Click on the ALWD or the Bluebook tab above to see the list of exercises. Choose an exercise. Enter your LexisNexis ID. Confirm or update the requested information. [The first time that you use the Workstation, you are required to complete the Online Intro Quiz.] Select a problem from the left navigation menu.
Exercise Problem Page Format
A typical ICW problem page contains the following elements:
General instructions: The general instructions for the entire exercise.
Problem text: The information you will use in drafting a citation.
Solution textbox: The area where you type your citation solution.
Symbols: The individual symbols you may use for your citation solution. Click on a symbol to insert it in the Solution textbox.
Italic button: Use this button to italicize highlighted text in the Solution textbox.
Preview button: Use this button to preview your solution, particularly if your citation contains italics or if the complete solution cannot be seen in the Solution textbox.
Clear button: Use this button to "start over" rather than edit your solution.
Submit button: Use this button to submit your solution and receive feedback.
Back Button: You cannot click the 'Back' button on your browser after you submit a problem.
Drafting a Citation Solution
Read the general instructions.
Read the problem text.
Click to insert your cursor in the Solution textbox. Type your citation solution, using italics and inserting symbols as appropriate.
Click the Preview button [optional].
Click the Submit button.
Italicizing Text
Highlight the text in the Solution textbox you wish to italicize. Click the Italic button to italicize the highlighted material.
Symbols will appear on either side of the text you highlighted (e.g., <I>Smith v. Jones</I>). These HTML "tags" indicate that the text between them will appear italicized. To see how the text would actually look, click the Preview button.
To remove italics, highlight each HTML "tag" and hit the "delete" key. Both tags must be deleted.
Inserting Symbols
Click on the symbol you wish to insert into your answer. The symbol appears in the Solution textbox. Position your cursor in the Solution textbox and click to continue typing your solution.
Feedback and Correction
If your solution is correct, congratulations. Select another problem from the left navigation menu.
If your solution is incorrect, you will be shown your solution and given hints to correct it.
The portion of your citation that is correct will appear in blue. The portion that is incorrect will appear in red. The Hints that display are those needed to correctly draft the portion of the citation that appears in red. Each Hint will refer you to a specific rule or appendix or will alert you to a general problem such as adjacent spaces were noted in the answer.
After receiving feedback, you may change the citation solution that appears in the Solution textbox or click the Clear button to start over and draft a new citation solution. Click the Preview button if desired. When you are finished changing or redrafting your citation solution, click the Submit button.
If your solution is correct, congratulations. Select another problem from the left navigation menu. If still incorrect, you will receive feedback on the revised solution.
You may attempt each citation up to three times. If you have not submitted the correct solution at that point, the ICW will display the correct solution along with all rules used to draft the entire corrected citation.
The left navigation menu also displays the status of your progress on the exercise. Next to each problem number the numeral "1" will appear after you've submitted your first incorrect attempt and the numeral "2" will appear after you've submitted your second incorrect attempt. For each completed problem, an icon will appear indicating that you have correctly completed or incorrectly completed it. Once an icon appears beside a problem, you can no longer access that problem.
Skipping Problems Within an Exercise
If your professor does not assign all the problems in an exercise, select only the assigned problem numbers from the left navigation menu. When the assigned problems have been completed, click the button. Your Completion Certificate will show only the results of the problems selected.
Partially Completing an Exercise
You may leave ICW by closing your browser or clciking the Save & Close Button. Warning: Do not click the DONE button your you will not be able to return to complete thte exercise. . The work that you have done will be saved. You may return at any time to complete the exercise you had started.
Note: If you are using a computer to which others have access (e.g., in a school lab), be sure to close ALL open browser windows to preserve your work and ensure that no one else accesses it.
Finishing the Exercise and Printing Your Results
When you finish the exercise, click the button. You will see a Completion Certificate page, which you may print as confirmation that you completed the exercise.
The results shown on the Completion Certificate page are automatically sent to your email and any professor email addresses that you provided.
After you have clicked the button, you will be able to return to the completed exercise to practice unlimited times. In addition, you may return to a completed exercise to print a Completion Certificate.
Important Notes
Probably, the bulk of the time you spend on the ICW exercises will be in drafting your first attempt at the citation solution. Therefore, if you share a computer with someone or are billed for Internet access based on the amount of time spent online, you may want to draft your initial solution in your ALWD Workbook or Bluebook Workbook so you can minimize your time online.
Another reason to draft your initial solution in your ALWD Workbook or Bluebook Workbook is that you cannot access a problem after 3 tries and you can complete each exercise only once.
Upon the 3 try, the correct answer will be shown on the screen. You may wish to make a note of this.
If you complete an exercise as an assignment, follow your professor's instructions regarding which problems to do and how to submit your results.
An exercise is "completed" when you click the "Done" button. Your instructor cannot view your results until you have clicked the Done button (be sure you do not click before you have finished all the problems assigned in the exercise. Expecially if you have Saved & Closed and returned to complete. Be sure you don't forget to click the Done button at that time.
For emailing the results, be sure to enter carefully the email address your professor provides.
Your professor may instruct you to print the results and turn them in. If the professor does not wish to receive the email results, type your email address or an alternate personal email address in the "primary professor" field. Even if you email your results, you should print and save a hard copy of the Completion Certificate as verification that you completed the exercise.
LexisNexis and The Knowledge Burst logo are trademarks of Reed Elsevier Properties Inc., used under license. 2001-2009 LexisNexis, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All Rights Reserved.