Technical Information

The SS/NS website is designed for all types of Internet user, from beginner to expert. See the Website Tour page for hints and tips that will help you to find your way around and to make the most of the content, tools, and other resources available.

Screen Resolution:
This website works best on desktop or laptop computers that have a screen resolution setting of at least 800 x 600 or higher. If you are using a computer running Windows, you can change the resolution by right clicking your mouse on the desktop, selecting the "Properties" option, and then the "Settings" tab. Adjust the screen area slider and click "Apply" then "Ok." For a visual step-by-step demonstration, see illustrationA. Another method is to click on "My Computer," then "Control panel," then "Appearance," to find "Display" where the "Properties" option is listed. (See illustrationB)

Browsers:
Although this website should work reasonably well in all common browsers, it works best with Microsoft Internet Explorer version 6.0 or later. You can download the latest version of Internet Explorer at microsoft.com. Other common browsers include Mozilla Firefox & Opera, which are also available as free downloads. Try them all, since some websites may function better on a different browser. Another consideration when choosing browsers are your personal or family needs. For example, parents of younger children may prefer the advanced security features provided on the Firefox browser. See our Safety & Security page for more information.

Downloads:
The SS/NS Department provides numerous downloadable documents, such as lesson plans and teachers' guides. Most of these documents are provided in Adobe's Portable Document Format (PDF). PDF documents remain consistent no matter what your browser or computer set-up. Most computers come with Adobe Reader (the viewing software) already installed. Adobe Reader is also available free of charge from Adobe's website. You can recognize the PDF documents where you see this icon .

You can opt to open PDF documents on-line, simply by clicking on the link and waiting for the document to open, or you may choose to save them to read later, off-line.

To view a PDF document, simply click on the linked provided on the webpage. A dialogue box may appear, which will ask if you would like to "Open this file from its current location" or "Save this file to disk." (If this dialogue box does not appear, then your browser may be automatically opening the file with the Adobe Reader plug-in.) Please be patient when waiting for files to open, some PDF files may be very large and take time to open.

We have provided larger PDF documents, such as multi-chapter teachers' guides, both as a series of smaller PDF files, usually chapter by chapter, and in full. Therefore, you may choose to download only those chapters you are interested in or the whole document. You can help to speed up the process by closing other software applications and webpages that may be open. However, don't close the webpage from which you found the PDF file while the download is in progress or your computer will lose its connection to the file!

To save a PDF on your personal commputer (PC), right click your mouse on the download link so that a menu appears. From this menu, choose "Save Target As." A dialogue box will appear that will allow you to select the location on your computer where you would like to save the file. Select an appropriate location (create a new folder if necessary) and then click "OK." A new dialogue box will then appear, which will provide you with information regarding how long the download will take and will display the download's progress. Once the download is complete, you can open the file at a later time by finding the file's location on your computer (remember to note this when you save) and double clicking on the file.

Another option is to save the PDF document after you have opened it. This allows you to preview the document to ensure that it's something you want to keep. In this case, simply go to "File," then "Save As" on the Adobe Reader toolbar. Regardless of the method you choose for saving the document, be certain to save to a folder on your computer that you will be able to easily find again later.

Visitors who have difficulty downloading or viewing PDF documents can convert them to appear as either a webpage or as simple text using Adobe's PDF conversion tools, available for free on their website.

Printing:
To print webpages or documents, go to "File" and select "Print" in your browser's toolbar (keyboard shortcut: simultaneously press Ctrl key + "P"). To minimize paper wastage when printing webpages, you may wish to select "Print Preview" to decide how many pages you actually wish to print.

Searching:
Although the SS/NS website does not yet provide an internal search capability, most users should be able to find what they seek via our Site Map and/or Site Index. However, a keyword search may also be conducted within individual webpages using your browser's "Find" feature. For example, in Internet Explorer's toolbar go to "Edit," then click on "Find on this page." (Keyboard shortcut: simultaneously press Ctrl key + "F.") Type in your keyword or phrase into the "Find" dialogue box that appears. Your browser will then automatically search for the keyword or phrase on the webpage you currently have open. You can continue the search on that page by clicking on the "Next" button in the "Find" dialogue box.

Last updated : 24 July 2007

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