Minimum Technical Skills

UWF prepares students for current and future business and life applications using basic technology. Each UWF student is expected to do the following:

• Activate a MyUWF student account
• Access the MyUWF portal a minimum of 2-3 times a week
• Access UWF email account (Gmail) 2-3 times a week
• Have basic word-processing knowledge

Additional technical skills and technology requirements may vary by college, department, and course. Student use of UWF information technology resources is governed by the Computing Resources Usage Agreement and the Student Communications Policy* (also see the My Account app in MyUWF).

Additionally, online students should acquire these essential skills to ensure success in online courses: 

• Using a Web browser to access Web pages

• Downloading files from the Web

• Uploading and attaching files to send to others

Minimum Technology Requirements for Online Courses

• Access to a laptop or desktop computer
• Broadband Internet access
• Compatible web browser
• Audio input, built-in, or external computer speakers
• Recommended: Webcam (external or internal)

Web Browser Requirements

Review the Web Browser Requirements for a list of supported web browsers for Canvas,

Supported Operating Systems

Canvas only requires an operating system that can run the latest compatible web browsers. Your computer operating system should be kept up to date with the latest recommended security updates and upgrades.

Additional Software You may Need

Your instructor may require the use of additional software for your course that may not be listed on this page. Review your course syllabus and contact your instructor for additional information if needed. Students may need one or more of the following plug-ins:

• Adobe Acrobat Reader
• Viewing presentations without PowerPoint software
• Windows Media Player
• QuickTime Player
  
  • Windows Media Player 12 that is available on Windows 10 will play Apple QuickTime movies (.mov). If students experience an issue with playing media files we recommend VLC media player.
    
  • It is a free, portable, and open source media player that will play almost all audio files including .mov file extensions.

Accessibility

The University of West Florida supports an inclusive environment for all students, faculty, staff, and visitors. If there are aspects of your experience with the University that hinder your full participation, the University is committed to providing reasonable accommodations.

For more information on services and accommodations available:

• contact Student Accessibility Resources (SAR), and
• visit the Accessibility Statements for Required and Other Potential Technologies in Online Courses.

SA-19.03-05/18

Privacy Statements

The following is a list of potential required technologies for online/blended courses at UWF, along with links to the privacy statements for those technologies. If you need help locating the privacy statement for a particular technology, please do not hesitate to contact a Global Online instructional designer. This information addresses Quality Matters course design standard 6.5: Links to privacy policies for all external tools required in the course.

• Creately Privacy Statement
• Canvas (Instructure) Privacy Policy
• ProctorU Privacy Policy, Terms of Use and Personal Data Protection Policy
• Honorlock Student Privacy Statement
• Respondus Privacy Statement (includes Respondus LockDown Browser and Respondus Monitor)

  • Easy-to-read PDF (1 page) that provides answers to common questions about data privacy and Respondus Monitor proctoring: https://web.respondus.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/Respondus_Data_Privacy.pdf

• TK20 (http://tk20.com/graphite/) does not have a privacy statement, but the use of TK20 by UWF students falls under the umbrella of the UWF Privacy Policy.
• TurnItIn Privacy Pledge
• YouTube Privacy Guidelines
• Zoom Privacy Statement
• Panopto Privacy Statement