Does vision2learn work with Mac PCs?
Vision2learn is designed and built for Windows PC computers. We believe that the current version is compatible with Mac operating systems, although we cannot offer any support to Mac users. You will need to ensure that you have compatible software so that your tutor can read your submitted work. Click here to see the recommended software.

I had a major crash on my computer and had to have the computer reinstalled, and have forgotten my username and password. Please can you help?
We will send you a password reminder by email, if you click on the link at http://www.vision2learn.com.

I am using an Internet TV service. I would really like to do the course! Can I still do it?
No, at present, vision2learn courses are only accessible through a conventional computer based Internet link. If you can access a PC at work or in a public library or learning centre, you will be able to register as a vision2learn student.

Is there a user manual to help me find my way around vision2learn?
Yes, once you have logged in to My study you will see a link to Help at the top of the screen. Click on this and you will be given the option of visiting a web based version of the user guide or downloading a copy of it in Word format.

The font size is very small on the screen. Is there any way that I can make it bigger?
Vision2learn is optimised for use on a monitor that has a minimum screen resolution of 800 by 600 pixels. Changing your screen resolution may improve what you see. (If you are confident about altering the configuration of your PC, right mouse click on an empty part of your desktop and select Properties from the menu. Select Settings from the dialog box and follow the instructions on screen). Alternatively, you could press the F11 key on your keyboard. This removes (temporarily) almost all of the menu bars at the top of your browser and allows vision2learn to fill more of the screen. When you want to get all the menu bars back again, just press the F11 key again. If you would like to change the text size (permanently) and you use Internet Explorer as your Internet browser, you should open your Internet browser and select View from the top menu the select the Text Size option and change the text to your preference. Most students opt for Medium text size.

I have changed my email address. Who do I tell?
You can change some of your own details by clicking on My Profile and Edit when you are in your study area. If your email address is not correctly recorded on the vision2learn system, you may not receive information that could be important to you.

How can I contact my tutor?
Once you have logged on to your study area, you can contact your tutor by using V-mail, vision2learn's own internal messaging system. Look for the V-mail link at the top of your study area. There are also a number of places within the system where you can automatically send a message to your tutor just by clicking on the tutor's name. Look out for your tutor's name in a different colour.

What is the difference between the various forms of messaging on the vision2learn system?
1. The Cafe (My Study area) is an all-comers forum. This is where you can discuss a huge variety of topics with the widest range of people. There are various topics under which you can enter messages. Every user of the vision2learn system can see any messages you post to the cafe.
2. The Group Forum is slightly more restricted. You can only access the Group Forum after you have selected a course to work on from your Study Area. All the other people in your tutor group will see any messages you post here. Messages posted here should be restricted to topics related to the course you are studying. Your tutor may make use of the Group Forum to make general announcements to a learning group.
3. When you access your Study Area, you will see a V-mail option. V-mail is a one to one system. Messages are sent from individuals to individuals. The system allows you to select an individual student and send a private message to them, or to submit your course work to your tutor.

NOTE: Please remember that vision2learn reserves an exclusive right of editorial control on all messages posted to any of the above message systems.

When I try to load the Activities in my course, all I see is the following warning every time and I have no idea what it means… "Unable to load graphics conversion filter. Continue with document conversion?" No matter whether I press 'yes' or 'no', still nothing happens.
This is usually a problem associated with not having Microsoft Office products installed on your PC. The activities supplied by vision2learn are written with and should be viewed using Microsoft Word. If you do not have Microsoft Word installed on your PC and you are trying to access the activities using Microsoft Works, you may wish to download and install a graphics conversion filter for use with the version of Microsoft Works that you have installed on your PC. It may be possible to obtain graphics conversion filters from the Microsoft website at www.microsoft.com.

NOTE: We do not guarantee that any of these suggestions will work satisfactorily. Many parts of the vision2learn courses are written using Microsoft Office products and we are only able to support users who have them installed on their PCs.

Do I have to sit an exam?
There may be an end of course assessment which is attended in person and taken in exam conditions. You will attend the nearest centre to you to sit this exam and your tutor will provide you with further information about this during your course.

How do I qualify for a free place?
These vision2learn courses are funded by the Learning and Skills Council. This means that the courses are normally free of charge to anyone over the age of 16 who has been ordinarily resident in England for 3 years or more, as long as this residency has been for purposes other than full-time study. If you don’t meet these requirements, there may be other ways for your course to be funded and you can contact us for more information on this.

I have logged into my vision2learn user area and accessed my course material without any problems. However, the course material is asking me to complete some activities; knowledge know-alls and knowledge round-ups. I am unable to see the icons to access these within the course material. What should I do?
We have provided an additional link to the activities in Wizard on the Web and First Steps in IT courses to help you. Look out for some differently coloured text on the page in the form the word Activity and a number. Clicking on this should open the Activity as usual. The same applies for the knowledge round-ups and knowledge know-alls.

I have logged into my vision2learn user account and when I click on the My courses button nothing happens, what should I do?
This is usually a problem associated with Anti-Virus or more specific, Anti-Popup software installed on your computer. Firewalls, Anti-Virus, Anti-Popup and other types of security software can block the functionality of the website and possibly stop the induction questionnaire from appearing on your screen in a new window. If you are experiencing this type of problem, it is advisable to temporarily turn the setting on this type of software to low or completely off and load up the vision2learn website again (remember to restore your virus protection software settings after you leave the vision2learn website). This kind of software could be installed on your computer as Anti-Virus software; Firewall software or additional toolbars you have downloaded. Alternatively, you could press and hold either the Alt or Ctrl key on your keyboard, whilst clicking the left mouse button on the session to allow the window to by-pass the popup-stopper.

I do not have Microsoft Office installed on my computer do I have to purchase this software in order to study my chosen vision2learn course?
It is recommended that you use Microsoft products because the course materials make extensive use of them and without them you may not be able to complete some of the coursework. Why have we written the courses using mostly Microsoft products? Because they are the most used software applications. Our use of them is not necessarily a recommendation of Microsoft products. There are a number of pieces of free software (freeware) that claim to be alternatives to and compatible with Microsoft Office products. Two of them are described below. We have not tested any of them for compatibility or researched whether or not they provide appropriate functionality for your course, but we have researched where you can obtain them. Please remember that vision2learn does not recommend either of these products nor endorse any of the authors’ claims. We suggest that you may wish to visit the vendors’ web sites and either make your own assessment of their suitability or seek some professional advice before committing yourself to downloading any of the software.

1. 602PCSuite
Can be downloaded from: http://www.software602.com/products/pcs/ (Size: 21MB. Estimated download time: 52min on a 56k modem)
There are 2 versions of 602PCSuite; a free, downloadable one with some limited functionality and a more sophisticated version that will cost you about £20.
Authors’ claims: With the look and feel of MS Word, 602Text is claimed to be the best word processor alternative on the market today. It uses the MS Word .DOC format (and is compatible with Windows 9x, 2000 and XP) and it can also open TXT, RTF and HTML files. Not overloaded with unused functions it is small and effective for any PC user. 602Tab is an MS Excel compatible spreadsheet with over 150 functions. This user friendly application uses the .XLS format (compatible with Windows 9x, 2000 and XP) and it can also open/save XLT, CSV and DBF files. Easily manage your household finances, balance your checkbook and even calculate loan payments by yourself.

2. EasyOffice
Can be downloaded from http://www.e-press.com/ (Size: 86.1MB. EasyOffice is a huge file to download. Estimated download time: 3hrs 30min on a 56k modem)
There is also an EasyOffice Premium version on a CD.
Authors’ claims: This office suite is compatible with PDF, MS-Word and Excel files. The word processor supports RTF, DOC, HTML and PDF files. EasySpeaker is an English-voice reader. EasySpreadsheet reads and writes Excel XLS files. EasyPresentation has special effects, animation, clipart and sound effects. EasyContactManager integrates automatically with EasyWord, EasyCalendar, EasyZip which allows file compression and decompression in both easy and advanced modes. EasySpeller and EasyDictionary is a full reference dictionary. EasyBookkeeper performs classical double-entry bookkeeping. Easybookkeeper supports double-entry bookkeeping. The built-in contact manager supports hotlists, mass e-mailing and form letters. There is also an image viewer, a database and a calculator.

I am having problems accessing my student us area/submitting work to my tutor, what should I do?
The first thing is for you to set your Internet browser to look for new versions of a web page every time it loads up. The vision2learn website is constantly being updated and so if this is not set, you may only be able to load up an old version that is stored on your computer.
To do this you should:
Open your Internet browser and select Tools from the menu at the top. Then select Internet Options from the drop-down list that will appear. Once the Internet Options window has appeared, you should select the Settings button from the Temporary Internet Files section in the general part. If you then click on the option to check for newer versions of stored pages Every visit to the page. Then select Ok.

After completing this you should clear the Temporary Internet Files of any stored files you may have on your computer.
To do this you should:
Open your Internet browser and select Tools from the menu at the top. Then select Internet Options from the drop-down list that will appear. Once the Internet Options window has appeared, you should select the Delete Files button from the Temporary Internet Files section in the general part. This will then delete all files stored in this part of the system. You should then click Ok and close your Internet browser.
After carrying this out you should then try and load up the vision2learn website,in your Internet browser, and try again.

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