Welcome to the Touro University Laptop Program
This notification is to inform you of our laptop minimum requirements for the Doctor of Osteopathy (D.O.) program in the College of Osteopathic Medicine.
Who Will Help You?
College of Medicine Educational Technologist, Jeffery Reedy will be administrating this program with the counsel of faculty, student, and administrative personnel.
Laptop Program Objectives:
Student utilized laptop computers will empower students and faculty to access primary and supportive information to better prepare for and supplement the learning process.
Blackboard, an electronic learning tool, will be utilized as the central component of the "electronic classroom" employed throughout much of the curriculum. Blackboard is not resident on the laptop but is simply a web address to our servers at Touro. Because of this, students will be able to access materials from any location with web access. Assignments, course material, assessments, and collaborative tools will be commonly available to students and faculty; independent of their location.
Most written exams in the first two years of the D.O. program will be administered via ExamSoft. ExamSoft is a suite of 3 applications the college uses to create, administer, and report on results of examinations. The application students use to take examinations is called SofTest. Students must download and register a copy of SofTest on their laptops, and then use it to take the majority of written examinations in the first two years of the program. Students whose laptops conform to the Minimum Requirements below will have computers capable of running SofTest. Instructions for downloading and registering SofTest will be sent to incoming first year students by email before Orientation.
The lecture areas offer a wireless environment enabling accessibility to informational resources via the Internet and proprietary Touro sites such as the Library and other University resources.
MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS
Please check that your laptop hardware and software meet each requirement.
Windows Software Requirements
The operating system requirement is Vista or Windows 7 or 8 (do not get the "Basic" version; get Home Premium or better). Windows XP IS NOT SUPPORTED!
The following software is needed for Windows:
Antivirus Software o Avast!: http://www.avast.com/free-antivirus-download (Recommended) o Microsoft Security Essentials: http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkID=231274 Office 2010 Oracle Java JRE 6 o Java download page: http://www.oracle.com/technetwork/java/javase/downloads/index.html Browser: o Internet Explorer o Firefox (Recommended) o Google Chrome o Safari Microsoft .NET Framework Version 4.0 required for ExamSoft’s SofTest o Download Page: http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=17718 Quicktime Hardware Requirements
For all Windows laptops:
Processor Manufacturer: Intel or Advanced Micro Devices (x86 or x64) Network Interface Card: 10/100 802.11 b/g/n wireless Hard-Drive Capacity: 40 GB or greater Screen Size: 12 Inches or larger
For Windows 8/7/Vista: Home Premium or better; Business is recommended Memory: 4 GB or more strongly recommended* Processor Speed: 1.4 GHz (2 GHz or faster recommended)
* To enable memory capacity greater than 3.5 GB of ram you will need to have a 64 bit version of Windows.
Tablet PCs are also acceptable provided they meet the requirements. Tablets must use x86 or x64 Intel or AMD based processors; ARM based tablets ARE NOT supported. Arm based systems include (iPad, Samsung Galaxy or Microsoft Surface). Microsoft Surface Pro, using an Intel Ivybridge i5 is supported. They are an optional component. A laptop with these specifications should cost between $1200 - $1800 for College of Osteopathic Medicine; depending on memory and hard drive size and whether it has a CD/DVD writer (not required, but recommended). Students should buy keyboards and mouse to support taking exams using ExamSoft. Students should also purchase an external hard drive to backup their data (highly recommended).
Apple Mac Software Requirements
Software:
OS X 10.7 – 10.7.4+ combo update MUST be installed. OS X 10.8 is supported. Browser o Safari o Firefox (Recommended) o Google Chrome Microsoft Office 2011 (Keynote IS NOT a replacement for powerpoint) Java (Java MUST be kept up to date with updates) Antivirus Software o Clam AV for Mac: http://www.clamxav.com (Recommended) o AVG: http://download.cnet.com/AVG-Anti-Virus-Free-Edition-2012/3000-2239_4-10320142.html?part=dl- avg_free_us&subj=dl&tag=button o Sophos: http://www.sophos.com/en-us/products/free-tools/sophos-antivirus-for-mac-home- edition/download.aspx o PC Tools iAntivirus: http://www.iantivirus.com/downloads/iantivirus.pkg Flip4Mac o Download: http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/windows/products/windows-media-player/wmcomponents
Spec for Mac Book Pro:
Minimum Specification: Recommended Spec: 13” Screen Any model with screen size 13” or larger
2.4 GHz Intel dual core i5 Any model with quad core i7
4GB Ram 4GB of RAM or larger
500 GB Hard Drive 500 GB of hard drive space or larger
Macbook Air
Minimum Spec: Recommended Spec:
11” Screen 13” screen
1.6 GHz dual core i5 1.7 GHz dual core i5
4GB Ram 4GB Ram
128 GB Solid State Drive 128 or 256 GB Solid State Drive
3 year term Apple Care support is highly recommended purchase. Apple will not talk to you unless you have support contract. An external USB hard drive to back up your data is recommended. 500 GB or larger OS and Java MUST be kept up to date using Apple’s software updater. Apple iPads do not constitute a fully operational workstation meeting minimum requirements.
Laptop Acquisition
Student may choose to use their existing laptops or purchase one providing they meet the listed minimum requirements and are less than 3 years old. If your laptop is 3 years and older, it is recommended that students purchase a new laptop. Windows laptops from these manufacturers are acceptable: Sony, DELL, Fujitsu, Toshiba, Panasonic, Lenovo, ASUS and Gateway. At this time we are not recommending Compaq/HP.
We also recommend that students purchase extended warrantees or service contracts should there be a hardware failure. Students may elect to purchase laptops from their favorite retail outlet.
Laptop Support
Should an OS reinstall be required because your laptop no longer functions correctly, having the system restore disks will greatly speed the restoration of your laptop. If you don't have the restore disks and a special partition is not on the laptop with recovery tools, we recommend you to contact the manufacturer to obtain them. There is generally no or a very little charge for the disks. We will support software related issues with the Operating System, Word, Excel, the wireless configuration, diagnostics, re-imaging a laptop and/or file recovery.
Hardware related failures need to be addressed by the student and the appropriate manufacturer service center. We will help by letting you know if the issue is hardware or software.
Contact Information
Jeffrey Reedy, Curriculum Support for the College of Osteopathic Medicine Email: [email protected] Phone: (707) 638-5238