At School...
If you expect your learners to connect from school, be aware that Internet connectivity, though widespread, is still in a fledgling state. According to the Software Publishers Association, 87% of all US public schools enjoyed Internet access in the 1997-1998 school year, up from 70% the year before. As many as 95% expect to have access in 1998-1999.

But quality of access and its ease of use still vary. More than 85% of the educators surveyed by the SPA said there still aren't enough machines, modems or connections to go around. Many schools are still connecting via telephone dial up. This means they still lack reliable, direct connections that make downloading of pages fast enough to encourage routine classroom use of the Web and other Internet technologies.

Users with inconvenient access probably don't get to use the Web that often and therefore may be relatively unfamiliar with the technology. You need to take this into account.


At Work...
Perhaps your learners will access from the workplace. Businesses often implement security protections that may compromise your users' capabilities. Firewalls, for example, protect a company's internal computer systems from 'Net-borne viruses ("viri") and other unauthorized infiltration by blocking incoming activity. Firewalls can't always distinguish between dangerous and benign activity. They may, for example, block scripted functions in a site (allowing such functionality as graphics that change with mouse rollovers), and this could prevent some users from participating in those features of your resource.

If workplace users are your primary target, you may need to rethink your resource. If you are trying to reach a different crowd, however, you may decide to include the scripted feature anyway, and provide an alternative learning activity for those who simply can't use it.


At Home...
Home access to the Web is becoming more common, but inequality tied to race and wealth persist. Set-top boxes that allow users to surfing the Web on their television screens may prove to be a low-cost alternative that brings the mainstream on board, but they lack weidespread use thus far (1998).


The Bottom Line
Find out what your users cope with, and use what you learn to choose the tools your learners will need. Accept that new technologies seep slowly into general use -- particularly into formal education. Sure, you can build a resource that takes advantage of today's bleeding edge. But don't expect heavy participation by the mainstream. It's a trade-off.

Whatever you decide about the level of technology your users will need, be explicit about it so prospective learners can decide whether or not your resource will work for them. When you first came to this site, for example, we sent you to a page describing what technologies you would need, so you could determine whether you had the appropriate technology to take advantage of this resource. Where possible, provide support -- particularly for "unusual" technologies. Help users to get what they need and to learn how to use it.