Software requirements for Continuing Chemistry

Using this CD

This CD-ROM will work best on a recent (Windows XP) computer with 256 MB RAM or better. It should also work on Macs with OS X. Those of you with older or less powerful computers should be able to access most of the content, though you may need to wait a while for larger files to load. You may find that some old machines do not handle long file names. In this case, some of the links will not work but you will still be able to open the files individually.

Revision tasks

The revision tasks are designed to be run using a web browswer capable of interpreting Javascript. Any modern (version 6) web browser should work regardless of the type of computer you use. (Check the Tools or Options menu of your browser to make sure you have enabled Javascript)

Sometimes people using Windows Internet Explorer have problems with new Windows updates adding in extra security patches which block the Javascript content. Clicking on the yellow strip at the top of the screen will let you allow blocked content which should display the files perfectly. If you continue to have problems, try using Mozilla Firefox, which is another (free) web browser.

A few of the revision tasks require Macromedia Flash to run. This is a common plug-in that many people will already have installed on their computers. If you do not have Flash installed, an error message will pop up when you attempt to run these files. Download the latest version of Flash here. A version of Flash that will work on most Windows machines is found in the Software folder.

PowerPoint shows

These files were created using Microsoft Office 2003 and contain animations. Try opening the PowerPoint Index to see whether your computer has suitable software to view them. Use the link at the bottom of the first screen to return to this page.

If you cannot view the PowerPoint shows, click here for information on installing PowerPoint Viewer. This file also contains instructions for using PowerPoint.

Some people find that the animations do not display correctly when using older machines or alternatives to Office. In these cases, try viewing the files with PowerPoint Viewer. To do this, right click on the show in the PowerPoint folder, select Open with..., and choose PowerPoint viewer (which you may need to install first). If the animations do play correctly with the Viewer, then tick the option in the Open with... and Choose program... menu that says "Always use selected program to open this kind of file."

You will also need software to play the movies in the Organic PowerPoint files. Versions of Windows Media Player (which will play these movies) for various operating systems (both PC and Mac) can be downloaded from here.

PDF files

You will need Adobe Reader® to open the full-colour pdf version of Continuing Chemistry, and to use the exam files. This CD contains versions of Adobe Reader for most Windows machines. For further information on Adobe Reader click here.