Abstract: Th+e present invention generally provides a course support system that among other things includes a course support server for providing to users an on-line course book. The course book content is provided in electronic reader files that allow the course book pages to be displayed to users substantially as they appear in a corresponding printed version of the course book. In addition, however, the on-line course book can have (1) links that allow a user to conveniently retrieve additional materials related to a currently displayed page, (2) a homework tool that presents the user with a writeable workspace for receiving the user's responses to homework exercises in the course book and automatically sending the completed homework to an instructor user without the student user otherwise having access to the instructor user, and (3) testing tools for presenting a student user with both practice and real tests that can be automatically scored and archived.