Most ELI courses require the use of email to facilitate the communications among instructors and students. You have been assigned a Virginia Community College System (VCCS) email account and are required to use it for any course-related email communications so your privacy can be ensured as required by law.

To find out your VCCS email account, go to https://nvcc.my.vccs.edu.

Most of ELI's online courses are offered via Blackboard. Blackboard is a course management system that helps your faculty structure online courses for you.

In order for you to log on to your online course offered via Blackboard, you need to have a Blackboard logon user id and password.

• Your Blackboard user id is a combination of your initials and numbers assigned to you
• To access Blackboard and Email, log in at https://nvcc.my.vccs.edu. You will be asked to answer a security question and then create your password

To learn how to use Blackboard, go to this Web site: http://www.nvcc.edu/current-students/technology/blackboard/.

Video programs for most ELI telecourses can be viewed on line through the college's Video On Demand service at http://www.nvcc.edu/tvcenter/studentInformation.htm. Follow the directions given there to log on. If your programs are not available on line, or your internet access is too slow to view video programs on line, you may access the programs in several other ways:

• Most telecourses are broadcast via NVCC cable television. Lessons are broadcast weekly in sequence and repeated if extra weeks are available.
• Several telecourses are blockfed overnight on NVCC-TV from 11:59pm to 6am. The overnight blockfeed includes all lessons for the course, and in some cases takes two or three nights.
• Most telecourses are available for rental on videotape or DVD from a private rental agency.
• Videotapes of all telecourses are available at campus Learning Resource Services (LRS) facilities, but tapes may not be checked out and VCRs are limited. Viewing tapes on campus can be time-consuming.
• Some courses require viewing videos available from local video stores.
• Some courses require purchase of videos from campus bookstores.

For telecourse and overnight blockfeed schedules, local cable channels, rental agency and other video information, see the ELI Telecourse Broadcast Schedule ( http://eli.nvcc.edu/tvschedule.htm). If you start your course after broadcasts have begun, you may view previously shown programs at campus LRS facilities, or, if available, off the overnight blockfeed or rented video. If you experience TV reception problems, call (703) 323-3377.

Some ELI courses require the use of a voice mail system which allows you to:

• leave telephone messages for your instructor.
• listen to informational recordings about your course.
• submit oral assignments and receive feedback from your instructor.
• participate in course discussions.

You need to have the following required technology for your Online Courses:

• reliable access to VCCS email
• reliable access to the Internet (with a recent version of Netscape or Internet Explorer)
• MS Office 2000 or later (mainly needed for word-processing in order to complete assignments)
• access to software such as Adobe Reader, RealPlayer or Windows Media Player

For your Non-Online Courses, you need to have:

• access to a TV, VCR and cable channel, or access to a campus Learning Resource Center.

Computer Skills are critical to your success. You should know how to:

• create a new folder.
• save a file.
• cut, copy and paste.
• find a lost file on your hard drive.
• download a file.
• send and receive email.
• send an attachment file in email.
• participate in a class discussion forum.
• use an Internet browser to search for information on the Web.
• set bookmarks for Web pages.
• save an image from the Web and create a new folder for it.

Asynchronous - communication in which interaction between parties does not take place simultaneously. Asynchronous learning is usually referred to as learning anytime, anyplace.

Bandwidth - information-carrying capacity of a communication channel.

Browser - software that allows one to display pages from the World Wide Web.

Computer Conferencing - a form of distance learning where faculty and students create and respond to questions, messages, or articles; sometimes a "threaded," or connected discussion takes place.

Course Management System - a software program, such as Blackboard, that contains the features necessary for a student to take a Web-based or web-enhanced class - email, discussion areas, assignment area, assessments, chat, and external links.

Dial Up - a network connection made by placing a call to a telecommunications device that is connected to the Internet or some other service.

Discussion Forum - a place on the Internet which revolves around a common theme, such as the Beltway Sniper, and to which users are drawn because of their common interest; an assembly of documents or notes about a given topic on the Internet.

eNOVA - NVCC's online, real-time student learning environment where students can interact with faculty and other students as part of the learning process. eNOVA provides real-time two-way audio, application sharing, web browsing, white-boarding, and text chatting. Once you have registered for a course that uses eNOVA, you will need a PC computer, Internet connection, Internet browser, speakers, microphone, and a NVCC-provided username and password.

Face-to-Face - term used to describe the traditional classroom environment.

Home Page - a document with an address (URL) on the world wide web maintained by a person or organization which contains pointers to other pieces of information.

Hyper Text Markup Language (HTML) - code used to create a home page and used to access documents over the WWW.

Listserv - an e-mail program that allows multiple computer users to connect onto a single system, creating an on-line discussion.

Netiquette - people navigating in a virtual environment must follow proper protocols and have good online "manners" generally known as netiquette, or etiquette on the Net.

ISP - Internet service provider, a service needed by users who are going to access the Internet from home or work unless they are connected directly to the Internet through a local area network (LAN). Examples are AOL, Erol's.

Server - a computer with a special service function on a network, generally receiving and connecting incoming information traffic.

Synchronous - communication in which interaction between participants is simultaneous.

Virtual Classroom - an online discussion forum where most of the conversations relating to the coursework take place (either synchronously or asynchronously).

"Netiquette" is an abbreviation for "Internet etiquette"--simply, basic rules of the road for the "Information Superhighway." Online learning involves much communication using email, bulletin boards, chats and other methods.

• Anonymity - While anonymity is often, and justifiably, desired in many Internet communications, maintaining your identity is essential in an online course. If at any time you have concerns about your privacy in an online course, please let your instructor know. Make sure you include your name on all your emails as some messaging systems will not include this and many email addresses do not indicate the name of the sender.
• Brevity - Very few people want to read long messages. Other than for special situations, try to keep most of your communications brief and to the point. Others will thank you, and you'll be equally grateful to everyone else.
• Communication - Use the Subject Line. Make your entry in the Subject Line concise and informative. Focus on one subject per message and always include a pertinent subject title for the message; that way the user can locate the message quickly. Include your name at the bottom of email messages. Be careful when using sarcasm and humor. Without face to face communications, your joke may be viewed as criticism.
• Emoticons - Emoticons are simple sideways faces, also known as smileys. Here are a few examples:
  :) happy face
  :( unhappy face
  ;) wink
• Inappropriate material - Suggestive or pornographic content or links do not belong in online courses, nor does anything promoting hatred or discrimination.
• Large files - Avoid sending unnecessarily large files and attachments. Many of those cute screen savers and computer games circulated via email place a heavy load on email systems and create large downloads, particularly for those who are on slower modems or using older computers. They often may also carry malicious content such as viruses.
• Privacy - It is simple to forward a message you have received from someone else. However, unless it is clear you have their permission to do so, check first. This is particularly important when you post a private message sent to you from someone else to a public bulletin board or email list.
• Readability - Try to format your messages with lots of breaks and headings. One long paragraph that fills some else's full screen with no breaks will very likely not be read. Watch for errors: a careful read as well as a spell-check will solve most problems--lots of mistakes are extremely annoying.
• Shouting - What is shouting? THIS IS: TYPING A MESSAGE IN CAPITAL LETTERS IS TYPICALLY UNDERSTOOD AS THE EQUIVALENT OF SHOUTING AT SOMEONE. It is perceived as rude and will usually result in a request by others to "Stop yelling" or worse, a "flame"--a flurry of angry responses that will bombard your email inbox.

Adapted from http://www.jibc.bc.ca/onlineLearning/online/online/net.htm