the link to the left, select QuickTime 7.2 for Windows XP or Vista. Deselect the free newsletters if you don't want them.  Then click Free Download Now and save the file to your desktop.  Once the file is downloaded, double click on the file to install it.  Important:  Do not use the iTunes version of the install file.  It doesn't contain all the components that you need.

Analysis/Data Collection Software

Vernier Software's Graphical Analysis 3 is needed for the graphical analysis of data. If the install file isn't available on the T drive, try this.

Vernier Software's Logger Pro 3 will be useful for data collection if you have a laptop. The current version should be on the T drive. You can also find an updater in the alternative download folder above.

Tracker is needed for video analysis.  No installation is required.  Simply download to your computer. When prompted for a name for the file, enter "Tracker.jar" in quotes to ensure that the extension is not altered.

IWP is needed for some animations. In the event that the IWP server is unavailable or blocked, download the application here. When prompted for a name for the file, enter "iwp.jar" in quotes to ensure that the extension is not altered. Annotated screen captures showing IWP features are available here. In order to use the application, just double click on the downloaded file to open it. No installation is required. Problem files are packaged with the application and may be opened using File -> Open -> Packaged.

Office Applications

Microsoft Word or Open Office are needed to view, edit, and create word-processed documents.