There are three settings on your computer that you should check in order to optimize your machine for viewing and enjoying SmartMoney University.

1. Screen Size
2. Color Resolution
3. Java

Screen Size
Your minimum screen size should be 800 X 600 pixels. Most new computers are set by the factory at that "resolution" or above, but older ones tend to be set at 640 X 480. You can view the pages at this smaller screen resolution, but you will have to do an excessive amount of scrolling.

Here's how to check your resolution and/or change it.

On a Windows computer, click on your your Start menu, put your cursor on Settings and select Control Panel from the drop-down menu. Double-click on the Display icon in the Control Panel window. That will open the Display properties dialog box, which has a tab for Settings. Click on the tab and then find the desktop area slider.

The slider offers you a choice of resolutions. Make sure it is set to at least 800 X 600. If you change the setting, you should first click on the Test or Apply button. Your screen will show a test pattern for several seconds. If you see it clearly, accept the changes and then move on to the Color setting instructions below before closing the Display properties dialog box.

On a Macintosh computer, you can access your display settings through the control panels in the Apple menu. Select the Monitors and Sound option. Then look for the Screen Size selector on the right side of the control panel.

Color Resolution
If you are seeing a dotted pattern in some of the graphics, it is probably because your monitor is set for 8-bit color (256 color-mode). The dots -- also called dithering -- are your computer's attempt to display colors outside of its limited setting. To properly view our site, you have to set the color resolution to "Thousands of Colors."

To make the change on a Windows computer, open the Display dialog box (see above), and click on the Settings tab. Look for a drop-down box titled Color Palette and select a color resolution in at least the thousands. Click OK to accept your changes.

For Macintosh users, enter the Monitors and Sound control panel through the Apple menu and select at least "thousands of colors" on the left side of the control panel. Then click OK.

Java
To view the worksheets and interactive applets properly, you need to be using a Java-enabled browser. On Windows 95, 98 or NT machines that means Netscape 3.0 or above, or Microsoft Internet Explorer 3.0 or above. We are not currently supporting Java for Windows 3.1. Macintosh users should use version 4.0 browsers from Netscape or Microsoft Internet Explorer.

Java Troubleshooting
If you are using a suitable browser and still are having trouble viewing Java applets, check to make sure Java and JavaScript are enabled in your browser options.

Netscape 3.0:
Select Options from your menu bar. Select Network Preferences, then select Languages. Enable Java and Enable JavaScript should both be checked. Click OK.

Netscape 4.0:
Select Edit from your menu bar. Select Preferences, then select Advanced. Enable Java and Enable JavaScript should both be checked. Click OK.

Internet Explorer 3.0:
Select View from your menu bar. Select Options, then select the Security tab. At the bottom of the page in the Active Content box, make sure all boxes are checked. (Note: You might also want to click the Safety Level button here and select Medium to prevent warning message interruptions.)

Internet Explorer 4.0:
Select View from your menu bar. Select Internet Options, then the Security tab. For the Internet Zone, select Custom and click on Settings. Scroll down to the Java area of the list. Make sure that, under Java permissions, "Disable Java" is NOT active. Set this to low, medium or high security instead. Scroll down to the Scripting area of the list. Under Scripting, set Active Scripting to Enable, and set Scripting of Java Applets to Enable. Click OK to return the Security Settings, then click Apply and then OK.

America Online
If you are viewing SmartMoney University via America Online, your browser may have to be adjusted or upgraded in order to view all of our interactive elements as they were intended to be seen.

Here's what to do...

First of all, since old versions of the AOL browser don't support Java, you'll have to upgrade to the 32-bit version of the AOL 4.0 browser for Windows 95. You can find out which version of AOL you're using by clicking Help and then About on the pull-down menu. If you are not using the latest release of AOL software, go to AOL Member Services (Keyword: Member Services) and follow the directions for a free download of the 32-bit version of AOL 4.0, which comes bundled with the Internet Explorer browser.

The IE browser that comes with 4.0 is programmed by default to compress images that download over the Web. That's good for many sites, but unfortunately it will distort the graphics in our Java applets. So to view our interactive elements in their best light, you'll have to turn off the compression feature when using SMU. Here's how: Press the My AOL button in the menu bar and choose Preferences. When the Preferences window opens up, choose the WWW button. That will open a Windows dialog box called AOL Internet Properties. Choose the tab that says Web Graphics and unclick the Use Compressed Graphics option. Hit the OK button and you're ready to go.