Please Note: Students are responsible for having the required hardware and software prior to each hemester start date. When you apply, please complete and submit the Computer Requirements Questionnaire online.
Mac operating systems are not supported at this time. If you have a Mac, please contact the Director of Virtual Operations at 601-965-7078 to discuss your options.
Broadband – Broadband internet is a high data-transmission rate internet connection. This is the best type of internet connection for attending Belhaven virtual classes. This type of service is usually offered through a local cable service provider.
DSL – Digital Subscriber Line (DSL) is a high speed internet connection that uses the same wires as a regular telephone line. However, DSL services come in various grades. It is recommended to use a 3 Mbps downstream/384 Kbps upstream or better DSL connection. Contact your service provider to find out the speeds available. The faster the connection, the better your virtual classroom experience will be.
Wireless/Satellite - A wireless or satellite internet connection is not an option at this time for use in the Virtual Online program as the online classroom software requires a constant connection for upstream transmission. Connecting wirelessly or via satellite causes the student to experience delays or disconnection in the Virtual classroom. If a student is using a broadband wireless router, he or she will be required to physically plug in to the connection box rather than using the router for classroom meetings. However, a wireless or satellite connection can be used for most of the other functions needed outside of the online classroom, including e-mail, testing, assignment submittal, etc. If a satellite connection is the only option for your area, please contact the Director of Virtual Operations at bcvirtual@belhaven.edu to discuss your options.
Dial-up – We recognize that it is challenging for students that live in rural areas to find a high speed internet service. However, a dial-up modem internet connection is not acceptable for use in Belhaven Virtual. Dial-up will cause audio and video delays within the virtual classroom, causing difficulty for the students and professors. We want each student to get the best experience and education possible through the Virtual program, so we do require a high speed broadband or DSL connection from wherever the student intends to attend their virtual classes.
Keep in mind that with special permission, some employers will allow employees to use their computers at work for educational purposes.
Many small, private companies are now offering high speed connections to rural areas. You may find such a company in your area by searching the internet for "high speed internet Yourcity, Yourstate." If you find that there are absolutely no high speed or satellite internet services offered in your area, please contact Belhaven Virtual Operations at 601-965-7078 to discuss your options.
Internet Accelerators - Internet accelerators do not accelerate your connection. They "cache" web pages and employ various methods to make web pages available to you more quickly. These processes interfere with conferencing and should be disabled or even uninstalled on a computer that will be used for online classes.
E-mail – All Belhaven Virtual students will be provided with a free Belhaven e-mail address. This address is used to communicate all information to the students.
Internet Browser -
- PC - Internet Explorer 5.5, Netscape 7.2, Firefox 1.5x or later.
- Apple - Safari 2.0.1
Microsoft Office 2000 or higher - Microsoft Office 2000 or higher version is required. If you have version 2007, you will need to save all files in version 2003 before submitting them to the instructor. You can do this when saving your document by changing the type of file to the 2003 version of the software you are working within.
Antivirus Utility - We encourage Belhaven Virtual students to use antivirus software on their incoming and outgoing e-mail. The antivirus software in the Norton Internet Security package works well for protecting incoming and outgoing email.
Adobe Acrobat Reader - We require all students to have the free Adobe Acrobat Reader version 5 or higher. We often distribute school documents in PDF format.
Unzipping Utility - We require that our students have an unzipping file decompression utility such as WinZip. Windows XP comes with this capability built in and requires no separate utility.
Windows Media Player – WMP is required for viewing the lectures on DVD. It can be downloaded free at: Download WMP.
Software Firewalls and Filters - All of the popular software firewalls and parental filters can be configured for conferencing software, but because of the variations between software brands, updates, and home networks, we do not provide any assistance with this configuration. They all come with adequate documentation to support configuring them for any application.
Pop-up Blockers and Phishing Filters – All pop-up blockers and phishing filters should be turned off within your web browser. This can be done in Internet Explorer through the Tools menu. Please refer to the help menu in your browser to learn how to turn off these functions if they are available.
