Using Adobe Connect

This section covers how to use the pods and options within an Adobe Connect meeting room. The information here assumes that you have read Getting Started under the top menu.

Pods and Layouts
In Adobe Connect, a meeting room consists of a number of display panels, called pods. There are nine types of pods, each with its own function. Meeting Hosts can add, delete, move, and resize pods and create predefined pod layouts.

Forums
Be sure to see the Forums for further discussion about using Adobe Connect.

Roles and Permissions

( View the tutorial .)
Every Attendee is assigned a role in an Adobe Connect meeting room. There are three different roles an Attendee can be assigned: Host, Presenter, and Participant. Each role has access to different menus and tools.

Understanding what Attendees are able to do in each of the different roles and assigning appropriate roles to Attendees in order to accomplish your goals is important to the success of your class or meeting. Each role is represented by a different icon in the Attendee List pod.

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Three Roles in a Meeting Room

Hosts, Presenters, and Participants all have access to different options and menus inside a meeting room as well as within the Adobe Connect Central Web Interface.

Note that within a meeting, promotions will last until the attendee quits her browser. This means that even if the Host demotes the attendee, the attendee can leave and re-enter the meeting with the highest permissions she was previously granted until she quits her browser.

Setting Roles through the Adobe Connect Central Web Interface

Only the meeting room creator is able to edit the meeting room settings and Participant List by accessing them directly through the Adobe Connect Central Web interface.

Hosts are only able to access and edit the Participant List and other meeting room settings from within a meeting room by accessing the Web interface through the Manage Meeting Information option in the Meeting menu.

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Manage Meeting Information Option in the Meeting Menu

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Host View of the Connect Central Web Interface Accessed through the Meeting Menu

See Editing Participants under Creating/Editing Meetings for more information about adding Attendees to the Participant List.

Adobe Connect Central Web Interface – Edit Participants Option (Hosts whose roles are assigned through the “Current Participants” List)

Only Attendees whose roles are set to Host through the Connect Central Web interface Participant List are able to access the “Manage Meeting Information” option in the Meeting menu from within a meeting room. Attendees who are promoted to Host using the “Set User Role” button in the Attendee List pod do not have access to the “Manage Meeting Information” option in the Meeting menu.

Adding Invitees to the Participant List in the Connect Central Web Interface without promoting them to Presenter or Host does not provide them with any additional access to menus or tools. An Invitee who is assigned the role of Presenter or Participant in the Participant List cannot modify the Participant List or any other meeting room settings.

To manage meeting participants from the Connect Central Web Interface accessed through the Meeting menu in the meeting room,

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Edit Participants Link in the Host view of the Connect Central Web Interface

NOTE: If you are a meeting Host but don’t have a meeting creator license, DO NOT click the “Home” tab in the upper-most tool bar. Selecting this tab will take you to the Connect Central home screen from which you will NOT have access to the meeting room information.

Options for Setting Roles
There are two places where Attendee roles can be set: within the meeting room, and through the Adobe Connect Central Interface. Attendee roles that are set from within a meeting room are temporary and will be reset to their original level as soon as the Attendees leave the room and close their browsers. Roles that are assigned through the Meeting Manager Interface are permanent and not related to entering and leaving a meeting room.

Camera and Voice Pod: Broadcasting Audio and Video

Hosts and Presenters can broadcast live audio and video to all attendees using the Camera and Voice pod. To broadcast audio, the broadcaster’s computer must have a microphone connected to it. To broadcast video, the broadcaster’s computer must have a video or web camera connected to it.

Each time you enter a meeting room, make sure your headset and camera are properly configured, as outlined in Setting Up Audio and Video under Getting Started.

View Camera and Voice pod tutorial.
View Camera and Voice pod options tutorial.

To Begin Broadcasting Audio and Video
For participants to broadcast audio and video, they must be assigned either a Presenter or Host role. After running the Audio Setup Wizard, start broadcasting your audio and video by clicking the "Start My Camera and Voice" button in the lower left corner of the Camera and Voice pod.

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"Start My Camera and Voice" Button

You may see a window pop up on the screen asking you to allow your video to be broadcast -- click "Allow". This window appears only once during a meeting, no matter how many times you turn your camera or microphone on and off.

Camera and Voice Pod Controls
While broadcasting your audio and video, you have access to a number of controls in the pod:

Broadcasting Video
Having a number of people broadcasting audio and video at the same time can cause the system to run slowly and result in poor quality of both audio and video. To avoid this problem, meeting members should pause their video broadcast when they are not speaking.

Broadcasting Audio
To broadcast your voice, do one of the following:

Share Pod: Sharing Files and Whiteboards

There are two pods in Adobe Connect for sharing files: the File Sharing pod and the Share pod.

The File Sharing pod allows Hosts and Presenters to upload files to a meeting and have attendees download a copy of the file to their computer. All file types can be uploaded to this pod. The actual file is never displayed in the meeting, only a link to download it. The documentation on this page does not cover this pod.

On the other hand, the Share pod will actually display the file that is uploaded, but is limited in the types of files it will accommodate. The documentation on this page is about the Share pod.

Share Pod
As a Host or Presenter, you can use the Share Pod to upload content from your computer to share with others in the meeting room. You must have the Adobe Connect Plug-In installed to gain full access to the Share Pod (see Requirements under Getting Started).

Activities that the Share pod can be used for include:

Content Display: Sharing Files from Your Computer
The Share pod can display the following kinds of media:

Note: The graphic and video files embedded in the PowerPoint files must be one of the file types listed above; otherwise, the files will be not be able to be uploaded to the meeting space.

All other file types must be converted to Flash prior to uploading. The FlashPaper utility will allow you to convert files to Flash (see Requirements under Getting Started).

To load content from your computer into the Share pod:

  1. Click the Documents button in the middle of a blank Share pod.
  2. Click “Select From My Computer” on the drop-down menu. A Browser Content window appears.
  3. Navigate to and select the local file to display.
  4. Click the “Open” button.

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A Blank Share Pod

An alternative way to load content from your computer into the Share pod:

  1. Go to the Pods menu, which is located at the top of the meeting room.
  2. Select Share > Select from My Computer
  3. Note: The same window as described above will open.

The file is uploaded to the server and is converted to an Adobe Connect file (Flash). The added content appears in the Share pod.

To share files already uploaded to a meeting, click the Documents button in the middle of a blank Share pod and select the file from the list.

Using Content Stored in the My Content Folder
Adobe Connect users who have a "Meeting Creator license" are also able to upload content to their Content folder and then move that content into their meeting rooms.

To place content into your Content folder, go to http://breeze.psu.edu and click the Content button in the "Create New:" menu bar.

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The Create Content Button

Give the new content a name and custom URL (if desired) and upload it to your folder.

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Add Content to your My Content Folder

To place content from your content space into a meeting room you have to enter your meeting room, then

  1. select a Share pod and click the "Documents" button in the middle of the pod.
  2. Select "Select from Content Library..." from the bottom of the list. A dialog box will appear with several optional to choose from, including "My Content".
  3. Click the "My Content" button and select the file you want to move to the Share pod.
  4. Click the "Open" button at the bottom of the window.

Another way to do the same thing is from the Pods menu at the top of the meeting room, select Share>Select from Content Library. The same window as described above will open.

Please note that only a few file types are supported. The file should be one of the following formats: *.ppt, *.flv, *.swf, *.jpg, *.mp3, FlashPaper (*.swf), or *.zip (Presenter files only).

Synchronizing Your Presentation
By default, Adobe Connect synchronizes display of PowerPoint presentations (and other "multiframe" documents) so that attendees see the frame that the presenter sees. A Host or Presenter can turn off synchronization so that viewers can move through presentations at their own pace (see below).

With synchronization on, the presenter has control over the presentation. The arrow buttons in the bottom bar of the Share pod allow the presenter to move to the previous or next frame.

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Previous and Next Buttons (Sync On)

Additionally, with synchronization on, the presenter can bring up the presentation sidebar. The sidebar shows the outline and notes of a presentation, as well as providing a search function. To bring up the presentation sidebar, click on the "Show/Hide Sidebar" icon in the bottom bar of the Share pod.

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Show/Hide Presentation Sidebar (Sync On)

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Presentation Sidebar

Turning Off Synchronization
To turn off synchronization, click the Sync button (which is on by default) in the bottom bar of the Share pod. Note that the Sync button appears only when you have multiframe content loaded in the Share pod.

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Sync Button

With synchronization off, controls for presentation playback appear at the right of the Share pod. The presenter and all attendees can use these controls to move through presentations at their own pace.

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Presentation Playback Controls (Sync Off)

Click the Sync button again to turn on synchronization so that attendees see the same frame that the presenter sees.

Whiteboard: Annotating and Drawing
A whiteboard allows you to create text, lines, circles, squares, and other free-hand drawings in real time during a meeting. All Presenters and Hosts can use a created whiteboard, and multiple whiteboards can be used per meeting. Whiteboard content remains between meeting sessions. There are two methods for using a whiteboard:

To create a new stand-alone whiteboard in a blank Share pod:

  1. Click the "Whiteboards" button in the middle of a blank Share pod.
  2. Select "New Whiteboard" in the pop-up menu. A blank whiteboard appears in the pod.
  3. Click the whiteboard tools icon (see image below) to bring up the whiteboard tools.
  4. Select a text or drawing tool
  5. Click in the whiteboard area to start writing or drawing.

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Whiteboard Tools Icon

To add a whiteboard over a shared file in a Share pod:

  1. Click the Whiteboard Overlay button in the bottom bar of the Share Pod (see image below). The whiteboard toolbar appears in the lower-right corner.
  2. Select a text or drawing tool.
  3. Click in the whiteboard area to start writing or drawing.

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Whiteboard Overlay Button in the Share Pod

Whiteboard: Saving and Printing
Whiteboards are just one of the special Share pods available in Adobe Connect. If you are interested in saving whiteboard material for future use, you can simply hide the whiteboard. To display the hidden whiteboard, select it from the list in the “Pods” menu.
To print a whiteboard:

  1. Select the print tool from the bottom of the toolbar.
  2. Note: Sometimes the print function is hidden if the Share Pod is smaller than the expanse of the toolbar. If you increase the size of the Share Pod, you will be able see the printer icon close to the bottom of the toolbar.

  3. Once you select the printer icon, you will see a list of available printers. In addition to printing the whiteboard, options could also include saving the document as an Adobe PDF, Microsoft Office, Document Image Writer, or even as a Macromedia FlashPaper document. The selection of formats will vary depending on which drivers have been installed on your computer.

Share Pod: Sharing Screens and Applications

As a Host or Presenter, you can use the Share Pod to share your screen, and even let other Hosts and Presenters take control of your applications. You must have the Adobe Connect Plug-In installed (see Requirements under Getting Started) to gain full access to the Share Pod.

Activities that the Share Pod can be used for include:

Screen Sharing: Displaying a Desktop, Window, or Application
From a Share pod, Hosts and Presenters can broadcast a desktop, window, or application to all Attendees in a meeting room. For meeting Attendees to see the shared item, it must be in full view on the Host or Presenter's screen. Any changes that the sharing Host or Presenter makes to the application are visible to the Attendees, including related windows such as dialog boxes. Overlapping windows from applications not selected for sharing appear as a blue cross-hatch pattern.

Note that screen sharing requires a very high amount of bandwidth and should be used cautiously. Even users with high-speed, wired internet connects may have trouble viewing a shared screen in real-time.

To start sharing a screen:

  1. Click the “My Computer Screen…” button in the middle of a blank Share pod. The Screen Sharing Window appears.
  2. Select whether you want to share a desktop, window, or application. If your computer system has two monitors, select the display you want to share. (We have found that it works best to share your Main Display and move your Adobe Connect meeting window to your second monitor.)
  3. Select the item(s) you want to share and click the “Share” button.

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Screen Sharing Window

After sharing your screen, the following actions occur:

To stop sharing, click the Stop Sharing button in the bottom bar of the Share Pod.

Bandwidth Considerations
Screen sharing requires a very high amount of bandwidth (requiring a connection speed of at least 350 Kbps) and should be used cautiously. Even users with high-speed, wired internet connections may have trouble viewing a shared screen in real-time. Suggestions for screen sharing include:

Previewing your Shared Screen
When sharing a desktop, window, or application, you can select the Preview option to show the same view that Attendees see in their Share Pod. Click the Preview Icon (a pair of glasses) in the bottom bar of the Share Pod.

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Preview Icon

With the Preview option, you can share an application and preview it at the same time. If you are using a single monitor, you will need to resize your windows so that the shared application and the Preview Pod do not overlap. Otherwise the covered areas of the shared item appear as a blue cross-hatch pattern on the other attendees' screens.

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Blue Hash Marks

Application Sharing: Passing Control to Another Host or Presenter
While screen sharing, you can pass control of the shared desktop, window, or application to another Host or Presenter. The controlling Host or Presenter can now use the shared desktop, window, or application as if it were on their own computer.

To pass control of a shared screen to another Host or Presenter:

  1. Start sharing the desired desktop, window, or application
  2. Wait for the Host or Presenter to request control. When the message box appears, click Accept.

To take control of a shared screen, a Host or Presenter must first request control. To request control, click on the Request Control button at the bottom of the Share Pod.

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Request Control Button

As the sharing Host or Presenter, when someone requests control from you, you will see a message in the lower-right corner of your main screen, asking if you want to decline or accept the request for control. If you grant control to another Host or Presenter, a "Stop Sharing" button appears at the top of the desktop, window, or application. To take back control of your shared screen, click the Stop Sharing button.

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Stop Sharing button in Windows

Alternatively, you can stop sharing by clicking the Adobe Connect task tray icon in Windows and selecting "Stop Sharing."

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Stop Sharing Task Tray Icon in Windows

As the requesting Host or Presenter, if your request is accepted a message informs you that you have been granted control of the screen. In the bottom bar of the Share Pod, the "Request Control" button will then become a "Release Control" button. To release control of the shared screen, click the Release Control button.

Annotating a Screen Capture
While sharing a screen or application on a computer running Windows, a Host or Presenter can take a "snapshot" or screen capture of the shared window. This screenshot is then placed on a whiteboard for annotation (for details on whiteboards, see Share Pod: Sharing Files and Whiteboards under Using Adobe Connect).

To create a screen capture of your shared window, make sure the window you want to capture is visible, then choose one of the following methods:

After a few seconds, a snapshot of the window will appear on the whiteboard, to be annotated as desired.

When finished annotating, click "Resume" in the control strip at the bottom of the Share Pod. Note that the whiteboard will disappear when "Resume" is clicked.

Managing Content in the Share Pod

Although you may think of files that have been uploaded to the Share pod as files, Adobe Connect doesn't. To Adobe Connect, each file that is uploaded is a new Share pod. To manage files that have been uploaded to the Share pod, you will need to have Host permissions and use the "Pods" menu located in the menu bar at the top of the screen.

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Pods Menu

To delete files,

  1. From the "Pods" menu, select "Organize Pods."
  2. Select the pod (file) you want to delete.
  3. Click the "Delete" button at the top of the column to the right of the list of pods.
  4. Click the "Done" button when you have finished deleting pods (files).

To rename files,

  1. From the "Pods" menu, select "Organize Pods."
  2. Select the pod (file) you want to rename.
  3. Click the "Rename" button near the top of the column to the right of the list of pods.
  4. Click the "Done" button when you have finished renaming pods (files).

Creating Breakout Rooms

One of Adobe Connect Pro 7 newest features is the ease in which you can easily create and manage Breakout Rooms. Please refer to page 42-46 of the "Adobe Connect Pro User Guide - Complete Help" at
http://help.adobe.com/en_US/AcrobatConnectPro/7.0/connectpro_7_help.pdf for more information.

Adobe has also posted a video tutorial for breakout rooms at https://admin.adobe.acrobat.com/_a227210/breakoutroomintro/.

Customizing Layouts

( View the tutorial .)
Each of the little windows in an Adobe Connect meeting room is called a pod. The Pods are arranged on the meeting room stage to create a layout. Layouts define which pods are available in a meeting room and how they are oriented. Hosts are able to arrange, re-arrange, and resize pods in a layout to best fit the needs of the meeting.

Adobe Connect provides three default layouts for meeting rooms: Sharing, Discussion, and Collaboration. These three default layouts reflect Adobe’s best guess as to what you will need for your meeting and are created when the room is created. However, rooms are not limited to just these three layouts. Nor are they limited to just this default template. Any number of customized layouts can be added to a single meeting room. And any meeting room can be used as a template to create additional, duplicate rooms.

Switching Between Layouts
Hosts can switch between layouts during the meeting to better facilitate the meeting’s activities. For example, the Sharing layout is designed with the Share pod occupying much of the stage and is intended for displaying content, like PowerPoint presentations. On the other hand, the discussion layout has the Chat pod and the Camera and Voice pod placed more prominently on the stage and is designed to facilitate interactions between participants.

Planning customized layouts around anticipated meeting activities helps the meeting flow and proceed more smoothly.

Only Hosts can design layouts and switch between layouts during a meeting. Presenters and Participants have to work with what the Host has made available.

Switching Between Layouts Options
A Host has two options for switching between layouts:

Moving and Resizing Pods
Within a layout, Hosts can move pods by clicking and dragging the pod’s title bar. Individual pods can be resized by clicking and dragging the edges of the pod.

To lock a layout to prevent pods from being moved and resized, click the “Turn off move and resize pods” button in the “layouts toolbar,” or check the “Move and Resize Pods” option in the “Pods” menu.

Creating a Custom Layout
From within a meeting room, Hosts can create and customize new layouts. To create a new layout, click the "Layout" menu on the top menu bar and select "New Layout.” Or, click the “plus sign” on the Layout Selection Bar.

The New Layout window will appear.

After creating the new layout, continue customizing by adding additional pods, deleting existing pods and resizing and rearranging pods.

In this example we are deleting the Poll pod and adding a small Share pod.

To remove pods from the layout, click the “Hide Pod” icon in the upper right corner of each pod.

To add additional pods to the layout, from the "Pods" menu on the top menu bar, select the pods you want to include.

After selecting and arranging pods, if applicable, continue with the customization by uploading content. Adobe Connect characterizes uploaded files as pods, even though you may think of them as files.

Managing Layouts
If you use the same meeting room repeatedly for many different meetings, at some point, you will probably want to delete layouts that are no longer needed and reorganize to better suit your needs.

Changing the order of layouts in the “Layout Toolbar”
To change the order of layout buttons in the “Layout Toolbar,” press and hold the mouse button on the layout button you would like to move. Continue to hold the mouse button and drag the layout button to its new location.

Saving a Layout as a Template
Meeting creators (only) can save a customized layout as a template for future meeting rooms. For more information, see Creating Templates under Creating/Editing Meetings.

Recording Meetings

Adobe Connect meetings can be recorded and saved for playback at any time. Adobe Connect records events rather than screen shots, which means that users can play the recording at whatever size they would like, and all the interactive SWF files that a typical participant would manipulate can be manipulated during playback.

Everything that happens in the room is recorded from the perspective of a Participant. Individual breakout rooms are not recorded, but materials from breakout rooms will be included in the recording if a Host brings them into the main meeting room.

Recordings can be edited in two different ways:

When editing online, rudimentary linear editing tools are provided. For offline editing, the recording is downloaded as a .FLV file.

Downloaded recordings can also be placed on a different server or on a CD for playback.

To Start Recording a Meeting

  1. From within a meeting room, select "Record Meeting" from the “Meeting” menu.

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    Record Meeting Option

  2. In the Record Meeting dialog box, enter a name and summary for the meeting recording and click OK.

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    Enter Title and Summary

  3. A notifier and a red circle appear in the upper right hand corner of the top menu bar to indicate to everyone in the meeting room that the meeting is being recorded.

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    Recording Notifier

To Stop Recording a Meeting
To stop recording a meeting, do one of the following:

Accessing Recorded Meetings - Hosts and Meeting Room Creators
Hosts and Meeting Room Creators can access recorded meetings through the Adobe Connect Central Web interface by selecting “Manage Meeting Information” from the “Meeting” menu in the meeting room. Follow these steps:

  1. Enter the Meeting room from which the recording was made.
  2. Under the "Meeting" menu select "Manage Meeting Information." This will open the Web interface in your browser.
  3. Click the "Recordings" link at the end of the Meeting Information menu bar to view the list of recordings for the meeting room.

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    Recordings Link

  4. Click the name of the recording to see the URL. Each recording has a unique URL. URLs for recordings that reside on the Adobe Connect server don’t change even if the recording is moved to another folder.

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    Recording URL

  5. To allow others to view the recording, post or distribute the URL. Access to recordings residing on the Adobe Connect server can be set based on the meeting room settings or individually, based on the contents of each recording. For more information about setting permissions on recordings see Setting Access Permissions for Recordings.

    Note: It appears that the access settings for a Content folder don't affect the access settings for the files in that folder. Therefore, the folder can be set to not allow public access, and the recording will still be accessible to the public if its access setting is FOR public access.

Delete a Meeting Recording

To delete a recording associated with a meeting, you must be the person who created the meeting room.

Follow these steps to delete a recording:

  1. Click the "Meetings" tab in the uppermost gray menu bar on the Adobe Connect Central Web interface home page at http://breeze.psu.edu.

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    Meetings Tab on Home Screen of Adobe Connect Central

  2. Click the name of the meeting that has the recording you want to delete
  3. Click the "Recordings" link on the Meeting Information menu bar on the Meeting Information page
  4. Select the check box to the left of the recording(s) you want to delete on the Recording page
  5. Click on the "Delete" button.

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    Delete Recording

Tips for Recording Meetings

When recording a meeting, consider the shelf life of the recorded session:

  • Time- and date-stamp your presentation so people know when it was created
  • Avoid references to current events if discussing timeless topics
  • Provide links to more frequently updated references
  • Provide pointers for accessing potential updates or explain where to find material that may be released subsequent to your presentation
  • Whatever is seen is not necessarily recorded (Make some practice recordings to see which elements are captured and which are not).
  • Remember:

  • Turn off ringer on phone
  • Close email and messaging clients to prevent audio/video interruptions
  • Share the correct monitor in dual monitor situations
  • For the cleanest recorded view:

  • Select “Hide The Presenter Only Area”
  • Check “Enable Full Screen Toggle for Participants”
  • Enter Full Screen view
  • Un-sync the presentation and display the side bar to allow access to the Notes tab.

Don't forget to select “Record Meeting!”
(Some tips contributed by Kenneth Layng.)

Accessing Report Data for a Specific Recording

It is possible to access report data on a single recording that resides on the Adobe Connect server, but to do so the recording has to be moved out of the meeting folder and into a separate folder. Only users with Meeting Creator licenses can move recordings.

Preparing to Move the Recording

When preparing to move a recording to a different folder, first, be sure the person who created the meeting room is still listed as a Host in the Participant List for the meeting room. (For more information on accessing the Participant List see Editing Participants).

Next, note the name of the meeting room and the name of the recording you want to move. You actually need the name, not the URL. If you are not the person who created the meeting room, give this information to the Meeting Creator when you contact him/her about moving your recording. Moving the recording to another folder won't change the URL.

Access the Content Folder
Now, the Meeting Creator needs to access his/her content folder by clicking the "Content" tab in the dark gray menu bar at the top of the screen in the Adobe Connect Central Web Interface (http://breeze.psu.edu). This is where you will be putting the recording so you will need to create a folder where the recording files can be stored.

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Content Tab

Create a New Folder to House Recordings

  1. Within the Content folder, click the white "New Folder" button.

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    New Folder Button

  2. Give the folder a descriptive name. For example, the folder name could describe the owner and the contents ("Mary Public Recordings”). Special characters such as apostrophes shouldn't be a problem, but avoid them if possible.

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    New Folder Button

  3. Click "Save." You should see the message "This folder is empty." appear below the gray bar.

Move the Recording

  1. Next, select the recording and move it to this folder. To do this, click the "Meetings" tab in the dark gray menu bar at the top of the screen.

    [inline:MeetingsTab.gif]
    New Folder Button

  2. Find the name of the meeting containing the recording that needs to be moved, and click the name.
  3. In the row of links that starts with "Meeting Information," click the link for "Recordings."

    [inline:RecordingsLink.gif]
    Recordings Link

  4. In the list, find the name of the recording to be moved and click the checkbox to the left of the name. Then, click the white "Move to Folder" button.

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    Select the recording and click the Move To Folder button

  5. On the next screen, it says "Item(s) to Move." Click the folder where you want to place the recording.
  6. Then, click the white "Move" button at the bottom of the screen.

    [inline:MoveButton.gif]
    Select the folder and click the Move button

    You should get the message that "The following items were moved successfully:" Click the OK button.

Set Permissions on the Recording
Finally, you need to set the permissions for the recording(s) that you have just moved. Access can be restricted or open to the general public.

  1. Click the "Content" button in the light gray menu bar at the top of the screen.
  2. Then, click the folder where you have placed the recording(s). You should see the file(s) you just moved.
  3. Click the name of the file for which you want to set permissions.
  4. In the menu just above the gray bar, click the "Set Permissions" link.
  5. Click the white "Customize" button.
  6. On the next screen, where it says "Allow public viewing:" select "Yes" if you want everyone with the URL to be able to view the recording. Select "No" if you want to restrict viewing to just those listed in the "Current Permissions" list. If you are restricting viewing, customize the list by adding or deleting users from the "Current Permissions" list.

To View Report Data
After moving the meeting to a separate folder, to view the report data,

  1. Click the "Content" tab in the dark gray menu bar at the top of the screen,
  2. click the name of the folder where you put the recording, and
  3. click the name of the recording.
  4. In the "Content Information" menu bar, click the "Reports" link.

You can choose to view the recording data summary (default), as well as by slide, by question, and by answer.

Edit or Download Recordings

One of Adobe Connect Pro 7 newest features is the ease in which you can edit and distribute recordings. Please refer to pages 47-50 of the "Adobe Connect Pro User Guide - Complete Help" as either LiveDocs or in a downloadable (PDF) format at http://help.adobe.com/en_US/AcrobatConnectPro/7.0/connectpro_7_help.pdf

Setting Access Permissions for Recordings

Access to recordings depends on the access settings for the meeting room in which the recording was made and on the individual settings for each recording. The default access setting for a recording that resides in the same folder as the meeting from which it was recorded is the meeting room setting.

Note: RSS feed is not available for Adobe Connect recordings.

By default, recording access is the same as the meeting room access. If access to the meeting room is limited to just the participants listed on the Participant List, then those are also the only users who will be able to access the recording. For more information about meeting room access settings see Creating New Meetings.

Changing Meeting Room Access
Recording access can be change by either changing the meeting room access or by setting the access for just the selected recording. Only meeting room Hosts and Meeting Room Creators can change the access to a meeting room and any recordings associated with that room.

To change the access of a recording:

  1. Enter the Meeting room for which access is to be changed.
  2. Under the "Meeting" menu select "Manage Meeting Information." This will open the Web interface in your browser.

    [inline:ManageInfo.gif]
    Manage Meeting Information

  3. Click the "Edit Information" link in the Meeting Information menu bar.

    [inline:EditInfo.gif]
    Edit Information Link

  4. In the “Access:” section select the level of access for the meeting room and associated recordings.

    [inline:AccessSettings.gif]
    Meeting Room Access Settings

  5. Click the “Save” button at the bottom of the screen.
  6. If you select “Only registered users may enter the room (guest access is blocked)” or “only registered users and accepted guests may enter the room,” continue to edit the meeting room settings by selecting “Edit Participants” from the Meeting Information menu bar and enter the names of users to whom you wish to grant access to the meeting room as well as to the recordings for that meeting room.

    [inline:EditParts.gif]
    Edit Participants Link

Changing Recording Access without Changing Meeting Room Access

To change the access to selected recordings associated with a meeting room without changing the meeting room access,

  1. Enter the Meeting room for the desired recording.
  2. Under the "Meeting" menu select "Manage Meeting Information." This will open the Web interface in your browser.
  3. Click the "Recordings" link at the end of the Meeting Information menu bar to view the list of recordings for the meeting room.
  4. Select the desired recording by clicking the checkbox to the left of the recording name.
  5. Select either the “Make Public” button or the “Make Private” button located just above the column headings.
  6. If you select to make the recording private, continue editing the meeting room information by selecting “Edit Participants” from the “Meeting Information” menu bar and add the names of users to whom you wish to grant access.

More Information
For more information about recording meetings, see pages 47-50 of the "Adobe Connect Pro User Guide - Complete Help" as either LiveDocs or in a downloadable (PDF) format at http://help.adobe.com/en_US/AcrobatConnectPro/7.0/connectpro_7_help.pdf

Showing PowerPoint Notes During a Recorded Meeting

Showing PowerPoint Notes during a Recorded Meeting
The ability to allow Attendees to view PowerPoint Notes in a presentation displayed in the Share pod is another feature available in an Adobe Connect meeting room. This option may be particularly helpful when recording class sessions and large meetings.

  1. First, create the PowerPoint presentation that will be used in the Adobe Connect meeting.
  2. Next, type or paste the text of the script into the note section for each slide.
  3. Save your PowerPoint (.ppt) file in a folder on your computer.
  4. Open the meeting and, in the Share pod, select Documents >> Select from My Computer. Select the name of the presentation, and then select Open. The PowerPoint will be uploaded to the Share Pod.

To allow users to display the notes while viewing the recording do the following:

  1. Click the "Show/hide sidebar" button (located next to the navigation arrows in the lower left hand corner of the Share pod) to have the sidebar appear. If needed, expand the Share pod so that you can see the outline and notes tabs.
  2. Un-sync the presentation by making sure that the "sync" button is in the up position. It should be light gray, not dark.

    When the Presentation is delivered with the Sync button engaged (button is dark gray),

    • the Presenter will be able to see the PowerPoint notes
    • the Participants will not be able to see the notes
    • the notes will not be visible in the recording.
    • the Presenter will control the presentation of the slides for everyone in the meeting room

    When the Presentation is delivered with the Sync button NOT engaged (button is light gray),

    • the Presenter will be able to see the PowerPoint notes
    • the Participants will also be able to see the notes
    • the notes will be visible in the recording.
    • the Presenter will NOT control the presentation of the slides for everyone in the meeting room. Each individual Attendee will control which slide is displayed for themselves
  3. Select "Record Meeting..." from the Meeting Menu.
  4. Give the presentation and stop the recording when you are finished.

Once the configuration is set and the meeting has been recorded, the notes tab will be available in the recording. The recording can be paused at any point, and the PowerPoint/Presenter file is still accessible - both to freely navigate and to scroll the notes tab. It works independently of the rest of the recording. The end users can view the PowerPoint file within the recording at their leisure.

Note: In a live meeting, when the presentation is "un-synced," each meeting attendee will need to advance slides for themselves to view the presentation. The Presenter's actions WILL NOT be displayed for everyone in the meeting room. Therefore, it is NOT recommended to "un-sync" the Share pod when recording a meeting with live Attendees.

A better alternative is to record your presentation in Presenter, post the file to the Web, and distribute that link instead of putting the presentation in Adobe Connect.

Adobe Presenter: Narrating Presentations

Adobe Presenter (formerly Breeze Presenter) is an optional plug-in for Windows that provides an easy means of adding narration to PowerPoint presentations. Narrated PowerPoint files created with Presenter are small in size and work in ANGEL. The Presenter plugin works only with MicroSoft PowerPoint for Windows. A Macintosh version is NOT available.

Adobe Presenter allows embedded Flash objects, such as Flash video, animations, and Captivate. Adobe Presenter is also compatible with ANGEL’s (V.7.1) version of SCORM-compliant quizzing (V.1.2).

How to Obtain the Adobe Presenter Plug-In
Please Note: Adobe Presenter V7.1 and later only works with Microsoft Office 2007 or later. If you have an earlier version of Office (i.e. 2003) you will need to use Adobe Presenter version 6.0. Both Versions are compatible with Adobe Connect V 7.0 or later.

The optional Adobe Presenter plug-in is sold through the Penn State Computer Store. You can search for Adobe Presenter at the Penn State Computer Store Web site at: http://computerstore.psu.edu. Orders are through departments only.

The Adobe Presenter Plug-In to PowerPoint is only available for the Windows platform. For additional information on the system requirements for authoring with Presenter, see http://www.adobe.com/products/presenter/productinfo/systemreqs/.

You may also be interested in this one-page description of Adobe Connect and Adobe Presenter to attach to your departmental purchase order as justification for your purchase: AdobeConnectProDescription.pdf

New with V.9 of Adobe Acrobat, Adobe is including the Presenter V.7 Windows PowerPoint plugin as a separate installation. The plugin only works on Windows, not Macs, and is available when you purchase the "Extended" version of Adobe Acrobat Pro V.9. Purchase of Adobe Acrobat is NOT limited to just departments -- anyone with an active Penn State Access Account is able to purchase it at the special Penn State rate.

Here's what you need to know when ordering Adobe Acrobat 9:
SLWNSR047 Acrobat 9 Pro Extended Win License..........$81.00 (includes the V.7 Presenter plugin)
SLAPSR043 Acrobat 9 Pro Mac License............................$56.00 (does not contain the Presenter plugin)
SLWNSR046 Acrobat 9 Pro Win License............................$56.00 (does not contain the Presenter plugin)

The Penn State price for Acrobat 9 is about the same as for the plugin by itself, so it's probably a better buy to purchase Acrobat 9 Pro Extended since you get a lot more for the money than when you purchase just the plugin.

How to Use Adobe Presenter
Get Started Using Adobe Presenter (V.5): presentertutorial.pdf
Presenter Manual (PDF from Adobe): breeze_presenter.pdf
Adobe Presenter 7.0 Users Manual (PDF from Adobe): Adobe Presenter 7.0 User Guide
V.7 Video tutorials from Adobe: http://www.adobe.com/resources/acrobatconnect/presenter/?trackingid=CZZZ...

Adobe Presenter Support
Have a question or need a little one-on-one help? The following people have agreed to be available to answer questions from Penn State faculty and staff about using Adobe Presenter:

Qi Dunsworth .....................Behrend
Matthew Bodek ..................Delaware
Julie Meyer ........................Great Valley
Mary Lynn Brannon ...........Worthington/Scranton
Carol McQuiggan ................Harrisburg
Suzanne Shaffer ................York
Deborah Sillman .................New Kensington
Mary Ann Mengel ........................Berks
Robin Gill ............................DuBois
Jackie Ritzko .......................Hazelton
Linda Evans ........................Dickinson
Cheryl Tkacs .......................Fayette

At University Park:

Amy Garbrick .....................IST/UP
Mike Hofherr ......................Smeal/UP
Glenn Johnson ...................EMS/UP
Ann Luck ...........................EMS/UP
Suzanne Bienert .................Ag/UP
Tom Iwinski .......................Engineering/UP
David McNaughton..............Education/UP

Closing Meeting Rooms

An Adobe Connect meeting room lasts forever until the meeting creator deletes it (meeting creators: see Editing and Deleting Meetings under Creating/Editing Meetings for details). However, Hosts do have the ability to end a meeting, place it on hold, or block incoming attendees.

For all users, to exit a meeting without closing the meeting room, see Joining/Leaving a Meeting under Getting Started.

Ending a Meeting
Hosts can select to end a meeting, which removes everyone from the meeting room and locks the room until a Host re-enters. All users, including the Hosts, will be removed from the room.

To end a meeting, from inside the meeting room click the "Meeting" menu on the top menu bar and select "End Meeting." The Host can set the message that is posted to all Attendees when they are removed from the room. The Host can also set a URL to send the Attendees to in addition to setting an end-of-meeting message. The URL will open a browser window on all Attendees' computers, covering, and possibly obscuring, the end-of-meeting screen displayed by Adobe Connect.

To re-open the meeting, a Host must go into the meeting room and click the "Start Meeting" button. When re-starting a meeting, if the Host doesn't de-select the box to "Lock the meeting after starting," Attendees will have to wait for a Host to allow them to enter the room when they try to re-enter. Unchecking the box will allow Attendees to re-enter the room as usual, depending on the access setting for the room.

If a Host ends a meeting and then re-opens the room, Attendees who were removed from the room do not receive any notice that the room has re-opened.

Placing Participants on Hold
Hosts can temporarily place Participants on hold, which prevents Participants from seeing what is happening in the meeting room without actually removing them from the room. Hosts and Presenters continue to have standard access to the room that has been placed on hold.

To place a meeting on hold, from inside the meeting room click the "Meeting" menu on the top menu bar and select "Manage Access & Entry">"Place Participants on Hold."

To re-open the meeting room to Participants, a Host must de-select "Place Participants on Hold" from inside the meeting room. Participants who were locked out (but still kept the meeting window open) will automatically be let back into the room.

[inline:PlaceOnHold.jpg]
Closing or Pausing a Meeting

Blocking Incoming Attendees
Hosts can block incoming attendees so that no new attendees can enter the meeting room. All incoming attendees, including those on the Current Participants list and those who leave and re-enter the room, will be blocked from entering.

[inline:BlockIncoming.jpg]
Block Incoming Attendees

While access to the room is blocked, Hosts can allow incoming attendees to request entry. When an incoming attendee requests entry, Hosts can allow or deny the request. Note that attendees who are denied entry can simply keep trying to re-enter the room and request entry again.

To stop blocking entry, de-select the option from the Meeting menu.

Although there is also an option in the Meeting Menu> Manage Access & Entry menu to block guest access, Penn State doesn't allow unregistered guests in meetings, so selecting this option will have no effect on meeting room access.