We recommend (for PC's) at least a Pentium based PC with 64 MB of RAM. For Macintosh computers, again we recommend at least 32 MB of memory.

Older, slower computers will work as long as they have at least 16 megabytes of memory, but your software and web pages may load very slowly.

You also need a modern serial chip in your computer. This chip, which is what your modem connects to in your computer, has to be fast enough to keep up with your modem. All new PC's are fine, but PC's older than 2-3 years may require an upgrade to a 16550 serial chip - ask your computer supplier about this if you are not sure. Macintosh systems are all fine in this regard, as their serial chips are excellent (in all models).

Your modem should be as fast as possible. The fastest modems we support are 56Kbps modems, but if you have a 28.8K or a 14.4K modem, these will also work fine. However, if things don't work right, try reducing the speed of the connection between your computer and your modem to see if that makes any difference.

Finally, for Macintosh users, the Apple virtual memory facilities slow the computer down so much that it can often not keep up with the information coming in from the Internet, and as a result, web pages will possibly load very slowly or not at all. You need to put more physical memory in, and turn off virtual memory, for best results.