The Internet CourseReader
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The Course Reader is a program which users install in their computers. It was designed especially for use in regions which have expensive Internet connections, undependable electrical supplies or high telephone costs.  Here is how it works:

Students or seminar participants connect to the Internet. They start the Course Reader and quickly download messages waiting for them in educational seminars. Then they cut off their Internet connection. While offline (disconnected from the Internet) they read their messages and compose new ones. At their convenience they reconnect to the Internet, use the Course Reader to enter their new messages into the seminars and disconnect. In this way users can participate in courses or seminars while spending only a few minutes on the Internet.

Internet NewsGroups
The Course Reader reads its messages from an Internet-standard messaging system called a "newsgroup". It can work with any newsgroup system in the world. All universities and many organizations, have newsgroup servers. If an organization does not have access to a newsgroup it can install a newsgroup server program if it has a computer with a constant connection to the Internet (such as the computers organizations use to host their web sites.) A newsgroup server costs about $500.

To start a course the teacher or seminar organizer creates a newsgroup or asks the computer adminstrator to create it. Participants are sent copies of the Course Reader or download it from a Web site. They are given simple instructions on how to connect to the newsgroup using the Course Reader. And then they can download messages. By sharing a common message base they can interact amongst themselves to perform collaborative work in discussions and work groups.

Course Seminars
Each course can be subdivided into sub-sections called seminars. Each seminar is a collection of messages related to a particular topic or element of the course. For example, a teacher could create a new seminar each Monday to discuss the subject of the week.

Teachers can create as many seminars as they want without applying to the computer administrator. The Course Reader automatically enters messages into their appropriate seminars.

Users with constant Internet connections
Although the Course Reader was designed for users with dial-up access to the Internet it can just as easily be used by people with constant Internet connections. People who work offline park their messages in an outbox before they connect to the Internet. When they are connected the Course Reader automatically sends the parked messages. Users with constant connections also send their messages to the outbox. But because they are connected to the Internet the messages are automatically sent.

Users in cybercafes
Many users do not have access to communicating computers at the office or home. But if they have access to the World Wide Web via cybercafés they can participate in Course Reader courses or seminars. Here is how:

The Course Reader can be connected to an educational computer communications system called Virtual U. Once connected all messages sent by Course Reader users are automatically sent to Virtual U conferences. As well, all messages entered by cybercafé users into Virtual U are automatically sent to the Course Reader server. Cybercafé participants could create messages in home or office computers that do not have communication capabilities then go to a cybercafé to send the messages and download new ones.

 

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