Comments from students who've attended our online courses:

Frequently Asked Questions

Could you let me know how many hours a day will be devoted to the course over the 3 week period? How much time do I have to allocate per day during the class period? Is it like a full time class? As I have never taken any online classes my idea on how that works is rather vague.
Since this is our first on-line class, we don't know what the average workload per student will be. There are nine sections with most of the course content (the introduction and conclusion are small). Therefore, we estimate you should complete three sections a week. If given to a live audience, the Powerpoint lectures would take about 3 to 4 1/2 hours each week. The speed at which you complete the required readings will depend on your reading/comprehension speed. We estimate an hour per section. Then you will participate in quizzes, discussions, one-on-one with the instructor, projects and group meetings. (These help the instructor determine your comprehension of the material.) Thus, we estimate, each student will spend 6-10 hours per week on the course. You will get as much out of this course as you put into it.

I have looked at both the email and the website and cannot determine how often "class" will meet, if it meets at all. Is the class self paced for the 3 weeks or are there designated times to participate on-line for lecture and discussions?
The class is self-paced with three set times (decided by the class) for group meetings - chat room style - and deadlines for projects and quizzes.

I am already committed to be out of my office during the first part of the course. How will this affect my ability to participate in the course?
The course is self-paced. However, there will be group discussion times planned - at least one per week. One of our first orders of business is to set up workable times for those discussions. We will have students from a variety of countries, so we may have to break into two smaller groups that meet at different times, due to the different time zones. Probably we will have evening, daytime and weekend times as options. Some students are taking the class as part of their work, some are taking it outside their working hours. If you can't make a discussion, you can view it on-line. (You must attend at least two of the three group meetings.) We will also have discussions that are threads, which are not time-dependent. Being out of your office shouldn't affect your ability to participate in the course if you are near a computer with Internet access during the evenings.

Would it be possible for me to pay the fee and broadcast the course into our museum so all of our staff can 'catch' the information and potentially contribute with questions?
Our staff time, both instructor and technical expert, are impacted if more than one person is represented by a login. If you are interested in providing the course as in-staff training, we can offer a reduced fee for additional participants from a single institution. Please contact us directly if you are interested in this option.

We track all of our registered students to ensure everyone is able to use the software, comfortable with the course, and pacing themselves at a good rate. If a group, rather than an individual, accesses the class using one login, there would be significantly more activity for that one login. This would be a signal to us to contact that login and determine what is going on with it.

I am skeptical about this on line business. I've never done anything like this on-line before....I don't have Powerpoint or video or whatever... the technology may be a problem.
Even older and slower computers can handle this course. The Powerpoint presentations have much smaller web versions that almost any browser can handle. As far as streaming audio goes, if we include it you'll also be able to download the text as a separate file. If you are concerned about your equipment, tell us the age, speed and memory capacity of your computer when you sign up. Also let us know what version of Internet Explorer . (Click Help, About Internet Explorer) or Netscape you have. Our technology expert, Eric Swanson, will talk to you to make sure your computer works with our course. He is also available by telephone and e-mail if you have any questions at any point before and during the course.

I am interested in participating in your online course, should I just register online?
There are 3 steps you need to complete to start the class:
1.) Sign up at http://museumclasses.org/login/signup.php
2.) Pay for the course.
3.) Students are enrolled manually when the classes start. We no longer use the 'enrollment key' system and keys are NOT necessary.

Step 1.) in detail:
Go sign up and create an account at the link below if you haven't already.
http://museumclasses.org/login/signup.php

The information below on the signup page is required. Other optional information can be entered later.
e.g.
Username: eric
Password: xxxxxxxx
Please supply some information about yourself:
(Note: your email address must be a real one)
Email address: swany@virtualeric.com
Email (again): swany@virtualeric.com
First Name: Eric
Last Name: Swanson City, State: Reno, NV Country: United States
Then Click Create My New Account

You will then receive an email to verify your registration. Here is a sample of the e-mail text:

Hi Eric,
A new account has been requested at 'Museum Classes Online - Northern States Conservation Center' using your email address.

To confirm your new account, please go to this web address: http://museumclasses.org/login/confirm.php

In most mail programs, this should appear as a blue link which you can just click on. If that doesn't work, then cut and paste the address into the address line at the top of your web browser window.

If you need help, please contact the site administrator, Admin User (swany@virtualeric.com)

After confirming your registration you will be logged in. Click on your name in the upper right side corner to add or edit your information. e.g. I would click the Eric Swanson to add or change my info. You are logged in as Eric Swanson (Logout)

Step 2.) in detail:
Go through the payment process online, even if you are sending a check later. This ensures you a spot in the course. Click the Add to Cart button on either link below. Select 'Does Not Require Shipping' so shipping does NOT get charged. Under payment type select Visa, Mastercard or Purchase order if you are sending payment by check via mail. In the Ordering Instructions state if you are sending in a check. Click checkout and fill in the rest of the information. Click submit this order. You will receive a receipt via email.
http://museumclasses.org/
http://www.collectioncare.org/training/trol.html

Step 3.) in detail:
Students are enrolled manually when the classes start. We no longer use the 'enrollment key' system and keys are NOT necessary.

If you have any questions about signing up or any technical issues call Eric Swanson at 775 741 6293 or email  

I have limited time. I would like an idea of the commitment necessary to complete this course.
We honestly can't tell you the time commitment. This is our first time using this technology. The Powerpoint lectures, if given to a live audience, would probably take at least 12 -13 hours. Each lecture would be between 1 and 1 ½ hours long. But you can go through them much more quickly. There is a lot of reading, some of which can be printed off.

You will need to participate in three group sessions that will be scheduled during the three weeks and occur in real time. We will decide when they occur (evening, day or weekend) as one of our first discussions. All of our other discussions will occur over a few days, so different countries and time zones can participate and the instructor can add her thoughts. The entire course will post at once (at least that is our hope!) so that people can truly work at their own pace. That means you could get through the meat of the course in the first weekend. There will be group projects and individual projects. Again, the amount of time you put into it will reflect the end product of the projects. The projects are geared to pose questions whose answers will be useful to you in your working life.

Please let me know the deadlines to enroll for this course.
All of our courses are first come, first served. You reserve a place by paying or letting us know a check is in the mail. If the course fills in a few days, we may try to schedule a second course. All enrollments should be received 24 hours before the course launches.

Do you recommend signing up for classes now?
Yes. The sooner you commit to the course, the more likely you will have a place in it. Unfortunately, waiting may mean you lose the opportunity of participating. Our courses are limited to 20 participants.

Can you give me a little more information about how the course operates?
For each topic, you will receive Powerpoint lectures and text (book chapters) that match the lectures. The lecture topics are listed on our web site, www.museumclasses.org, underneath the course heading. For each topic there will be links to additional readings and discussion topics. We are experimenting with up-loading audio lectures for each Powerpoint presentation - but don't worry, we will make sure all audio, if used, is transcribed into text for those with slower computers and connections. Your participation in the course will include up-loading documents, participating in approximately three discussion forums in real time (chat room style) and other discussions through e-mail. You may find it useful to borrow a digital camera or scanner to upload images. We would like you to upload a picture or yourself so we can put a face to your name. The course comes complete with our own technology consultant. If you have never participated in an Internet course before, he will be available through e-mail and telephone to help you master the technology. Our goal is to make this course fun, informative, and challenging (in a fun way). What excites us about Internet courses is the potential for divergently different people, from anywhere in the world, to problem-solve together. This course provides the opportunity for us to discuss and brainstorm together. Our instructors enjoy facilitating student discussions and expect to learn as much as they teach.

Will additional materials be shipped to us?
No. Everything will be provided electronically. We will mention publications that are not available electronically. Because we don't know what your library currently contains, we will recommend other readings and publications, but won't provide them with your course fee. (This also keeps the cost down for you.) However, all of the books we mention will be available through our on-line store. As course participants you will receive a 15% discount on anything you order through the duration of the course. (Foreign students will need to plan approximately 20% of their order for overseas shipping costs.)

I was very surprised to find that in addition to the $425.00 course fee there is also a shipping fee of 43.95. Can you tell me more about what is being shipped at this price?
The shipping fee is NOT part of the course fees. Our computer adds it on automatically for our catalog sales, but can be instructed not to do so. Here is how to eliminate it from your receipt: Click the Add to Cart button at www.museumclasses.org. Select 'Does Not Require Shipping' so shipping does NOT get charged. Under payment type select Visa, Mastercard or Purchase order if you are sending payment by check via mail. In the Ordering Instructions state if you are sending in a check. Click checkout and fill in the rest of the information. Click submit this order. You will receive a receipt via email.

Even if you submit an order with the shipping, we will not charge it to your credit card. The computer does not run your order through automatically. We do that with a separate machine in the office, so glitches like that are caught before they are charged to your card.

What equipment do I need?
A computer with Internet connection is necessary. You may wish to print off the documents provided during the course, making a fast printer useful. A digital camera and scanner may be helpful - but those can be borrowed and are only needed occasionally.

Will the course be offered again in the future?
We plan to offer all courses again. We will keep informed, if you sign up at www.museumclasses.org. This lets us know that you are interested in our course offerings.