Using Talking Communities – Guidelines
Prepared by the AER Accessibility Committee
April 2013
WHAT IS TALKING COMMUNITIES AND HOW IS THE AER BOARD
USING IT?
Talking Communities (TC) is a web conferencing platform. For the AER
Board Meetings two components of TC are going to be used. One is the
"talk" feature that will allow everyone to hear each other speaking. The
other is the "public chat" feature that will allow everyone to type messages
in the window and see messages posted by others.
HOW DO I GET STARTED WITH TC?
1. It is HIGHLY recommended that you use a Windows based computer for
the TC session. Connectivity for Macs and iPads/iPhones is not strong. If
you are using a Mac please contact Penny Rosenblum at
[email protected] for more information.
2. The preferred browser is Internet Explorer.
3. Go to
http://www.conference321.com/masteradmin/room.asp?id=rs451435da03f8
Photo 1 shows an image of the page you will see.
Photo 1:
4. The first time you go to this site you will see a note that first time users
need to install a program. (A red circle is shown on Photo 1 where this
message appears.) YOU MUST DOWNLOAD THE PROGRAM. Please do
this before the training. Click on Download (circled in blue on Photo 1).
5. Photo 2 shows the pop up you will get asking you if you want to RUN the
Webconferenceplugin.exe file. You must click on RUN as shown in the red
circle on Photo 2. You will only do this the first time you use the computer
to login to TC.
Photo 2:
6. Click on "CLICK HERE TO ENTER THE ROOM" which is a link. See the
green circle on Photo 1 to find where this link is located. EACH TIME YOU
COME TO A TC MEETING YOU WILL CLICK ON THIS LINK.
7. You will next see a screen that asks for your permission to run a program.
This program allows TC to work on your machine. Photo 3 shows the screen
you will see. Click on Allow which is circled in red on the photo. Please note
that depending on your virus protection program you may get other
warnings. You must allow TC to install and run this program!
Photo 3:
8. Login with your full name, eg. Janet Smith, and use the password aerbvi –
which is in lower case with no spaces. Photo 4 shows what the login screen
looks like.
Photo 4:
9. You will be joined to the meeting. Your screen will look like the image in
Photo 5. You'll notice the screen is divided into 3 sections. On the left is the
AER web page in the whiteboard area. On the top right is the public chat
window (shown with a light blue background). On the bottom right is the list
of moderators and participants.
Photo 5:
10. AER is only going to be using the public chat and the talk feature of TC.
ALL INDIVIDUALS ATTENDING THE BOARD MEETING SHOULD HAVE
DOWNLOADED ALL DOCUMENTS FOR THE MEETING AS INSTRUCTED
BY AER OFFICE STAFF. You will not be seeing documents displayed during
the meeting.
11. Photo 6 shows the Public Chat Window: You can type a message in the
public chat window and when you press ENTER it will be displayed. You can
scroll through the message others are typing. The area circled in red in
Photo 6 shows where to type your message.
Photo 6
Command Keys:
F8: Press F8 to type a message and then press ENTER to send.
F9: To move through the list of messages press F9 and arrow through the
messages.
12. Photo 7 shows the Participant List and Talking: You can see a list of who
is in the TC room in the participant window. You can also get in line to talk
and you can talk when the microphone is given to you.
Photo 7:
Photo 8:
To Talk: The easiest way to get in line to talk is to hold down your CONTROL
Key. Alternatively you can click on the microphone button shown in the red
circle on Photo 7. When it is your turn to speak the background of the
button will turn red and you will hear a "bleep" sound indicating it is your
turn to speak (See green circle on Photo 8). When you are done speaking
release the CONTROL Key or click on the microphone button and the red
background color will disappear indicating you have released the
microphone. You will also hear a click sound. HINT: Think walkie-talkie
from your childhood! Click, talk, click just like you did when you were 8!
Command Keys:
CONTROL: To get in line to talk hold your CONTROL key down. When it is
your turn to speak you will hear a "bleep" sound. When you are done
speaking release the CONTROL key.
ALT-E: To find out who is speaking press ALT-E.
F7: To see who is in the participant window press F7.
Other Points:
1. The AER TC Room is available 24-7. You may get in the room at any
point to practice on your own. A good way to do this is to log yourself in on
two computers or ask a colleague, friend or family member to login with you
so you can practice.
2. Tab and Shift+Tab: To move to various parts of the TC Conference
window use Tab and Shift+Tab.
3. You can lock your microphone if you are talking for a long time. Go to the
ACTIONS menu and select lock microphone.
4. This help file explains the process to get into a TC room:
http://www.talkingcommunities.com/helpdesk/knowledgebase.php?category
=7
5. During the Board Meeting should you need assistance email or call Neva
Her email is [email protected] and her cell number is 972-897-4171.