Recommended system requirements

Most computers built in the last decade can access some form of the Internet, like email, the world Wide Web, FTP, etc. A 33 Mhz 486 PC can do simple things like send and receive email very well but cannot handle the processing of MP3s or streaming audio. Older computers are unable to take advantage of many of today's commonly used Internet technologies. The following hardware and software guidelines should provide a viable Internet workstation.

Recommended PC Requirements

• PC computer running Windows 98 or higher.
• Pentium-class processor.
• 64 MB of RAM.
• 33.6k baud modem.
• Any web browser in the recommended list below.
  (Older versions may require an upgrade.)

Recommended Macintosh Requirements

• Macintosh running MacOS 9 or higher.
• G3, G4 or Intel processor.
• 64 MB RAM, more is recommended.
• 33.6k baud modem.
• Any web browser in the recommended list below.
  (Older versions may require an upgrade.)

What Internet software do I need?

Most computers built after 1996 have a web browser pre-installed on it, which is the primary application used to access the World Wide Web. Some older browsers are less useful for everyday use though, because they do not understand a lot of todays common technologies like Cascading Style Sheets and JavaScript. You can, however, use your old web browser to access web sites where software upgrades are available.

Below are software applications used for differnet types of Internet services and links to their respective sites on the web.

What came bundled with my system software?

The following lists show what Internet software (web browser and email) was bundled into recent versions of the Windows and MacOS operating systems. Software that has the word upgrade next to it indicates that you would benefit from upgrading. Operating systems not listed indicates that either the bundled Internet software is too old to be useful or that it did not come bundled with Internet software.