Hālāwai Frequently Asked Questions

General:

GQ1. When using the Help link in a meeting I am sent to the Adobe Acrobat Connect web site, but Help describes information to tools I don't even see available in my meeting room, why is that?

Answer: We have licensed only the "Meeting" portion of the Adobe Acrobat Connect program, so when you go to Adobe Connect Help, it will list information for all tools available in the package. For help focusing on the meeting feature scroll down and open the section for "Adobe Acrobat Connect Professional meetings" OR use the following direct link to the Connect Meetings online Help section only:
http://help.adobe.com/en_US/Connect/6.0/AcrobatConnect/index.html

GQ2. Is there someplace I can go to download the Help manual for just the meeting room portion of Adobe Connect?

Answer: Yes, you can download the following Adobe Acrobat Connect Meeting manual (pdf) from the following link, keep in mind some information presented in the manual may not be specficially applicable to our licensed version of Adobe Connect Meeting.
Download PDF

GQ3. Where can I go to find out about Adobe Connect Accessibility information?

Answer: You can go to:.

• Adobe Connect website at: www.adobe.com/macromedia/accessibility/features/breeze/
• Register for free at Adobe and you can download the extension that allows for real-time audio captioning at http://www.adobe.com/cfusion/exchange/index.cfm?view=sn511&extID=1032548
• Caption extension PDF Manual

GQ4. What are the system requirements for running and participating in Hālāwai?

Answer: At the very least you should have the following -

• An Internet connection - Minimum bandwidth requirement is DSL or Cable (wired connection recommended)
• One of the supported operating systems listed on Adobe's Connect System Requirements page
• One of the supported browsers listed on Adobe's Connect System Requirements page.
  Adobe's Macromedia Flash Player 6.0.79 or later as a browser plug-in
• (Optional) A sound card and speakers to hear audio broadcasts from other meeting participants
• (Optional) A microphone to broadcast audio to other meeting participants (headset type recommended)
• (Optional) A web camera to broadcast video to other meeting participant

GQ5. What are some good tips for running a good meeting?

Answer: Thank you to Kim Cavanaugh at Community MX for allowing us to share some of her excellent tips

1. Bandwidth: Make sure you have a good solid connection to the internet and to the meeting (keep away from scheduling meetings during peak hours such as 12 noon or 7 at night). Check the latency (delay in transmission across the network) and the connection speed by clicking the tiny reen rectabnle all the way over in the upper right corner of the meeting screen. Keep one eye on that indicator, if the green color turns to yellow your bandwidth has dropped.
2. If Bandwidth appears to be an issue, turn down the meeting room connection speed. Change the connection speed (via the Meeting menu > Connection Speed) from the default of (LAN) to (DSL) or cable. Participants may not notice a change, the DSL/Cable setting might result in slightly jerkier video and PowerPoint animations may be slower but you will gain better audio and a more responsive meeting room.
3. Use the phone if you are just meeting with one other person, or create an Audio Bridge if meeting with 4-15 participants. This will allow you to do your audio over the phone and present/share content via Halawai.
4. Have participants test their connection by sending on the Confirmation Email sent you upon meetin request. There is a link for "Test Your Connection" which will help varify the users browser has much of what it needs for a successful link.
5. Freezing the Video, if you see any hint that your bandwidth is dropping (view Tip 1), pause the camera by clicking on the "Pause Camera" button in the Camera and Voice pod. In actuality, you want the audience to focus on your content and not on your moving image.
6. Slow down! Talking quickly and rushing through a presentation can affect audio quality.
7. Use PowerPoint with screen captures instead of sharing your computer screen, your meeting will run a lot smoother. Reason 1: you can lose sight of what's happening in the meeting when switching to share screen, your only seeing your screen when sharing, not what is happening in the meeting room. Recommendation: if possible when sharing your screen use 2 computers, one where you are sharing your screen, the other to have a view of what is happening in the meeting room. Reason 2: sharing can create a lag on the users computer and decrease the strength of their connection which can bog down your meeting.

GQ6. What types of PowerPoint animations are supported?

Answer: Visit the following site: kb.adobe.com

GQ7. How long are recordings available on the server?

Answer: Recordings are removed a few weeks after the following semester starts.

SQ1. I keep trying to schedule a meeting but the form refuses to accept the following email address sammc@alohabroadband.com as a participant. Why?

Answer: The participant section of the schedule form only accepts UH usernames, anyone else would be considered as a "Guest" and no additional information is needed, just make sure you include ALL guests in the total number of participants pull down menu. Once you get the Halawai confirmation email, send to all your UH and non-UH meeting participants. The email contains log in information for all UH participants and Guests.

SQ2. I scheduled a meeting but need to cancel or change the meeting, how can I do this?

Answer: You can edit a meeting participant number, add new participants and cancel a meeting by clicking on the link that is sent to you in the "Halawai Request Received" email. This email is sent to you after you submitted your request.

*NOTE: you can not EDIT if the meeting has already started.

SQ3. Why can't I schedule a Hālāwai session any longer?

Answer: Only UH Faculty and Staff can schedule a meeting. If you are faculty and staff, this block may be due to your previously scheduled meetings that have had a low participant count. You should be able to schedule another meeting within 30 days. If you want to verify that this issue is not some type of technical error you can write us at halawai-l@lists.hawaii.edu to confirm your status.

UQ1. Help, my meeting participants are not seeing my actions as I present!

Answer: Ensure you are indeed logged in as a presenter by checking the Attendees pod on the left of the screen. Presenters are listed with orange text at the beginning of the list.

Also, make sure you're not in Preparing Presenter mode. Actions are not visible to participants in this mode. Send a message to the presenter asking for presenter status or try logging in as a registered user.

UQ2. I am unable to share my screen during a meeting.

Answer: Hosts and Presenters on a PC or Macintosh can share their screen by downloading the Breeze/Acrobat Connect Meeting Add-in when prompted to do so. The Acrobat Connect Meeting Add-in can also be installed using the stand-alone installer using the following steps:

To install the Adobe Acrobat Connect Add-in, click the Install Windows or Install Macintosh, depending on your operating system.

Another thing to be aware of when sharing one application, rather than the entire screen, is that it must be visible on screen at all times. If an application not being shared is opened by the sharing presenter, participants will not see the portion of the screen covered by the new application but will instead see a blue checked pattern.

UQ3. When uploading files I have options for either uploading from my computer desktop or directly from the content library. How do I get files into the Content Library?

Answer: You can't upload to the "Content Library", this feature is not enabled. Due to the way we have our licensed version of Halawai configured, files can only be uploaded directly from ones computer desktop.

UQ4. My PowerPoint presentations, SWF and JPG content aren't displayed when shared in a meeting.

Answer: This can happen if your internet security settings in Internet Explorer are set to 'High'.

In order to display your PowerPoint Presentation, SWF, JPG or FlashPaper content, you have to set your internet security settings to 'Medium' or 'Low':

• Open Internet Explorer
• Go to Tools > Internet Options
• Select the Security tab
• Click on the Internet icon
• Select Custom Level...
• Reset custom settings to Medium
• Click the Reset button
• Click OK

UQ5. What type of files/media/etc can I upload to my meeting?

Answer: This depends on what you plan on doing with the files. If you are uploading a file to a share pod they need to be PowerPoint (PPT), Flash (SWF), JPG, MP3 or Adobe Flash Video File (FLV). If you are uploading files to the Content Library they need to be in one of the following formats:

• PDF file
• PPT file
• SWF file
• HTML file
• Adobe Presenter content published through the Presenter plugin
• Presenter content packaged as a ZIP file
• ZIP file that contains multiple SWF files and extra files (images, XML files, and so on) and one file called index.swf that will be loaded first
• ZIP file that contains simple Authorware content (one HTM file, one AAM file, and extra
• Authorware files
• ZIP file that contains multiple HTM or HTML files and extra files (images, SWF, and so on) and one file called index.htm or index.html
• Adobe Flash video file (FLV file)
• JPEG, GIF, or PNG
• MP3

AQ1. All of my guest participants are emailing me saying they can not get into the meeting. I know I gave them the log in information which was sent to me when I scheduled the meeting and they say they went through all the browser checks and FAQ's, but are still not able to get in. What can I do?

Answer: If they have verified their browser settings, installed whatever was asked of them, gone through all the FAQ's and still have issues with gaining access to your meeting it may be due to the fact that you have yet to "accept" the guest(s) into the meeting.

If you have allowed guests (non-UH users) to participate in your meeting pay close attention to the status and menu bars that pop up in the upper and lower right hand corners of the screen. These pop ups are activated when a Guest participant is attempting to enter. You MUST choose to accept or decline any guest(s) entry in order for them to have access.

Another possibility is if you intentionally stopped the meeting which is an option in the Present menubar, in which case ALL participants will be shut out of the meeting until it's started again (by unchecking Stop Meeting in the Present menu).

AQ2. I was invited to a meeting but I do not have a UH username or password. How do I log in?

Answer: You will need to either review your Hālāwai Confirmation email sent to you by your meeting host. The original email should contain guest log in directions, including your guest username and password. If you did not receive such an email you will need to contact your host for log in directions.

AQ3. I have logged in as a "Guest" or non-UH user and nothing is happening.

Answer: Approval is needed when logging in as a guest and a pending approval message will be displayed. If the request is declined, entrance to the meeting will not be possible and a message stating that the request was declined will be displayed. Contact your meeting presenter or host directly if you should have access to the meeting.

AQ4. I am logged in with my UH username but when I try to enter the meeting, it doesn't connect.

Answer: The fastest option would be to go through the connection check created by the Adobe site using the following link:
http://breeze.hawaii.edu/common/help/en/support/meeting_test.htm

Other quick things to check that will affect meeting access. Although they seem simple, sometimes a check of the following items can be helpful in determining the access issues.

• Disable popup blocker software.
• Try clearing the browser's cache.
• Also try connecting from another computer.
• Are you accessing the correct URL?
• Have you registered for the meeting, event, or seminar?
• Do you have a password to access the meeting?
• Have you tried changing the password? Note: Passwords are case sensitive.
• Is the latest version of Flash Player installed on your computer? If Flash Player 6.0.65 or higher is not installed issues can arise when trying to access a Meeting. To install or update Flash Player follow these steps:

  1. Check the Flash Player version on the Player test page. Mouse over About to see your installed version.
  2. Visit the Flash Player Download Center and click the Install Now button. (The Adobe site will indicate whether or not the version should be updated)
  3. Once the player is installed, close all browser windows and re-open before trying to connect to meeting again.

• If behind a proxy server this option may be helpful. Some companies use proxy servers to control internet access.

  1. Within Internet Explorer select Tools > Internet Options> Advanced tab.
  2. Enable the setting Use HTTP 1.1 through proxy connections and click OK.
  3. Close all browser windows and re-open before trying to connect to meeting again

AQ5. When trying to enter a meeting, the 'connecting...' animation continually plays but never loads the meeting. All other participants are able to enter the meeting.

Answer: This can happen if you are behind a proxy server and your browser is not set to support HTTP 1.1 through proxy connections.

For Internet Explorer users:

• Open Internet Explorer.
• Select Tools > Internet Options.
• Select Advanced.
• Scroll down to "HTTP 1.1 settings".
• Select "Use HTTP 1.1 through proxy connections".
• Click OK.
• Close all browser windows and reconnect to the meeting.

For Netscape users:

• Open up Netscape.
• Select Edit > Preferences.
• Select Advanced.
• Select "HTTP Networking".
• Select "Use HTTP 1.1" for both options.
• Click OK.
• Close all browser windows and reconnect to the meeting.

AQ6. I am on Vista and when logging into Halawai and running a meeting, it seems to be very slow, how can I speed things up?

Answer: The more common cause is Aero.  Aero is Vista's new GUI interface, and is very taxing on the system. Below are steps on how to turn this functionality off.  Doing so frees allot of system resources which should help to improve performance.

1. Click Start, and then click Control Panel.
2. Click Appearance and Personalization.
3. Under Personalization, click Change the color scheme
4. In the Appearance Settings dialog, click Windows Vista Basic, and then click OK. Or, if you prefer a Windows 2000-style interface, click Windows Standard, and then click OK.

BQ1. When a I attempt to log into a meeting using Mac's Safari browser, the browser does not open.

Answer: The Meeting browser will not launch if JavaScript is disabled so you will need to either enable JavaScript or use Default Lightning Download.

To enable JavaScript for Safari on Macintosh do the following:

• Select Preferences from the Safari menu.
• Click Security.
• Check Enable JavaScript.
• Close the window.
• Click Reload.

AVQ1. I am unable to speak or be seen during a meeting.

Answer: If you are a participant the Host or Presenter of your meeting needs to allow you to broadcast audio and video by changing your role to Presenter, or by changing permissions for the Camera and Voice Pod.

AVQ2. I am giving a meeting a would like certain participants to be able to use their microphone and/or video camera, how can I do this?

Answer: In the Attendee pod, select the participant’s name and do one of the following:

1. Click the Set User Role button in the lower left corner, and select Set as Presenter. This will alter their role for the time they need to broadcast, remember to set them back to Participant when they are finished.

2. Click the Pod Options button and select Change Enhanced Participant Rights. In the dialog box, select Camera and Voice pod and click OK. This is probably the easiest option, remember to go back and undo this selection when the participant is done broadcasting.

AVQ3. I getting ready to scheduling a meeting and would like all participants to be able to talk in an open forum environment or all at the same time. What is the best way to do this?

Answer: The best option would be to request a phone bridge. This is an option within the schedule form for hosts/presenters who are inviting at least 4 participants and no larger than 15.

The only other way this could be done is to have the host and/or presenter upgrade all participant roles to a presenter status. This would enable everyone to use video and/or audio. Yet, in the Adobe Connect environment only one person can talk at any given time.

AVQ4. Sometimes when in a meeting I hear echoes. What can I do to fix that?

Answer: Web conferencing echo can be caused for a variety of reasons. The most often factor that can cause echo - or feedback - when several individuals are active simultaneously is having an open microphone (lock to talk) and using computer speakers. This causes any noise or speech that is broadcast by another to be picked up by the local microphone and re-broadcast – thus creating a loop or echo.

This can also occur if a telephone conference is used and the phone call is accessed via a speakerphone as opposed to something like using the hardware Andrea PTI-3-way interface which solves this problem through a hardware solution. It is always recommended that that each individual connection run the Audio wizard at the beginning of the session to ensure that everything is set properly. If it is desirable that each connection have the “lock-to-talk” button locked on, then I recommend those who can use headsets and avoid using the computer speakers.

VMQ1. What do you recommend for web cameras and microphones?

Microphone: Any head-set variety that includes both earphone and microphone would suffice (avoid using the USB microphone that comes packaged with your computer). Yet we can recommend:

• Logitech USB ClearChat Comfort USB Headset

Web Camera: Any USB or Firewire Web Cam would be fine. Yet we can recommend:

• PC users, Logitech QuickCam Chat
• Mac users, the internal built-in iSight, the external iSight camera connected via firewire cable or iMage USB Webcam.

VMQ2. My external or internal iSight webcam on my Mac is not working in my meeting, whats wrong?

Answer: By default, your computer will launch iChat AV whenever the iSight camera is activated, basically taking over the software driver in Mac OS X.

Use the following workaround to help avoid this issue:

1. Make sure iChat AV is not running.
2. Start your Adobe Connect meeting by launching the URL in your browser. If the meeting Add-In is not installed, be sure to install this now.
3. If you are using the external version of iSight, unplug the camera from your Firewire port, check to see that the lens is set to the open position, then plug it back in. Note: If your iSight is the internal type, built into your iMac or PowerBook/MacBook, turn it off. Then, turn it back on.
4. Whenever the camera is activated, by default the system will launch iChat AV, thus taking over the camera. If you choose, you may disable the auto-launch feature by selecting "Preferences..." from the iChat menu (or use 'option' + ',' keys), click on the 'Video' preferences, then uncheck the 'Automatically open iChat when camera is turned on' option.
5. Be sure to quit iChat (using 'option' + 'q' keys), which releases control of the iSight camera.
6. In the Meeting drop-down menu, choose "Select Camera..."

• For external cameras, choose "IIDC FireWire Video".
• For internal cameras, choose "USB Video Class Video" (this name may vary).

Start the Camera. Your iSight camera should now be active and the images should appear in your meeting 'Camera & Voice' pod. If the camera is still not working:

• Stop the broadcast and start it up again using the buttons at the bottom of the Camera and Voice pod
• Pause the video and then un-pause using the buttons at the bottom of the Camera and Voice pod
• Quit the meeting and come back in

The iSight camera may include a built-in omni-directional microphone, however, to help minimize background noise and ensure optimum audio quality, the use of a dedicated directional microphone is preferred.

Please consult http://www.apple.com/isight for detailed specifications regarding the iSight camera and iChat AV software.

VMQ3. I am a Presenter and when I entered my meeting I got a prompt that allowed the Flash Player to use the webcam on my computer, but when I clicked 'Allow' and then selected 'Start Camera' the display was black and no audio came through.

Answer: Adobe Connect is apparently using the wrong AV input driver, you will need to select the correct driver by using the following steps:

1. In the meeting room, select 'Meeting' > 'Select Camera...' dialog to open the Adobe Flash Player Settings.
2. In the privacy settings tab, ensure that Allow is selected. Optionally, you may tick the 'Remember' checkbox, which will store the setting for later meetings on the same domain.
3. In the camera settings tab, select the appropriate device to activate the camera you wish to use.

For example:

• IIDC FireWire Video, an external camera (such as iSight on a firewire port)
• DV Video, an external DV compatible camera (such as a consumer DVC video camera)
• USB Video Class Video, an external or internal attached camera (such as a built-in iSight)
• DVCPRO HD 1080i60, an external HD compatible camera (such as an HDTV video camera)

You may use the microphone settings tab to confirm your desired audio device is selected, however, for optimum sound you will want to use the 'Audio Setup Wizard...' from the Meeting menu.