HELP Topics for Students

ACE Organic Background: What It Is and What It Does

ACE Organic Overview

What ACE Organic Allows Students to Do

Components of ACE Organic

How to Use ACE Organic

How to Register, Login, and Access your Account

How to Work an Assignment

How to Answer a Question

How to View your Grades

How to Use MarvinSketch

Introduction to MarvinSketch

Working through ACE Organic's MarvinSketch Tutorial

Some Hidden MarvinSketch Operations

Questions, Answers, Feedback and Grading

Format of Questions and Answers

Information Captured on Student Responses

How Student Responses are Judged

Equipment & Software Needed to Run ACE Organic

Technical Requirements for Using ACE Organic

Detailed Setup Instructions for Various Browsers

Additional Help

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) about ACE Organic

Troubleshooting in ACE Organic

Key Contacts

ACE Organic Overview

ACE Organic is an exciting tool for students of introductory organic chemistry to learn, and to test their knowledge, and for their instructors to facilitate learning and monitor students' progress.

What ACE Organic Allows You, the Student, to Do

• Work assignments of organic chemistry questions interactively
• Answer questions by building chemical structures with a graphical structure-drawing interface
• Get immediate feedback on your answers, including suggestions for how to correct and complete them
• Revise your solution a fixed number of times (or an unlimited number at the instructor's option) until you get it right.
• Discuss questions with your solutions with your instructor remotely, while the instructor views what you have submitted.
• Self-assess your mastery of the material throughout the course, not just at exam time.
• Review your grades on all the assignments in a course.

Components of ACE Organic

You will be dealing with two primary components of ACE Organic. The first is the student interface, which includes all the screens you use to view your courses, assignments, and grades, as well as the screens through which you initiate working an assignment. The second is MarvinSketch (Java applet licensed from ChemAxon, Ltd.), which is used to draw chemical structures.

How to Register, Login, and Access Your Account

To register with ACE Organic:

• Go to the ACE Organic Login page (http://prenhall.com/aceorganic) and press Register.
• Read the License Agreement and Privacy Policy and click I Accept. The Access Information page will appear.
• Click No under 'Do you have a Pearson Education account?'
• Enter a login name in the Create a Login Name text field.
  • It is recommended that you use your email address as your login name. The name you choose must be at least 4 characters long, and not already in use by another user.
• Enter a password in the Create a Password text field, and again in the Re-type your Password field.
  • Your password must be at least 8 characters long, with at least one letter and one number.
• Use the Access Code text fields to enter the access code provided to you when you purchased ACE Organic.
• Click Next. The Course ID screen will appear.
• In the Course ID field, enter the course ID provided by your instructor.
• Click Next. The Account Information page will appear.
• Enter the required personal information in the text fields.
• Choose your institution from the pop-up menu. (If your institution does not appear, contact your instructor, and postpone your registration until later.)
• Click Next. The Confirmation & Summary page will appear.
• Click the Log In Now button to be taken back to ACE. You may now log in using your username and password.

After you log in, the My Courses page will appear. From here, you can view your list of courses, access Help, and logout.

• To enroll in a course:
  • Click the icon next to Enroll.
  • In the window that pops up, enter the course ID number provided by your instructor in the text field, and click the Enroll button.
  • You may be asked to enter your student ID number or code. If so, enter it in the text field and click Continue.
• Click the appropriate Course Name link to see the Course Info page that displays your course information, assignments, and grades.
• The links at the top of the My Courses page, Course Info page, and many other pages may be clicked at any time.
  • My Courses returns you to the list of courses in which you are enrolled.
  • Help opens the user manual (in a new window).
  • Logout logs you out of ACE Organic.

How to Work an Assignment

• Login to ACE Organic. You will be brought to the My Courses page. (If you forget your user ID or password, use the Forgot Password page. If that does not work for you please contact Product Support.)
• If you haven't entered your course yet, click the appropriate Course Name link to go to the Course Info page. (Or, take the Tutorials course to learn how to use the application. See Working through ACE Organic's MarvinSketch tutorial for more information.)
• Press Assignments. The Assignments page will open.
• Click on the link for the appropriate assignment. If the assignment is past due, you will be able to work it anyway, but your work may not be recorded in the gradebook.

The Question List page will appear.

The assignment name, the maximum number of times you are allowed to try each question, and your instructor's remarks (if any) are given at the top left of the page. In the upper right are:

• The Printable List button, which generates a printer-friendly list of all the questions in the assignment.
• The Assignments List button, which returns you to the Assignments page.

The assignment questions occupy the remainder of the page. A symbol (or the lack of one) next to each question's number shows its status:

• Correctly answered questions have a green checkmark.
• Questions that have been attempted but not answered correctly have a red "X" next to the question.
• If no symbol appears, the question has not yet been attempted.
• The assignment questions occupy the remainder of the page. A symbol (or the lack of one) next to each question's number shows its status:

How to Answer a Question

Choose a question to answer.

• If you have not yet answered the question correctly, and either the assignment is not yet due, or your instructor has decided not to enforce the due date, the Solve button will be available. Click Solve to work the question and have your work recorded in the gradebook.
• Otherwise, click View to view your last response, or click Practice to try the question anew. In either case, your work will not be recorded in the gradebook.
• The Question Answering page will appear.

Read the question on the left, and draw your answer in the MarvinSketch or LewisSketch window on the right.

• MarvinSketch may take some time to load when it is called for the first time in a session. Please be patient.
• If you are asked to accept a certificate from ChemAxon or for MarvinSketch, press Always.
• Your instructor may set a limit to the number of times you are allowed to submit an answer for each question, so think carefully before you submit an answer.
• If there is a molecule on the left, you can copy it, paste it into the window on the right, and modify it so you don't have to redraw most of it.
  • Click on the structure on the left to generate a new MarvinView window.
  • Right-click or CONTROL-click or OPTION-click on the structure to generate a pop-up menu.
  • Choose Edit > Copy.
  • Close the MarvinView window.
  • Press Paste in the MarvinSketch window on the right.
  • If there is an image on the left (such as a spectrum), click on it to see an expanded view.
• For a larger workspace:
  • Open the View drop-down list.
  • Choose Sketcher Window. The MarvinSketch window will relocate to a pop-up window, which you can drag and resize as you wish.
  • When you are finished, close the Sketcher Window. All your work will be transferred to the regular MarvinSketch window.

Press Submit Answer and wait for the response.

• If your answer is correct, you may move to the next question by pressing the forward (>) arrow on the lower left portion of the screen.
• If the answer is incorrect or only partially correct, you may try another answer.
• If you find that you cannot arrive at the correct answer on your own even after multiple tries, or if the feedback is confusing you more than it is helping, it may be time to seek help from your instructor.

In either case, you may:

• move to the previous or next question by pressing the forward (>) or back (<) arrows on the lower left of the screen or
• press Question List to return to the Question List page.

You can return to an unanswered question later.

When you are finished, press any of the buttons or tabs at the top of the page to move to another ACE Organic screen, or Logout.

ACE Organic will remember how many times you have tried each question and your last response to each question, so when you restart ACE Organic later, you will begin where you left off.

How to View your Grades:

• Login to ACE Organic. You will be brought to the My Courses page.
• Click the appropriate Course Name link. You will be brought to the Course Info page.

• Press Grades on the upper right to view the grades overview page.

• Click on the name of any assignment to see how you have done on each question in that assignment on the Grade Book page.

Introduction to MarvinSketch

MarvinSketch is a commercial Java applet for drawing organic chemical structures. It has an interface similar to ChemDraw, ISIS/Draw, etc. It is licensed from ChemAxon, Ltd. Most ACE questions require you to use MarvinSketch to draw your response.

We strongly suggest that you take the tutorial on how to use MarvinSketch.

Working through ACE Organic's MarvinSketch tutorial

• From the My Courses page, choose Tutorials and then click on the Assignments tab. The Assignments page will open.
• Click on the link to the MarvinSketch Tutorial assignment.
  • The Question List page will appear.

• Click Solve below the first question.

• Read the instructions on the left, and draw the correct structure in the MarvinSketch window on the right.
  • NOTE: MarvinSketch may take some time to load when it is called for the first time in a session. Please be patient.
  • If you are asked to accept a certificate from ChemAxon or for MarvinSketch, press Always.
• Press Submit Answer and wait for the response.
  • If your answer is correct, press the forward (>) arrow on the bottom left of the screen, to the right of the Assignment List button, to proceed to the next question. You may return to a previous question by pressing the back (<) arrow.
  • If the answer is incorrect, try again.
• When you are finished, press any of the buttons or tabs at the top of the page to move to another ACE Organic screen, or Logout.

Some Hidden MarvinSketch Operations

MarvinSketch has some features that are not obvious at first sight, and some of these features are deployed differently in different browsers. Above is an image of the MarvinSketch toolbar for your reference.

To draw double and triple bonds

To select individual atoms or groups

To copy and paste in MarvinSketch

To delete a structure or atom

To indicate tetrahedral stereochemistry

To indicate double-bond stereochemistry

To draw an element for which there is no button

To draw groups such as Ph or COOMe

To increase or decrease the charge on an atom

To indicate a radical

To indicate a specific isotope

To view all H atoms

To acquire the source code of a molecule drawn in MarvinSketch

To draw double and triple bonds

• Type the number "2" (for a double bond) or "3" (for a triple bond).
• If the bond hasn't already been drawn:
  • Draw the bond. If it has already been drawn as another kind of bond, click on it to convert it.
  • Type 1 to return to the single-bond tool.
• If the bond is already drawn:
  • Click on the bond button (, to the left of More) or any atom button, and:
• Click once on a single bond to convert it to a double bond.
• Click once on a double bond to convert it to a triple bond.
• Click twice or double-click on a single bond to convert it to a triple bond.
• Click once on a triple bond to convert it to a single bond.
• To draw a multiple bond to a heteroatom:
  • Click on the heteroatom's button, or type the element's symbol.
  • Click and hold on an existing atom, then drag to add the heteroatom.
  • Click on the new single bond to change it to a multiple bond.

To select individual atoms or groups

• Click the Select button on the MarvinSketch toolbar.
• Click and drag to draw a box around the atom(s) you want to select. You can select an entire molecule, or just sections of it. Selected items appear green.
  • To select an entire molecule, double-click on it. To select a second molecule, shift-double-click.

• To move the selection:
  • Move the mouse over the selection until a blue square appears.
  • Click, hold, and drag to move the selection.
• To rotate the selection:
  • Move the mouse over the selection until a blue, jagged, star-like shape appears.
  • Click, hold, and drag to rotate the selection.

To copy and paste in MarvinSketch

• Click Select, then make a selection.
• Click the Copy button on the toolbar, to copy the selection.
  • The Copy button changes to a Paste button.
  • The selection is unselected. The Paste button is available only when nothing is selected.
• Click the Paste button on the toolbar.
• If the canvas is empty, the structure will appear on the canvas. Otherwise, click on the canvas in order to paste the selection.

To delete a structure or atom

• If the Erase button is not visible, click on the stage to deselect any selection.
• Click the Erase button in the toolbar.
• To delete a single atom, click on the atom.
• To delete a group of atoms, draw a box around the atoms. You can use this feature to remove part of a molecule.

To indicate tetrahedral stereochemistry

The stereochemistry at a tetrahedral C atom is indicated by drawing one of the C–X bonds as a bold wedge, a hashed wedge, or a wavy line.

• Click and hold on the bond button () to bring up a menu.

• Choose Single Up (for a bold wedge), Single Down (for a hashed wedge), or Single Up or Down (for a wavy bond).
• If the bond hasn't already been drawn:
  • Draw the bond as you would a regular bond. If it has already been drawn as another kind of bond, click on it to convert it.
  • Click on a wedged bond to reverse its direction.
• If the bond has already been drawn:
  • Right-click (Internet Explorer) or CONTROL-click (Safari) on the bond in question.
  • Choose More > Single Up (for a bold wedge), Single Down (for a hashed wedge), or Single Up or Down (for a wavy bond).

To return to the regular single-bond tool, just type 1.

NOTE: When you draw a Single Up bond, the wide end of the bond should be pointing to the group that is closer to you, and when you draw a Single Down bond, the wide end of the bond should be pointing to the group that is further away from you. If your bond is pointing in the wrong direction, clicking on it again with the Single Up or Single Down bond tool will invert it.

To indicate double-bond stereochemistry

To indicate a specific double-bond stereochemistry, just draw the substituents with the appropriate E or Z geometry. Do not use hashed or bold wedges or wavy bonds to indicate double bond stereochemistry. If you do, you will confuse the application.

To indicate a mixture of cis and trans isomers:

• Click and hold on the bond button (, to the left of More) to bring up a menu.
• Choose Single Up or Down (the wavy bond) and draw the bond from one of the double-bonded carbon atoms to a group attached to it.

If the bond hasn't already been drawn:

• Draw the bond as you would a regular bond.

If the bond has already been drawn as another kind of bond, follow one of the following paths:

• Path one:
  • Click-hold on the bond button in the MarvinSketch menu.
  • From the dropdown, choose Single Up or Down.
  • Click on the bond.
• Path two:
  • Right-click (Internet Explorer) or CONTROL-click (Safari) on the bond in question.
  • Choose Bond Types > Single Up or Down.
• The bond will change to a wavy bond.

To draw an element for which there is no button

• Type the element's symbol. You may need to click Select first. Do not move the cursor while you are typing.
• Add the atom to your drawing as you would add any atom. If the cursor is over an atom while you are typing, the atom will automatically change to the atom that you typed.

or:

• Press More.
• Press the appropriate element's button.
• Close the periodic table window.
• Add the atom to your drawing as you would add any atom.

To draw groups such as Ph or COOMe

MarvinSketch understands hundreds of abbreviations for common organic groups such as Ph, CO₂Me, SNa, TBSO, etc.

• Using your keyboard, enter the abbreviation for the group you want to enter. (Don't worry about subscripting.)
• With each character you type, a list of known abbreviations that match what you type appears in the upper left of the drawing window.
  • If your abbreviation is understood by MarvinSketch, when you have finished typing, the abbreviation will appear at the cursor. You must type the entire abbreviation even if only one abbreviation is listed in the upper left before you have finished typing.
  • If the abbreviation that you type does not appear in the upper left, it is not understood by MarvinSketch, and you must draw out the group.
• Add the group to your drawing as you would add any atom.

or:

• Open the Insert drop-down at the top of the MarvinSketch window.
• Select Group from the drop-down list.
• Select the letter(s) that corresponds to the first letter of the group you wish to add.
• Select the next letter(s) until you have the group that you wish to add.
• When you have chosen a group, click on the stage to add the group to your drawing.

The shortcut group's name may change depending on whether the bond to which it is attached is directed to the left or right. So CO₂Me may appear as MeO₂C, and CN may appear as NC.

To see an expanded version of any shortcut group:

• Add the group to your structure.
• From the MarvinSketch Edit menu, choose Groups > Expand or Groups > Ungroup. Expand is reversible by Groups > Contract; Ungroup is irreversible.

To increase or decrease the charge on an atom

Perform one of the following actions:

• Click + or - in the MarvinSketch toolbar, then click on the atom.
• Press + or - on your keyboard, then click on the atom.
• Hover over the atom, then press + or -.

To indicate a radical

• Right-click (Internet Explorer) or CONTROL-click (Safari) on the atom to bring up a menu.
• Choose Radical > Monovalent.

To indicate a specific isotope

To indicate the hydrogen isotopes deuterium (²H) or tritium (³H):

• Simply type D or T, and then use the cursor to add this isotope to your structure as you would any other atom. The isotope will appear in the structure as ²H or ³H.

To indicate other isotopes:

• Right-click (Internet Explorer) or CONTROL-click (Safari) on the atom to bring up a menu.
• Choose Isotope > the appropriate isotope.

To view all H atoms

To view all H atoms without showing the X—H bonds:

• From the MarvinSketch View menu, choose Hydrogens > All.

To draw out all the X—H bonds:

• From the MarvinSketch Edit menu, choose Add > Explicit H atoms.

If you do not see the MarvinSketch menus, press the up-arrow in the upper right of the MarvinSketch menu bar. Press the up-arrow in the upper right of the new MarvinSketch window's menu bar when you no longer need the MarvinSketch menus.

To acquire the source code of a molecule drawn in MarvinSketch

If a response elicits an unexpected reaction from ACE Organic, it would be very helpful to ACE Organic's Technical Support if you would include the source code of the response.

• From the MarvinSketch Edit menu, choose Edit > Source.
• Highlight the text in the new window that appears.
• Choose Edit > Copy from the menu of the new window.
• Close the new window.
• Go to http://247pearsoned.custhelp.com and click the Ask a Question button.
• Enter the required information, and paste the source code into the "Details:" text field.

Format of Questions and Answers

An ACE Organic question has a response whose format is a single chemical structure or a small group of structures. Questions may also cover nomenclature, resonance structures, isomers, reactions, spectroscopy, mechanisms, multistep synthesis, and conformations.

Information Captured on Student Responses

ACE Organic records how many times a student has responded to a question, the student's last response to that question, and whether the response was correct, partly correct, or incorrect (as determined by the question's author). Both student and instructor can see this information.

Attempt-Dependent Grading

ACE Organic allows instructors to set attempt-dependent grading parameters. This means that when answering a question you may lose points for each incorrect attempt, reducing your possible score for that question. The assignments page has links that allow you to see any attempt-dependent grading parameters that your instructor has chosen to apply to the assignment. Note: ACE applies the attempt-dependent grading parameters only when it generates the gradebook. When you work a question, ACE does not reduce the grade that it shows you according to your number of attempts.

How Student Responses Are Judged

Each question is associated with a list of evaluators which are met by correct, partly correct (the question author assigns a number between 0 and 1), and anticipated incorrect answers. Your response is tested against each evaluator in turn. If the response satisfies an evaluator, you will receive feedback to that effect. If your response satisfies no evaluators, you are simply told that the response is incorrect.

Technical Requirements for Using ACE Organic

On PCs: Internet Explorer or Firefox. On Macs: Safari.

Whatever browser you use, ACE requires you to enable Java and JavaScript and to turn off pop-up blockers.

Leaving the application unattended for an extended period of time may result in a session error. To resolve this, QUIT your browser, restart, EMPTY YOUR CACHE (in Explorer, Tools > Internet options > Delete temporary files), and then log in again.

ACE Organic may or may not work on other operating system/ browser combinations; those listed above are the ones for which it was designed, and on which it has been tested. It is strongly recommended that you use one of these platform/ browser combinations.

You also need:

• Cable or DSL Internet connection
• PC (minimum: Pentium with 800 GHz, 128 RAM) or Mac (G4 or higher)

Detailed Setup Instructions for Various Browsers

For All Browsers: Java, JavaScript, and cookies must be enabled in your browser, and pop-up window blockers must be disabled.

Here are setup instructions for specific browsers:

A. If you are using Windows, use Internet Explorer or Mozilla Firefox.

ACE Organic works on Internet Explorer with default settings. However, if the MarvinSketch applet in your assignments doesn't load, try the following:

• Install the latest Sun Java plugin.
• After installation, select Internet options from the Tools menu.
• Go to the Advanced pane.
• Scroll down to Java (Sun).
• Check Use Java 6.
• Restart the browser.

Important note: If you are using Norton Internet Firewall, disable it before using ACE Organic.

B. If you are using a MacOS platform, use Safari with the following settings:

From the Safari menu, select Preferences.

• Click Security.
• Check Enable plug-ins, Enable Java, and Enable JavaScript.
• Uncheck Block all pop-up windows.
• Check Accept cookies only from sites you navigate to.
• Close the window.
• Restart the browser.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) about ACE Organic

Q: ACE Organic doesn't seem to work. When I press a button, nothing happens.

A: Your system may not meet the minimum performance requirements. Read the Technical Requirements under Equipment & Software Needed to Run ACE Organic.

Q: How many times can I try to answer a question?

A: The number is set by your instructor when the assignment is constructed. It is visible at the upper right of the question-answering window.

Q: I never get any feedback for my wrong answers.

A: Feedback is generated when you submit a wrong answer that the author of the question anticipated. If you are generating many unanticipated answers, a review of the material might help. Also be sure that you aren't drawing structures with atoms underlined in red. The red underline indicates an atom that has an incorrect valence.

Q: Are there more questions I can try?

A: Your instructor can write more questions and construct more assignments from existing questions.

Troubleshooting in ACE Organic

Problem: I registered in ACE Organic, but it says I'm not enrolled in any courses.

Solution: You need to enroll yourself in a course. Click the icon next to Enroll, then enter the course ID (provided by your instructor) and click the Enroll button. If prompted, enter your student ID and click Continue.

• For fuller enrollment instructions, see How to Register, Login, and Access Your Account.

Problem: I'm using Internet Explorer on a PC. I log into ACE Organic, and when I click on an assignment, an error message says:

"Your session was idle for too long. Please log out and log back in again. If you continue to receive this message, see these troubleshooting tips."

Solution: This error arises when you remain logged in to ACE Organic for a long time without activity. Try the following:

• Quit your browser, restart it, and log back into ACE Organic.
• Change your browser settings to allow all cookies.
• Empty the cache and all cookies.
• If the error appears again, right-click [Control-click in Safari on a Mac] on the error page and choose refresh/reload frame.
  
  

You can avoid the problem completely by logging out of ACE Organic if you are not going to use it for more than 15 minutes or so.

Problem: I'm using a PC in my library at my university, and when I click on Solve to do an ACE Organic question, all I get is an empty box, with no way of drawing structures and molecules. Do I simply need to try another computer or is there a problem with the campus computers?

Solution: Students are not able to use ACE Organic with the PCs at some campus libraries. Security settings block the code that checks for the correct Java environment to run, so a user will see a broken link where the MarvinSketch applet would appear. Check with your local IT resources for a resolution.

Additional issues (with workarounds):

• When drawing a mechanism response, draw all resonance arrows in the natural direction of the mechanism (not forward to back).
  
  
• When drawing a mechanism response, you may draw a pixel-size box inadvertently. If you do, ACE will tell you that every box should contain molecules or that every box should be connected to another. If you cannot see an empty or unconnected box, it is best to copy all the molecules in your response, delete the entire drawing, paste the molecules back, and redraw the boxes and reaction arrows.
  
  
• It is best to draw only the anionic parts of salts in mechanism responses. For example, use EtO(-) instead of EtO-Na, or at least omit Na(+) if it is one of the coproducts of a reaction with an electrophile. Otherwise, under rare circumstances, ACE may appear to hang when a response is submitted.
  
  

Key Contacts: