This paper describes a methodology for approaching the problem of migrating a course from the classroom to the World Wide Web. It proposes that there are four main learning modes in the classroom--traditional oral and visual (passive) presentation, student involvement in demonstration of the theory, student led practical exercises, and reference to written source notes or supplementary reference material--and that each of these can be successfully moved to a Web-based course. By way of illustration, this paper describes the "MPI On-Line" Web-based distance learning course developed at EPCC (Edinburgh Parallel Computing Centre, at the University of Edinburgh, Scotland). Students were provided with four different modes of access to the material in the MPI On-line course to correspond to each of the four identified learning modes: a multimedia slide show with animated slides and a spoken sound track; interactive demonstrations provided by browser applets to clarify the material presented in the slide show; student led exercises support by the EPIC (EPCC Interactive Courseware) environment; and supporting notes and reference material hyperlinked in to the rest of the material. When MPI On-line was run as a supported course for the first time in September 1997 it proved very successful and a great deal of positive feedback was received. (AEF)