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.

Friends of Penn State accounts also have the same access to a meeting room as any other Host or Presenter. An Friend of Penn State account can be added to the Participant's List and promoted to be a Host or Presenter. Once added to the list, the Friend of Penn State account holder can enter the meeting room like any other Host or Presenter, upload content, change layouts, etc.

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

Note: Some users have problems accessing the Meeting Information page, usually when trying to access the list of recordings, even though they are designated as a Host in the meeting room via the Participant List. The cause of this problem is the browser or the browser in connection with Penn State's Web Access. For example, if you are running your meeting through Firefox but have a different browser set as your default browser, when you select "Manage Meeting Information" from the "Meeting" menu (from within a meeting room), the page will open in your default browser, not in Firefox. If you haven't logged in to another Penn State service using Web Access with your default browser, Connect will tell you that you aren't authorized to access the Meeting Information Web screen. Unfortunately, Connect doesn't know to ask you to log in. The solution is to make sure you are running your meeting from within your default browser.

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).

Friends of Penn State accounts also have the same access to a meeting room as any other Host or Presenter. An Friend of Penn State account can be added to the Participant's List and promoted to be a Host or Presenter. Once added to the list, the Friend of Penn State account holder can upload content to the Share Pod like any other Host or Presenter.

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/.

Breakout Rooms Best Practices for Hosts

Prior to your meeting:
Thoroughly plan breakout room activities PRIOR to creating the rooms. Ask yourself: “What is the expected outcome from these breakout rooms.”

Design room layouts and upload content

  • When you create a meeting room, there are no breakout rooms. The first time you activate the breakout rooms, they will be patterned after the current main room layout. To avoid having to customize each breakout room individually, arrange the layout of the main room the way you want it prior to creating the breakout rooms. Once the breakout rooms are created, any changes to the layouts will have to be done room by room. Each breakout room can be unique.
  • A Host should prepare breakout rooms prior to the breakout room sessions by uploading files, adding a breakout room Chat Pod, Note Pod, File Share Pod, Poll Pod, Web Links Pod, or creating a Share Pod for sharing documents, computer screens or whiteboards. Although participants will be promoted to the role of Presenter when they enter the room, they do not have permissions to create new Pods. They only have accesses to those Pods or tools which are made available by the Host(s).
  • Develop a Communication Strategy. Probably one of the most difficult aspects of managing breakout rooms in Adobe Connect is developing a communication strategy. Hosts are able to move between rooms to see how students (participants) are progressing with assignments as well as to interact and answer questions. But, you can only be in one place at a time, so you will need a strategy for handling questions from students (participants), no matter which breakout room you are in.

Options for Communication in Breakout Rooms:

Chat popup notification

One option is to place a chat pod in each breakout room and have the students chat specifically with the Host(s) or use the “Contact Hosts” bar in the lower right corner of the screen. The messages pop up on the Hosts screen, no matter which breakout room (or main room) the Host is in.

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Contact Hosts Text Bar

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Pop Up Message to Host

The disadvantages are that these messages only stay on the screen for a couple of seconds and there is no way to respond directly to the messages. If the Host doesn’t have a chance to read the message as soon as it pops up, or if several messages are sent at the same time and the Host can’t read them fast enough, the messages are lost. The only way for the Host to view the messages again and respond is to enter the breakout room the message was sent from and read the Chat pod. Only messages sent from the Chat pod will be recorded. Messages sent using the “Contact Hosts” bar are not recorded anywhere.

Emoticons
Another option is to have students (participants) use emoticons to communicate with the Host. The emoticons are visible to Hosts in both the Attendee List pod in the main room and the Breakout Rooms pod (visible by the Host from all rooms). For example, Hosts could have students (participants) use the raised hand emoticon to indicate that they have a question and the Host will be able to see the signal no matter which room he/she is in. The Host still has to enter the breakout room to find out what the question is, but at least messages won’t get lost if multiple students (participants) raise their hands at the same time.

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Raised Hand Emoticon Shown in Attendee List Pod

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Raised Hand Emoticon Shown in Breakout Rooms Pod

Shared Note and Chat pods
Breakout rooms can have note and chat pods that are both exclusive to each room as well as shared across rooms. To create a shared pod:

  1. Create it in the main room first before activating the breakout rooms.

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    Step 1: Create a New Chat Pod in Main Meeting

  2. Name the Chat Pod so you can identify it later.

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    Step 2: Rename Chat Pod

  3. Activate the breakout rooms.

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    Step 3: Activate Breakouts

  4. Enter each room, and add the pod to the layout.

    [inline:AddChatPodInBreakout.jpg]
    Step 4: Add Chat Pod in Breakout Room

You will be able to differentiate between the Shared Pods and a non-shared pod because the Shared Pods will be a slight shade of gray. Pod messages and content entered into the pods is visible to everyone, no matter which room they are in.

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Gray-Shaded Chat Pod

During your meeting:

  • If you have multiple Hosts in the meeting, make sure you have clearly designated responsibilities. All Hosts in the room will be able to manage breakout rooms.
  • Assign group leaders prior to sending Students (participants) to breakout rooms. Make sure group leaders know what they are to do. Answer any questions while everyone is together in the main room. Once Students (participants) have been sent to breakout rooms it will be more difficult and time consuming to answer general questions.
  • Make sure students (participants) understand exactly what they are to do in the breakout rooms
  • Make sure students (participants) know how much time they have to complete the activity.
  • A Host should frequently drop in and out of the breakout rooms to observe participants’ collaboration, answer questions, and interact with participants.
  • The Host should send a warning message to all breakout rooms notifying all Attendees that the breakout session is about to end. Allow enough time for Attendees to wrap up their discussions and activities.

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    Host Announcement

Breakout Rooms Tips

  • Files previously uploaded to Share pods in the main room aren’t always available in the breakout rooms – not sure if it’s a bug or a feature that some rooms could access all of the uploaded files and some couldn’t. If the entire list of uploaded files was available, it had to be accessed from the “Share” button at the bottom of the Share pod as there is no scroll bar for the list and you can only access the files whose names are visible. It seems like content typically has to be uploaded separately to each breakout room.
  • Files in the Shared content area as well as in your personal content folder are available to be uploaded into Share pods in the breakout rooms.

    Note: Only users with a meeting creator license will have a content folder.

  • Using Video in breakout rooms - There were performance and quality issues with full motion Flash video in the breakout rooms just as there is in the main room. There were also problems with Presenter and SWF files loading in the breakout rooms. If you are going to have students (participants) complete a Presenter presentation or watch an animation or video as part of a breakout room activity, if at all possible, have them watch it together in the main room before moving them to breakout rooms.
  • After giving instructions to participants about the breakout rooms, wait 5-10 seconds before moving users to their breakout rooms. Due to network latency, the last couple of seconds of your audio may not arrive immediately after your speak. This will give the network time to deliver your last sentences, especially if this was important information or instructions for the users.

General Breakout Room Information

When using breakout rooms, meeting rooms are limited to 50 Attendees. You can have up to 5 breakout rooms for any single meeting.

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Create Breakout Rooms

Use the “Add Breakout” button to create a new breakout room, and use the “Remove Breakout x” to delete unwanted breakout room(s).

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Delete Breakout Rooms

All participants are automatically promoted to the role of Presenter when placed in breakout rooms. The Presenter role gives participants the right to broadcast their video and voice in the Camera and Voice pod, to share their files, computer screens or whiteboard in the Share pod, to chat in the Chat Pod, to add content to the Note Pod, to cast a poll in the Poll Pod, and so forth. When participants are returned to the main meeting room, they will be reverted to their prior role.

When using the “Breakouts Active” button to dismiss breakout sessions, the participant assignments to each breakout room will be preserved. The Host can then click the “Begin Breakouts” button to send all participants back to the same breakout rooms.

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Breakouts Active

All information about the participant assignments in breakout rooms will be deleted if the Host uses “Return All To Main Meeting” option under the “Breakout Options” menu to end the breakout sessions. (For more information, see the section on Pod Options.)

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Return All to Main Meeting

A Host will be able to pull in content from breakout rooms to the main meeting room and share it with the whole group to explain the breakout exercises in the reunited main meeting session. To share content from the breakout rooms, a Host should first select an individual breakout room name from the Breakout Pods under the Pods menu, and then choose the pod(s) to share with all participants. The selected pod(s) will appear in a new view-only floating pod in the main meeting room.

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Share Breakout Pods in Main Meeting

You can automatically assign participants to breakout rooms or you can add them to specific breakout rooms manually.

  1. After opening Breakout rooms, click on the “Assign” button in the Breakout Rooms pod.
  2. Click “Evenly Distribute From Main”

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Assign Participants to Breakout Rooms

For effective discussions, divide participants into groups of 5 or less if possible.
As participants are transitioned into their breakout rooms, the microphones and speakers for the main room are automatically muted.
Phone bridges only work in breakout rooms if the phone conferencing system you are using is specifically designed to provide separate channels for breakout rooms. Otherwise everyone still hears everyone else even though they have been sent to separate breakout rooms.

Uses for breakout rooms
Use breakout rooms for:

  • brainstorming activities
  • tutoring
  • small group activities and collaboration
  • troubleshooting technical problems so the whole group is not held up. If you have a facilitator or moderator for your meeting or training, have that person move the participant to a breakout room
  • Discussing assigned topics from the instructor or host
  • Working on a specific group projects or assignments
  • Working in a ‘lab environment’

Host Options in Breakout Rooms

NOTE: The breakout rooms pod options are available only when the rooms are not active.

Return All to Main Meeting option: When participants are assigned to breakout rooms, they will continue to be assigned to the same room throughout the class or meeting session. You can alternate between having everyone in the Main room and sending everyone to breakout rooms and still maintain the same group structure. If you want to change the way the participants are divided into groups, use the “Return All to Main Meeting” option to quickly remove all participants from the breakout rooms so they will be reassigned.

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Return All to Main Meeting

Clear All Rooms: To remove all rooms and save the pods, such as Whiteboard or Chat, created within the rooms, click the pod options button and select Clear All Rooms. The pods are saved under the Breakout Pods menu option. Numbering of any subsequently created rooms continues from the number of the last created room.

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Clear All Rooms

Reset Rooms: To remove all breakout rooms, the breakout room pods, and pods saved under the Breakout Pods menu option, click the Pod Options button and select Reset Rooms. This also resets room numbering.

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Reset Rooms

Recording Breakout Rooms

If you wish to record meeting activities in a meeting, only activities that happen in the main meeting room will be recorded. If you want to record individual breakout rooms, you will need to use a screen capture application like Camtasia.

Using Audio in breakout rooms

VoIP (audio through Adobe Connect) automatically follows users into breakout rooms.

  • When you move users from the main room to a breakout room, the users’ microphone and speakers are automatically muted in the main room.
  • When users enter a breakout room, their microphone is muted but their speakers are unmuted/enabled.
  • When a user exits from a breakout room, their microphone and speakers remain muted in the main room. They must unmute their speakers to hear and unmute their microphone to speak in the main room.

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.

Creating Effective Layouts - Advanced
In addition to the basics about using layouts, you may be interested in the more advanced features covered in Adobe’s short tutorial listed at the Adobe Connect Pro Users Community site (Connectusers.com.) While targeted for people who are meeting hosts, it does cover a wide range of topics for best practices using layouts. To view the Adobe tutorial, please go the following URL: Creating Effective Layouts for Connect Meetings

Recording Meetings

You have to have Host permissions in order to access the Record Meeting option in the Meeting menu. 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.

    [inline:RecordMtg.gif]
    Record Meeting Option

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

    [inline:RecordTitle.gif]
    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.

    [inline:Recording.gif]
    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.

    [inline:RecordLink.gif]
    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.

    [inline:RecordURL.gif]
    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.
    • Some users have problems accessing the Meeting Information page, usually when trying to access the list of recordings, even though they are designated as a Host in the meeting room via the Participant List. The cause of this problem is the browser or the browser in connection with Penn State's Web Access. For example, if you are running your meeting through Firefox but have a different browser set as your default browser, when you select "Manage Meeting Information" from the "Meeting" menu (from within a meeting room), the page will open in your default browser, not in Firefox. If you haven't logged in to another Penn State service using Web Access with your default browser, Connect will tell you that you aren't authorized to access the Meeting Information Web screen. Unfortunately, Connect doesn't know to ask you to log in. The solution is to make sure you are running your meeting from within your default browser.

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.

    [inline:MeetingTab.gif]
    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.

    [inline:RecordDelete.gif]
    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.

[inline:ContentTab.gif]
Content Tab

Create a New Folder to House Recordings

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

    [inline:NewFolderButton.gif]
    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.

    [inline:NewFolder.gif]
    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.

    [inline:MoveToFolderButton.gif]
    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.

Editing Meeting Recordings
You can use the built-in editor to remove sections of the recording. This is useful if the recording contains periods of silence or unnecessary information. Only meeting room Hosts and Meeting Room Creators can edit recordings associated with that room.

Following are some tips for editing recordings:

  • To edit a meeting recording that has been moved to the Content library, you must have Meeting Room Creator rights for the room. (If you created the meeting you have these rights by default.) A meeting Host can only edit meetings that have not been moved and are still associated with the meeting.
  • After editing a recording, the last edited version is saved and includes all information from earlier editing sessions. The link used to deploy your recording does not change after editing. Users given the link and rights to access the recording see the most recent version saved, including any edits that were made.
  • Multiple users can open a recording in edit mode at the same time and no warning is displayed that the recording is already being edited by another user. However, after one user saves their changes, others that may be editing the recording at the same time receive an error when they try to save their changes.

Edit a Recorded Meeting - Online

Editing a recording is useful if the recording contains sections of silence or unnecessary information that you want to remove before making the recording available.

  1. Meeting Creator only - From the Acrobat Connect Pro Central home page, click Meetings and then click the name of the meeting that includes the recording. Go to Step 2.
    Meeting Creator or Host - Login to the Meeting Room using the URL. In the meeting room menu go to Meeting>Manage Meeting Information. This will open the Meeting Information Menu in your computer system default browser window with the listing of the recordings. *Note: The browser may be hidden behind other open applications that are running. Go to Step 2.

  2. Click the "Recordings" link at the end of the Meeting Information menu bar to view the list of recordings for the meeting room.
  3. [inline:recordinglink.jpg]
    Recordings Link

  4. Click Edit next to the recording that you want to edit.
  5. [inline:selectedit.jpg]
    Selecting Edit for a Recording

  6. Watch the recording to search for places that require editing or drag the progress line in the Playing bar to a specific location in the recording.
  7. Use the selection markers to specify the areas of the recording you want to remove.
  8. [inline:selectcrop.jpg]
    Selecting an Area and Crop

  9. Click Crop. By clicking on Crop, you will prevent unwanted portions of the recording from being seen by skipping over them when viewed. They are still on the server and any cropped section can be restored by selecting the cropped section and clicking on the Undo button.
  10. Repeat Steps 5 and 6 to select and crop out multiple sections.
  11. (Optional) Click on the View Advanced Options button to search for specific information within the recording file or filter by event type.
  12. [inline:advancedoptions.jpg]
    Selecting the Advanced Options Button

  13. Click on the Save button when your are finished marking sections for removal from your recording. The edited recording will begin playing immediately after being saved.
  14. [inline:committosave.jpg]
    Saving Your Edits

  15. (Optional) Click on the Revert to Original button to restore the recording to its original state before the edits.
  16. [inline:reverttooriginal.jpg]
    Revert to Original Recording

About Offline Recordings

If you have a meeting recording and want people who do not have access to an Acrobat Connect Pro server to view the recording, you can create an offline version. The offline recording is saved as a single FLV file.
Following are some tips for offline recordings:

  • Set your screen resolution high enough to include all activities that occurred in the original meeting. Adobe recommends setting resolution to 1024 x 768.
  • Leave the recording controls toolbar minimized. If this toolbar is in view, it is also recorded.
  • Avoid network or system intensive activities such as installing software or downloading files during the recording process.
  • Disable your screen saver and monitor power settings before proceeding.
  • Creating an offline recording takes approximately the same amount of time as the duration of the original meeting recording.
  • You can minimize the offline recording window or view other windows on top of it while creating your offline recording without interfering with the contents of your recording.
  • Ensure that you have the Acrobat Connect Add-in installed before starting an offline recording. (You can check if you have the Add-in installed by entering a meeting and seeing if you are prompted to install the Add-in.)
  • The finished FLV file can be viewed in a FLV player (such as Adobe® Media Player), placed on a CD, placed on a server that can play FLV files to users, embedded into a presentation, e-mailed to users to play within their own local FLV player, or uploaded to the Acrobat Connect Pro Content library.
  • Use the Pause/Resume button to temporarily stop creation of the offline recording as necessary. This can be useful if you must download a large file and do not want to strain system resources or if you must attend a live meeting. When you click Resume, the recording continues from where it was paused. The finished recording is one continuous file regardless of how many times you paused and resumed recording.
  • The Stop and Save button ends the creation of a recording. This is useful if you only want to record a portion of a meeting or virtual classroom, for example, the first ten minutes. Also, use the Stop and Save button to break a long meeting session into smaller recordings. For example, if you have a two-hour meeting session, you can create four half-hour recordings. You would start the recording and after 30 minutes click Stop and Save. Then, if you click Start New again, you resume

Create an Offline Recording
The meeting recording begins playing, which starts the creation of the offline archive.
Each time you make the control bar visible, it will be visible within the final recording. Show the control bar as infrequently as possible and keep the control bar in its minimized state.

To make Offline Recordings do the following:

  1. Meeting Creator only - From the Acrobat Connect Pro Central home page, click Meetings and then click the name of the meeting that includes the recording. Go to Step 2.
    Meeting Creator or Host - Login to the Meeting Room using the URL. In the meeting room menu go to Meeting>Manage Meeting Information. This will open the Meeting Information Menu in your browser window with the listing of the recordings. Go to Step 2.
  2. Click the "Recordings" link at the end of the Meeting Information menu bar to view the list of recordings for the meeting room.
  3. [inline:recordinglink.jpg]
    Recordings Link

  4. Next to the specific recording you want to use, click Make Offline.
  5. [inline:makeofflinerecordinglink.jpg]
    Select Make Offline

  6. In the Offline Recorder, specify a location for the finished FLV file. (If Help text appears, click Proceed with Offline Recording.)
  7. [inline:saveofflinelocation.jpg]
    Select location to save Offline Recording

  8. If the controls are not visible, click Show toolbar
  9. [inline:opentoolbar.jpg]
    Open the Toolbar

  10. Use the Start New, Stop and Save, and Pause/Resume controls as necessary during the recording process.
  11. [inline:stopstartpause.jpg]
    Start New, Stop and Save, and Pause/Resume Controls

  12. When the recording process finishes, a confirmation message appears. If necessary, close the offline recorder window by clicking close. (If the window is in its minimized state, the window closes automatically.)
  13. [inline:confirmation.jpg]
    Confirmation Window

  14. (Optional) To find the finished FLV file, use Windows Explorer to navigate to the location you selected in step 4.

    Note: Playing the offline recording requires using the Adobe Media Player that can be downloaded from the following website: http://get.adobe.com/amp/?promoid=DJDZD

    Always use caution when downloading movies or files from untrusted sites as they may contain viruses or other unwanted content.

    Additional information on how to edit .FLV recordings that have been download can be obtained by visiting the Digital Commons Penn State web pages at http://digitalcommons.psu.edu/

Posting Downloaded Recording in iTunesU
Downloaded recordings can be distributed in a number of ways. One way you might want to consider is through iTunes U. Recordings download as an FLV files, so they will need to be converted to MOV before being uploaded to iTunes U. Converters can be found by Googling "convert FLV to MOV." For example, http://www.flv-converter.com/flv-to-mov.htm.

Information about obtaining an iTunes U course at Penn State is available at http://podcasts.psu.edu/. Faculty will need to complete the form at http://podcasts.psu.edu/showsetup.

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 set by either changing the meeting room access or just a 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 permissions for selected recordings associated with a meeting room without changing the meeting room access do the following:

  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

About Adobe Presenter

Adobe 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 can be formatted to be smaller in size than presentations created using the MicroSoft narration tools. Presenter .zip files can be easily uploaded to ANGEL. The Presenter plugin works only with MicroSoft PowerPoint for Windows. A Macintosh version is NOT available.

Adobe Presenter also provides an easy way to embed Flash objects, such as Flash video, animations, and Captivate as well as various video file formats. Adobe Presenter is compatible with ANGEL’s (V.7.1) version of SCORM-compliant quizzing (V.1.2) (see the post at http://meeting.psu.edu/node/540 for more information).

How to Obtain the Adobe Presenter Plug-In

Please Note: Adobe Presenter V7 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 6.2. Both Versions are compatible with Adobe Connect V 7.0 or later.

The Presenter plug-in is sold through the Penn State Computer Store: http://computerstore.psu.edu. Search on the key words “Adobe Presenter.” Orders are through departments only.

The Adobe Presenter Plug-In to PowerPoint is only available for the Windows platform, not Mac. For additional information on the system requirements for authoring with Presenter, see http://www.adobe.com/products/presenter/productinfo/systemreqs/.

New with V.9 of Adobe Acrobat, Adobe is including the Presenter V.7 Windows PowerPoint plugin as a separate installation. The plugin 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 Extended from the Penn State Computer Store:
SLWNSR047 Acrobat 9 Pro Extended Win License..........$81.00 (includes the V.7 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.

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

Learning How to Use Presenter

Tim Plumer, the Sr. Solutions Engineer for Adobe Connect and Presenter, recently held a couple of sessions for us on how to use Presenter. You can watch the recording at:
Session 1: http://se.adobe.acrobat.com/p39213717
Session 2: http://se.adobe.acrobat.com/p24241827

Here are some recordings I found on YouTube that you might also find helpful:
YouTube Presenter V.7 Overview: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Kqcfq7s2Js&feature=related

YouTube Presenter V.6.2 Overview: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eXBKFrfsAyk&feature=related

Documentation for several versions of Presenter is attached to this page and can be downloaded from the links at the bottom of the page.

Directions for uploading Presenter files into the Penn State ANGEL CMS are located in the Penn State ANGEL knowledgebase (http://angelkb.ais.psu.edu/). Search on the keywords "Adobe Presenter." We have included step-by-step descriptions (with pictures!) for publishing your presentation as a .zip file in both V.6.2 and V.7 and then uploading the .zip file into ANGEL.

If you have included a quiz in your Presenter presentation and are uploading the presentation to ANGEL, you can use SCORM to collect scores from the quiz in the ANGEL gradebook. For more information see the post at http://digitalcommons.psu.edu/node/4898.

User support for Presenter is provided through the Penn State Digital Commons (http://digitalcommons.psu.edu/). Documentation is posted in the tutorials section of the Digital Commons Community Web site (http://digitalcommons.psu.edu/tutorials/tutorialslibrary?filter0=965&fil...).

Where to go for help

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 .......................Hazleton
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

Documentation available at the Digital Commons:

Getting Started: http://digitalcommons.psu.edu/node/4879
Adding and Managing Flash Files: http://digitalcommons.psu.edu/node/4880
Capturing and Editing Video: http://digitalcommons.psu.edu/node/4881
Recording and Editing Audio: http://digitalcommons.psu.edu/node/4882
Adding a Quiz to ANGEL: http://digitalcommons.psu.edu/node/4898
Optional SCORM Version Setup: http://digitalcommons.psu.edu/node/4899
Reporting Quiz Grades in ANGEL: http://digitalcommons.psu.edu/node/4900
Publishing Presentations: http://digitalcommons.psu.edu/node/4901
Sharing Presentations: http://digitalcommons.psu.edu/node/4902

Getting Started with Presenter V.7

Step Overview for Creating a Presentation

[inline:0101.gif]
Adobe Presenter

  1. Plan your PowerPoint presentation and use the note page on each slide as a script when recording your slide narration.
  2. Open the PowerPoint presentation in PowerPoint with the Adobe Presenter plug-in installed.
  3. Use the “Audio” feature to add audio narration and import pre-recorded audio. (See Recording and Editing Audio for details.)
  4. Use the “Flash” feature to insert SWF files. (See Adding and Managing Flash Files for details.)
  5. Use the “Video Import” feature to add 3GP, F4V, ASF, AVI, DV, DVI, MOV, MP4, MPEG, MPG, WMA, WMV, and FLV video files. (See Capturing and Editing Video for details.)
  6. Publish and then preview your presentation. Then make any necessary edits. (See Publishing Presentations for details.)
  7. Publish the final presentation as a zip file to later upload to ANGEL, to a Web Space, or to the Adobe Connect Server. (See Sharing Presentations for details.)

Preferences Settings

  1. Open your PowerPoint presentation.
  2. Select from the menu bar, Adobe Presenter>Application>Preferences.
  3. [inline:0102.gif]
    Preferences Settings

  4. In the Adobe Presenter Preferences Window select the Presenters tab.
  5. [inline:0103.gif]
    Adding Presenters

  6. To add or change information about this file, click on the add, edit, or delete buttons. You can provide Presenter information such as a photo, name, e-mail, or biography.
  7. [inline:0104.gif]
    Editing Presenter Information

  8. When you are satisfied with the information, click OK.
  9. Next select the Servers tab.
  10. Click Add.
  11. Enter a unique name for each server you want to access. For example: Penn State users might call the server “Penn State Adobe Connect Server.”
  12. Enter the Adobe Connect Server address. For Penn State users it would be http://breeze.psu.edu.
  13. Click OK.
  14. Finally, select the Audio Source tab.
  15. Click on the radial button for “Microphone” and check the box for “Always prompt to set microphone levels before recording.”
  16. Click OK when finished.

Presentation Settings

  1. Open your PowerPoint presentation.
  2. Select Adobe Presenter>Presentation>Settings.
  3. [inline:0105.gif]
    Presentation Settings

  4. Select the Appearance tab.
    • Add a new title and summary information, if desired.

    [inline:0106.gif]
    Appearance setting

  5. Select the Playback tab.
    • Select or deselect the appropriate checkbox for each of the four Playback Options: Auto play on start, Loop the presentation, Include slide numbers in outline, and/or Pause after each animation.
    • Select a time to wait for slides without audio or video. The maximum duration is 100 seconds per slide that does not have audio or video. This setting applies to ALL slides in the presentation, not just a slide with video or audio. All slides will display for the length of time set. It is important to note that if you have animations or videos that are longer than 100 seconds but that don't contain audio, you will need to add a silent audio track to the slide on which the file resides. The silent audio track will need to be the same length or a little longer than the run time of the file.
  6. Next select the Quality tab.
    • Select a Publish For: choice (My Computer/Adobe Connect Pro/Adobe PDF) for where your presentation will ultimately reside and be accessed by users.
    • Set the appropriate Audio Quality, Image Quality and Control Preloading settings for your presentation. The audio quality and image quality settings you select will affect the final quality and size of your published presentation. Lower quality results in smaller files.
    • Click on the checkbox “Use these settings for new presentations” to save these settings for future projects.
  7. (Optional) Select the Attachments tab, click Add, and then select the file you want to attach to your presentation.
  8. Click OK to close the Presentations Settings.

Adding and Managing Flash Files

Inserting Flash Files

  1. Go to the slide into which you want to insert the file.
  2. Select Adobe Presenter>Flash>Insert SWF>Insert SWF file.
  3. [inline:0401.gif]
    Inserting SWF Files

  4. Navigate to and click on the SWF file you want to insert on the slide.
  5. [inline:0402.gif]
    Navigating SWF Files

  6. Click Open, and the file will open on the slide.
  7. Follow steps 1 – 4 until all SWF files are inserted.

Managing Flash Files

  1. Once all flash files are inserted, go to Adobe Presenter>Flash>Insert SWF>Manage SWF file.
  2. [inline:0403.gif]
    Managing SWF Files

  3. In the Manage Flash (SWF) Window, select one of the Flash files in the list.
  4. [inline:0404.gif]
    Control Using Presentation Action Playbar Check Box

  5. Then, select the Control using presentation action playbar check box.
  6. Click OK after all the flash files are set up.

Capturing and Editing Video

Importing Video

  1. Open your PowerPoint presentation.
  2. Select or create a new slide to which you want to add the video file.
  3. Select Adobe Presenter>Video>Import.
  4. [inline:0301.gif]
    Importing Videos

  5. Navigate to and click on the video file you want to import to the slide.
  6. [inline:0302.gif]
    Navigating Video Files

  7. Under Import Options, select a Quality option from the menu.
  8. Click Open, and the file will import to the slide.
  9. Follow steps 1-6 until all video files are imported.

Capturing Video

  1. Select or create a new slide to which you want to capture the video file.
  2. Select Adobe Presenter>Video>Capture>Capture Video.
  3. In the As: drop-down menu to the right of the Attach to menu, select “Slide video” to record video directly on the selected slide, or “Sidebar video” to record video for the Presenter image area.
  4. In the Attach to menu, check if the correct slide is selected. If necessary, click the drop-down menu and select a different slide.
  5. Under the Settings Panel, select the appropriate Video Device, Quality and Display Size for your presentation. Make sure your video device is properly plugged into your computer before selecting the video device.
  6. (Optional) If you would like to record audio while capturing video, check the “Record Audio” check box, and set the appropriate Audio Device and Quality for your presentation.
  7. Click the “Record” button to start capturing video.
  8. When finished, click the “Stop Recording” button. (Adobe Presenter converts the captured video to FLV format.)
  9. Click “Play” to view the current recording.
  10. You can delete the current recording by clicking the “Trash Can” button, and then re-capture video by following the steps 7-9.
  11. When the video is complete, click the Save Recording To File button. (If you would like to save the recording to a different location than where the presentation is saved, navigate to a new location for the video file.)
  12. Specify a filename.
  13. Click Save.
  14. Click OK to close the Capture Video window.
  15. [inline:0303.gif]
    Capturing Video

Editing Video

  1. Select the slide containing the video file you would like to edit.
  2. Select Adobe Presenter>Video>Edit.
  3. In the playbar, use Play/Pause to start and pause the video file.
  4. Move the starting and/or ending markers on the bottom of the video play bar to create a new start and/or endpoint of the video. This will change how much of the video will be displayed for the viewers. Only the selection between the markers will be displayed.
  5. You may also choose the appropriate “Effects,” and set the Start After trigger for performing the effect (Time Delay, Animations, and Audio), Speed (the duration of the selected effect) and Time in Seconds (amount of time to wait for the effect to take place).
  6. When finished, click OK.
  7. [inline:0304.gif]
    Editing Video

Recording and Editing Audio

With a microphone connected to your computer, you can record audio that you want to include for each slide. The slide notes in PowerPoint can be used as a script for your narration.

Importing slide notes (Optional)
Note: If you prefer to read your script from printed materials you can skip over this section on “Importing slide notes.”

  1. Open your PowerPoint presentation.
  2. Select Adobe Presenter>Audio>Record.
  3. [inline:0201.gif]
    Recording Audio

  4. Calibrate your microphone by following the instructions in the Set Microphone Recording Level dialog box that appears.
  5. [inline:0202.gif]
    Set Microphone Recording Level

  6. Click OK.
  7. Select the View Script option.
  8. [inline:0203.gif]
    View Script Option

  9. Click Import Notes.
  10. Select Slide Range: All slides.
    • Current Slide: Imports notes from the current slide.
    • Slides: Select specific individual slides in the presentation.
    • To select multiple slides, hold down Shift or Control and select the slide numbers in the list.
  11. Select Import options: Append imported notes to current scripts.
    • Append Imported Notes to Current Scripts will add any imported notes to the end of existing scripts.
    • Replace Current Scripts with Imported Notes removes any existing scripts.
  12. Click OK, or if ready to record audio, go to step 5 in the Record Audio section.

Recording Audio

  1. Open your PowerPoint presentation.
  2. Select Adobe Presenter>Audio>Record.
  3. [inline:0201.gif]
    Recording Audio

  4. Calibrate your microphone by following the instructions in the Set Microphone Recording Level dialog box.
  5. Click OK.
  6. Click Record to begin recording audio.
  7. [inline:0204.gif]
    Recording Audio for Slides

  8. Speak into the microphone.
  9. When you finish, click Stop Recording. (Adobe Presenter converts the audio to MP3 format.)
  10. [inline:0205.gif]
    Stop Recording

  11. Click Play [inline:0206.gif] to listen to the recording.
  12. Click Next [inline:0207.gif] to record audio for the next slide.
  13. When you finish, click OK.

Editing Audio - Adding Silence

  • If you import an audio file and need to synchronize the audio with slides.
  • If you have inserted a Flash file with audio, such as a “talking head” video of a speaker, into a presentation and want to synchronize the Flash file audio with slides.
  1. Open your PowerPoint presentation.
  2. Select Adobe Presenter>Audio>Edit.
  3. [inline:0208.gif]
    Audio Editor

  4. The Audio Edit dialog box will open.
  5. [inline:0209.gif]
    Editing Audio

  6. Click the exact point on the audio file where you want to start the silent period.
  7. From the Audio Editor menu, select Insert>Silence. The Insert Silence dialog box appears.
  8. In the Insert text box, enter a number to specify the length of silence (in seconds).
  9. In the pop-up menu to the right, notice that the Cursor Position, which is the default, is selected.
  10. Click OK. Adobe Presenter adds the silent period to the audio file and displays it in the waveform.
  11. To test the audio file with the silence added, click Play (green arrow) in the lower-left corner of the Audio Editor Dialog box. Click Stop (dark gray square box) when you are finished listening.
  12. [inline:0210.gif]
    Playing Audio

Editing Audio - Adjusting Volume

  1. Select the audio to be adjusted, by clicking and highlighting it.
  2. [inline:0211.gif]
    Highlighting Audio Clip

  3. In the Adobe Presenter Audio Editor window, select Tools>Volume.
  4. The Adjust Volume dialog box will open.
  5. [inline:0212.gif]
    Adjust Volume Dialog Box

  6. Uncheck the Normalize and Dynamics check boxes.
  7. Click the volume slider on the left side and drag it up to increase volume, or down to decrease volume. When finished, click OK.
  8. (Optional) You can change the audio processing options, as follows:
    • Normalize allows Adobe Presenter to adjust the sound volume
      automatically. Normalizing audio helps keep the sound level consistent between slides.
    • Dynamics amplifies quiet sections of the audio to help compensate for variations in audio volume. The Advanced Controls for Dynamics are only available when Dynamics is checked.
  9. (Optional) Click Advanced Controls for advanced editing audio volume options.
    • Ratio specifies the maximum amplification that Breeze Presenter will use. The default setting of 2.0 sets the quietest sections of the audio to be amplified by a factor of 2. A higher setting can improve a project that has large disparities between quiet and loud sections, but can also amplify background noise.
    • Noise Threshold controls the amplification of background noise. Adobe Presenter doesn’t amplify any sound below the threshold. If background noise is amplified too much, it may help to set a higher noise threshold. (Note that the Dynamics option does not work well with high noise levels.) Click OK to save and close all of the dialog boxes.
  10. When you are finished close the Edit Audio window.

Editing Audio - Deleting Audio

  1. Open your PowerPoint presentation.
  2. Select Adobe Presenter>Audio>Edit.
  3. [inline:0208.gif]
    Audio Editor

  4. The Audio Edit dialog box will open.
  5. Select a section of an audio file directly on the waveform by clicking and dragging to highlight the portion to delete.
  6. Click the “Delete” button to delete the selected part of the audio file.
  7. [inline:0213.gif]
    Deleting Audio Clip

Adding a Quiz to ANGEL

  1. Add a quiz to your PowerPoint file using the Adobe Presenter add-in.
  2. Publish the presentation as a .zip file.
  3. In ANGEL, select Add Content in the Lessons toolbar.
  4. [inline:09 Add Content.jpg]
    Add Content

  5. Select IMS/SCORM Package as the type of item to upload.
  6. [inline:10 IMS-SCORM.jpg]
    Select IMS/SCORM Package

  7. Select Upload an IMS/SCORM Package.
  8. [inline:11 Upload IMS-SCORM.jpg]
    Upload IMS/SCORM Package

  9. Click Browse to locate the .zip file.
  10. [inline:12 Browse.jpg]
    Browse File

  11. Select the .zip file and click Open.
  12. Type a title for the file.
  13. [inline:14 title.jpg]
    File Title

  14. Click Upload File.
  15. [inline:15 Upload File.jpg]
    Upload File

  16. Select SCORM.htm from the Default File pull-down list.
  17. [inline:16 SCORM .jpg]
    Select SCORM.htm

  18. Click Extract Files and wait a few seconds.
  19. [inline:17 Extract File.jpg]
    Extract Files

  20. After the file is uploaded and it opens, if the presentation is set to auto play click pause, select Utilities in the toolbar.
  21. [inline:18 Utilities.jpg]
    Utilities

  22. Select SCORM Assignments.
  23. [inline:19 SCORM assignments.jpg]
    SCORM Assignments

  24. Check the check box beside the file name.
  25. [inline:20 checkbox.jpg]
    Checkbox

  26. Select the appropriate category from the Gradebook Category pull-down list.
  27. [inline:21 category.jpg]
    Gradebook Category

  28. Click Submit.
  29. [inline:22 submit.jpg]
    Submit Gradebook Category

  30. Click OK.
  31. [inline:23 ok.jpg]
    Click OK

  32. Click Done.
  33. [inline:24 done.jpg]
    Click Done

Optional SCORM Version Setup

  1. After you have finished crafting the quiz, select from the menu bar, Adobe Presenter> Manage.
  2. [inline:02 Quiz Manager.jpg]
    Quiz Manager

  3. In the Quiz Manager window, select the “Reporting” tab.
  4. Select “SCORM” under the Learning Management System (LMS) section.
  5. Click “Manifest” to set options for how the SCORM manifest file is created.
  6. [inline:05 Manifest.jpg]
    SCORM Manifest

  7. Choose “Version 1.2” from the pull-down list under the SCORM Version section.
  8. [inline:06 SCORM version.jpg]
    SCORM Version

  9. Click OK.

Reporting Quiz Grades in ANGEL

Quiz Reporting

  1. In ANGEL, select a Quiz that has been uploaded and students have completed.
  2. After the Quiz opens, select Reports from the Toolbar.
  3. [inline:QR02.GIF]
    Quiz Reports

  4. Select SCORM Reports.
  5. [inline:QR03.GIF]
    SCORM Reports

  6. View User Report information.
  7. Click Done when finished.
  8. [inline:QR05.GIF]
    User Reports

  9. Click Done, again, in next window.
  10. [inline:QR06.GIF]
    Done

Gradebook Reporting

  1. Select the Manage Tab.
  2. Select Gradebook in the Course Management section.
  3. [inline:GR02.GIF]
    Gradebook

  4. Select Quizzes, Exams, or whichever category you assigned to your Presenter Quiz from the View Grades Category pull-down list.
  5. [inline:GR03.GIF]
    View Grades

  6. Select which user or leave as All Users from the View Grades User pull-down list.
  7. Click Go.
  8. [inline:GR05.GIF]
    Go

Publishing Presentations

Publishing an Unzipped Presentation

  1. Open your PowerPoint presentation.
  2. Select Adobe Presenter>Presentation>Publish.
  3. [inline:0501.gif]
    Publishing Presentations

  4. Select the Location where you want to publish the presentation within My Computer.
  5. If necessary, adjust the Settings and Slide Manager options.
  6. [inline:0502.gif]
    Output Options & Slide Settings

  7. Make sure the Zip package check box, under the Output options section, is not checked and the “View output after publishing” check box is checked.
  8. Click Publish.
  9. When the file has completed publishing it will automatically launch in your web browser.

Publishing a Zipped Presentation

  1. Open your PowerPoint presentation.
  2. Select Adobe Presenter>Presentation>Publish.
  3. [inline:0501.gif]
    Publishing Presentations

  4. Select the Location where you want to publish the presentation within My Computer.
  5. Uncheck the “View output after publishing” check box first, then select the Zip packages check box under the Output Options section.
  6. [inline:0503.gif]
    Output Options

  7. Adjust Settings and Slide Manager options if desired.
  8. Click Publish.
  9. The Publish window will close when completed.

Extracting Zipped Presentations - Using WinZip Extraction

  1. Navigate to the exported Zip folder, then right click on the folder and select Open with WinZip.
  2. [inline:0504.gif]
    Open with WinZip

  3. Select Extract from WinZip menu.
  4. Select the folder to save the files into, such as in My Presenter Presentation. You may also create a subfolder to save the extracted files so that the files are grouped together in a same folder.
  5. Select Extract.
  6. [inline:0505.gif]
    WinZip Extraction

Extracting Zipped Presentations - Using the Extraction Wizard

  1. Navigate to the exported Zip folder, then right click on the folder and select Extract All.
  2. Select Next in the Extraction Wizard window.
  3. Navigate to the folder where you want to extract the files into.
  4. Select Next again and the file extraction will begin.
  5. Once the extraction process is completed, select Finish.

Playing a Published Presentation

  1. Double click on the index file, which will open the presentation in a Web browser.
  2. Select the play button to play each slide.
  3. [inline:0506.gif]
    Adobe Presenter Playbar

Publishing a Presentation to Adobe Connect Pro Server
Note: To publish to the Adobe Connect Server you must have Meeting Creator access privileges.

  1. Open your PowerPoint presentation.
  2. Select Adobe Presenter>Presentation>Publish.
  3. [inline:0501.gif]
    Publishing Presentations

  4. Select the tab “Adobe Connect Pro” on the left side of the Window.
  5. If your server URL or server name is not showing in the Server Configuration window or in the list (click small down arrow) then click on Edit Servers.
  6. [inline:0507.gif]
    Editing Adobe Connect Pro Servers

    • This will take you to the Adobe Presenter>Application>Preferences>Servers tab.
    • Click Add.
      [inline:0508.gif]
      Adobe Connect Pro Settings
    • Enter a unique name for each server you want to access. For example: Penn State users might call the server “Penn State Adobe Connect Server.”
    • Enter the Adobe Connect Server address. For Penn State users it would be https://breeze.psu.edu.
      [inline:0509.gif]
      Adding Penn State Adobe Connect Server
    • Click OK.
    • The name will appear in Adobe Connect Pro Settings window. Click OK to close the Adobe Presenter – Preferences window.
    • The name and URL should now appear in the in the Server Configuration window.
      [inline:0510.gif]
      Adobe Connect Server Configuration
  7. If you have included Audio, Video, or Attachments in your Presentation, make sure to check each of the boxes by Clicking the appropriate Output Options and Upload source presentation with assets options.
  8. Click Publish.
  9. When the files have completed processing, you will be taken to the Adobe Connect Server Login home screen.
  10. Click on Login and login to the server using your Penn State Access Account.
  11. [inline:0511.gif]
    Adobe Connect Server Login

  12. After completing the Login you will be taken to your User Content screen.
  13. [inline:0512.gif]
    User Content

  14. (Optional) Click on the name of the folder or create a new folder where you want to publish the presentation into. You can select and publish to any folder listed as long as you have the proper access privileges. In this example the file will be published to the Adobe Presenter Content folder. Observe in the following graphic the path to the location where the file(s) will reside.
  15. [inline:0513.gif]
    Adobe Presenter Content Folder

  16. Click the Publish to This Folder button.
  17. Complete the Content Information screen.
    • Title and Language are required fields.
    • Custom URL: You may enter a unique URL in the text box, or leave the field bank for a system-generated URL.
    • For more information about setting permissions, please visit http://meeting.psu.edu/createnew.
      [inline:0514.gif]
      Content Information
  18. Click the Next> button to set access permissions.
  19. Click the Next> button to complete the publishing process.
  20. The Content Information Screen will appear and the Adobe Presenter Dialog stating you successfully published your file. Note the URL for Viewing to distribute to meeting participants.
  21. [inline:0515.gif]
    Project Published to the Adobe Connect Pro Server

  22. Click OK in the Adobe Presenter Dialog.
  23. To exit Click OK in the Adobe Presenter – Publish to Connect Pro window.

Note: The uploaded Adobe Presenter Presentation is now available to be used in an Adobe Connect meeting room. Meeting host could broadcast the Presentation to the participants by selecting the Presentation from the Content Library in a Meeting Room Share Pod.

Sharing Presentations

In an Adobe Connect Meeting Room
After you have published a Presenter presentation to the Connect Pro server or your computer, you can add the presentation to a Connect Pro meeting by bringing the file into the share pod from a Content Library or directly from the desktop. For information and procedures for share pods and how to upload content, please visit http://meeting.psu.edu/sharing.

In an ANGEL Course
Upload the Adobe Presenter Zip file in ANGEL by selecting the Add a File link from Add Content, which is found under Course Lessons.

Using Adobe Presenter with ANGEL
If you are using Adobe Presenter with ANGEL to provide students with narrated instructional materials, you will be interested in two topics that were recently added to the online ANGEL Help and Information Guide which provide suggestions of alternatives to uploading large files to ANGEL.

In Web Space

  1. After extracting individual files from the zip file and saving them into a new folder, upload the folder to your Web space. The folder will contain multiple files depending on the size and complexity of your presentation. Here are some examples of the files and subfolder(s): breeze-manifest.xml, components.Swf, index.htm, viewer.Swf and data subfolder.
  2. [inline:0601.gif]
    Sharing Presentation in Web Space

  3. Once uploaded to your Web space, open a Web browser and navigate to the link to the index.htm file in your folder.

Saving Presentation Files for Future Revisions
In order to make any future changes to your Project file, you will need to save the PowerPoint .pptx file, the folder that contain the audio files, and everything else that you created using the Adobe Presenter menu. The folder will have the same name as the PowerPoint.pptx file.
[inline:0602.gif]
Saving Presentation Files

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.