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Student Guide
Contents
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What You Need to Use OWL 2
First-time Login and Registration
OWL Left Menu Guide
5
Answer Formatting in OWL
6
OWL Information Menu Bar 7
Revised June 2007
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What You Need to Use OWL
1.
An OWL Access Code. There are three ways to obtain an access code. It
can be packaged with textbook or sold separately in your bookstore as a
card like this one:
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Or you can purchase a code from http://owl.cengage.com. Under the
heading Buy an Access Code Online, click Buy to go to the Cengage
Learning eCommerce site.
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2.
An internet connection and browser. The browser version and some plug-ins
depend on the content of the OWL course. Introductory assignments will
specify browser requirements and provide tests to see if your browser is
configured correctly for use with OWL.
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First-time Login and Registration
1. Go to http://owl.cengage.com.
2. Click your textbook category in the red Login or Register Here box.
(For example, choose General if your textbook is a General Chemistry
text.)
3. Click the textbook you are using.
4. If at any time during the registration process you make the wrong
selection, click Start Over at the top of the page.
5. Click the Institution (college or university) that you attend. If your
institution is not listed, contact your instructor.
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6. Click the red arrow in the Student Registration column next to the
department in which your course is being taught. If your department is
not listed, contact your instructor.
7. Find the course, section, instructor, location and time that match the
class that you are in, and then click the red arrow in the Section #
column. If your course and section are not listed, contact your
instructor.
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8. Follow instructions to complete the Self-Registration Form. Before
pressing Continue, confirm the information that you have supplied.
Note that the name and student number you have given is what your
instructor will use to identify you and your OWL grades. You will not be
able to change your name later. If you need to make a change, click
Cancel. If no changes are needed, click Continue.
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9. A message will display if there are any problems with information you
submitted in the Self-Registration Form. Make the needed changes
and resubmit the form.
10. OWL Access Codes are good for either 6 or 12 months, depending on
the course with which they are being used. After reading the licensing
agreement, click I Agree.
11. The Successful Registration page will be displayed. (Your
registration information will also be emailed to you.)
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12. Click on the link provided to log into OWL as a student, which will take
you back to the main OWL page.
After you have logged in for the first time:
1. Go to http://owl.cengage.com.
2. Click your textbook category in the red Login or Register Here box. (For
example, choose General if your textbook is a General Chemistry text).
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3. Click the textbook you are using.
4. Click the Institution (college or university) that you attend. If your
institution is not listed, contact your instructor.
5. Click the red arrow in the User Login Page column next to the
department in which your course is being taught. Bookmark this page in
your browser as your login page for future visits.
6. Enter the Login and Password you selected during the registration
process.
7. Click Log In.
Quick Tip: Next time you log into OWL, follow steps 1–4, and then click the red
arrow in the User Login column next to the department in which your course is
being taught. Check that the textbook and your school are correctly listed and
then bookmark the OWL User Login page for easy access next time you log in.
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If you forget your login or password, you can have it sent to you by clicking Email
My Login/Password on the login page that you bookmarked. For other login
issues, use Login Help for Students on the left navigation menu on the login
page.
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For a full list of Frequently Asked Questions and Cengage Learning Technical
Support contact information, please visit http://owl.cengage.com/.
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OWL Left Menu Guide
After you have logged into OWL, becoming familiar with the left menu bar will
help you to navigate through the system. Here is a brief explanation of the menu
options available in most OWL screens.
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Answer Formatting in OWL
As with most computer-based homework systems, when you answer questions in
OWL your responses must be formatted in order to be graded correctly. For
some answers, it is necessary to enter superscripts and subscripts in your
answer. This is most frequently encountered with chemical formulas,
mathematical equations, and units of measurement.
Be sure to run through the Intro to OWL assignments to learn the basics of
answer formatting and setting up your browser correctly. The basics of answer
formatting are reviewed here.
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Basic Directions for Using the Chemical Formula Input Tool (Button
during method)
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You can use the Chemical Formula Input Tool to help format your answers correctly
with subscripts and superscripts.*
Preview area
Click on the
button to subscript text and the
button to
superscript text.
1. For example, to write the chemical formula for water,
type a capitol “H” in the input box.
Input box
Format buttons
2.
3.
. This will set the text format to be subscripted.
Press
Type “2”
again to set the text format back to normal
Click on
font.
5. Type a capitol “O.”
Check the Preview Area to see the results of your entry.
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*If you are familiar with previous versions of OWL, answers will still be accepted if typed
using underscores (shift minus) for subscripts and carats (shift 6) for superscripts
instead of the tool.
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OWL Information Menu Bar
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If you need a refresher on writing Chemical Formulas or Scientific Notation in
OWL, information is always available by clicking the appropriate link on the
Information Menu Bar at top of each question, as shown below. Useful tables and
a periodic table are also available.
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