Browser Settings
BROWSER SETTINGS
You'll need a browser that supports Java, JavaScript, and tables, and a monitor that displays at least 256 colors. If none of that means anything to you, try the site, and if you have a problem, then come back to this page. If you have a relatively new computer, it'll probably be fine. Here are our recommendations, including font sizes for best viewing.
Microsoft Internet Explorer
Version: 5.0 or higher
Font Size: Medium
These can be modified by following this path within the Internet Explorer menu at the top of the browser:
> View > Text Size
To download the most recent version of Microsoft Internet Explorer, click here or on the image below.
COLORS
To give the site a nice "clean" feeling, we've designed it with a white background color. The background color in your browser setttings should default to white, so you should be seeing things correctly. However, if you are experiencing a different background color (i.e. grey), change your browser's color setting by either a) selecting the "Use Windows Color" option or b) changing the background color to white. In Internet Explorer, the color options are found by clicking on "Internet Options" in your "Tools" menu. In Netscape, you can change color preferences by selecting "Preferences" under your "Edit" menu.
FONTS
We designed the site around a standard group of fonts that come with most PCs. These include: Verdana, Trebuchet MS, Arial, and Times New Roman fonts. If you're viewing the site and certain things just don't look "right", you may want to see if you have them installed. If you don't, click here and you can download them.
COOKIE TECHNOLOGY
Cookies are small nuggets of information that are stored locally on your computer for record keeping purposes. Their use is an industry standard, and many websites use them to help deliver useful features to their customers. When you subscribe to SoundMindInvesting.com, we use cookie technology to store your Email Address and Password on your hard drive to eliminate the time consuming login process each time you wish to access locked content. If you prefer not to have the login process automated in this way, you can opt to not have your Email Address and Password saved. This will require you to enter these items manually each time you visit locked content. These settings can be changed in the "Preferences" menu in Netscape or the "Internet Options" menu in Internet Explorer. By default, cookies are enabled, so if you prefer the more automated process, you don't need to change a thing.
CONNECTION SPEED
A 28.8 connection should make the load times of each page reasonable. Anything above that will obviously be even better. If you ever get a slightly blurry page or a page that seems "stuck" trying to download, click your browser's Reload button.
RAM (Random Access Memory)
32MB to 64MB of RAM in your computer should be adequate, but 128MB to 256MB is recommended. More RAM will help download times at all the websites you frequent, in addition to ours. This is definitely a case where more is better.
MONITOR SIZE / RESOLUTION
The site has been designed for a 17-inch or larger, 16-bit color monitor. It has been designed for convenient viewing at 800 x 600 pixels and 1024 x 768 pixels, but some of you will want to view it a higher resolution such as 1280 x 1024 or for the eyesight gifted, 1600 x 1200. Whichever resolution you choose, the site will work fine with it. You may want to experiment a little to see which resolution gives you the best viewing experience.
ONE LAST WORD. . .
If after making some changes to your viewing preferences, you are still experiencing problems, feel free to email support@soundmindinvesting.com. We'll do our best to help, but unfortunately we are not equipped to handle advanced support topics.
