A solid conceptual and practical knowledge of Windows 2000 or XP and preferably some experience with Windows 98 or ME; Internet access, e-mail, the Microsoft Internet Explorer or Mozilla Firefox Web browser, and the Adobe Flash and PDF plug-ins (two free and simple downloads you obtain at http://www.adobe.com/downloads by clicking Get Adobe Flash Player and Get Adobe Reader).
It's also recommended that you have a PC that you can take apart and put back together again. This can be anything from an ancient Intel 286 to a newer 486 or beyond. Because of the dangers of electro-static discharge (to the machine, not the student), we do not require you to tear apart your own primary computer. This is, however, a class that trains you to be a hardware technician - having a machine to play with greatly helps your learning.