Technical Requirements
Gateway Virtual Academy, LLC. uses Blackboard Collaborate as our Virtual Platform for our live classroom instructions. For your child to have the the best virtual classroom experience, there are a few Technical Requirements that should be provided:
- Windows or Mac PC less than 4 years old, with adequate RAM (memory, storage (hard drive) and compatible operating system
- For quality audio, students are required to have a digital stereo computer Headset (Skype, Hangouts compatible) with a microphone
- For quality video must have video card and drivers compatible with current video technologiies
- High speed broadband internet
- Students overseas should have both a landline phone and high speed internet
- Updated, current web browser that meets latest security and compatibility standards
The following minimum hardware and software requirements are necessary in order to access an online class through Gateway Virtual Academy’s current version of Blackboard.
| Minimum | Recommended | |
|---|---|---|
| Operating System | Windows Vista, 7, or 8 Mac OSX 10.6, 10.7, 10.8, or 10.9 |
Windows 7 or 8 Mac OSX 10.7, 10.8, or 10.9 |
| Processor | 1 GHz processor | 2 GHz or faster processor |
| Memory | 512 MB of RAM | 2 GB of RAM or higher |
| Monitor Resolution | 1024 x 768 | 1024 x 768 or higher |
| Free Hard Disk Space | 5 GB of free disk space | 20 GB or higher of free space |
| Internet Connection | Broadband (high-speed) Internet connection with a consistent minimum speed of 1.5 Mbps. | Broadband (high-speed) Internet connection with a speed of 4 Mbps or higher |
| Internet Browser** | Respondus Lockdown Browser and IE8, IE9, Safari 4+, Chrome or Firefox | Respondus Lockdown Browser and Firefox |
| Java | Java is required to use Blackboard. Visit our Java support page for information about troubleshooting Java. | |
| Macromedia Flash Player | Flash is required to play videos within the Blackboard system. You can download Flash from the Adobe website. | |
Students are required to have regular, reliable access to a computer with a stable broadband Internet connection. Any system older than 4 years may not have the processing power to work with our current version of Blackboard and its components.
The first step to see if your computer is set up for Blackboard is to check your browser compatibility. We strongly recommend Blackboard students use the latest version of Mozilla Firefox for Windows or Mac because it is the most compatible with our current Blackboard system.
| Browser Downloads | PC | Mac |
|---|---|---|
| Respondus Lockdown Browser | Download | Download |
| Firefox | Download | Download |
| Google Chrome | Download | Download |
| Safari | Download | Download |
| Internet Explorer | Download | n/a |