BigBlueButton manual for participants

BigBlueButton (BBB) Is  the open source conferencing solution that we will be using for our online sessions. It is hosted on APC's own servers and very safe to use.

Our BigBlueButton spaces

Tips for participation in BigBlueButton sessions

Using BBB

Quick overview

We highly recommend you to watch both videos below to get familiar with capabilities of BigBlueButton.

Additional video tutorials https://bigbluebutton.org/teachers/tutorials/.

Joining the meeting

To use BigBlueButton you just need open the session link your browser (recommended are Firefox, Chrome and Safari). And it works on mobile devices too.

There might be some hiccups with some browsers, especially on phones (in general when a phone goes to “sleep” the browser usually stops working), because each Android manufacturer deals with web browsing differently (iPhone should work fine). So, if you encounter problems, please be ready to re-enter the session with another browser.

When you join the session your browser will ask you if you want to join in Microphone or Listen only mode. Select Microphone as to be able to interact.

join-audio.png

Next you will need to enable microphone by clicking Allow button.

BBB-enable-audio.png

Then you will be able to test your microphone with echo test.

bbb-echo-test.png

Speak to test the microphone (no one else will be able to hear you) and if you hear yourself, confirm it by clicking on Yes button. If you don’t hear yourself select No and you will be able to change your audio settings.

bbb-audio-settings.png

You can use headsets but some operating systems might have “drivers” issues, so be ready to use another set of headsets or the internal audio/microphone of your computer.

Next you will join the session.

Remember not to use the BACK button in the browser, or you will leave the meeting. If you do, just rejoin and go through echo test again. If you have audio issues during the session (others can't hear you or you can’t hear them) click on the headset icon to select a different microphone or speaker.

The interface

bbb-screen.png

On the left hand side of the screen you can see participant’s list, public chat and access to the shared meeting notes.

In the middle of the screen you will see different things according to the setup (presentation, videos, shared screen, whiteboard, etc.) and you have a lot of control over your own view of the meeting (more on that below in the Video section).

You can use the buttons below the presentation to mute/unmute yourself, leave/join audio, share camera, share your screen, enable interpretation or closed captioning and raise your hand. Some buttons might not be visible due to the settings of the room or your role in the meeting (meeting organizer and presenter have more buttons than participants).

Participants

You can see a list of all participants in the session on the left hand side of the screen.

all-user-roles.png

BBB-statuses.png

Chat

Chat works like you are used to on other platforms, so we will only mention additional functions, that you might need.

Notes
Control audio, camera and sharing screen

You can use the buttons below the center screen to mute/unmute yourself, reconnect audio (leave and join again), share/unshare camera or share your screen. Some buttons might not be visible due to the settings of the room, and depending if you are meeting organizer, presenter or participant.

icons.png

Mute and unmute your audio

To mute or unmute you can click on the microphone icon. You can also select mute/unmute in your status (by clicking on your name in the list of participants) or press spacebar on your keyboard.

Reconnect audio

Leaving audio and reconnecting is useful when you encounter issues with your audio, if you connect or change your headphones or when you get back to the main room from a breakout room. To reconnect audio click on the phone icon and follow the instructions on the screen.

Share camera

To share your camera:

  1. click on the camera icon,

  2. allow browser to access the camera,

  3. preview the shared camera image and

  4. click on the Start sharing button.

Share screen

If moderator made you the presenter you can also share your window or entire screen. Click on the share screen icon and follow the instructions on the screen.

Using interpretation

When interpretation is enabled, the blue “globe” icon allows you to choose the language you would like to listen to.

interpretation-icon.png

 If the language is being spoken by someone in the session, you will hear the original audio. If an interpreter is speaking in that language, you will hear the interpreter’s voice as well as the original audio at the background. You can increase interpreter's volume or original audio volume as it best suits your hearing.

bbb-interpretation-volume.png

When an interpreted language is chosen, a new slider control will appear on the left hand side menu, above the list of names. This slider allows you to select the volume of the original language vs the interpreted language. This is particularly helpful when a speaker has a very loud microphone or voice and it is difficult to hear interpretation above it.

If a BBB session’s audio is being recorded, the recording will only reflect the original audio or “floor”.

Note: some participants have indicated that when they switch from one interpreted language to another, they can't hear well, but it will certainly work if you switch to the floor sound first and then to the other language channel.

Raising your hand

If you click the icon to raise hand in the lower right corner, everyone will be aware that you are requesting to participate. Also, your name will show first in the participants list.

Click again to lower the hand.

Closed captioning (CC)

If closed captions are enabled (live subtitles) a CC icon will appear at the bottom of your screen. Click to enable it and select font and color of the subtitles.

Adjust what you see

When presentation or cameras are shared, you can adjust how they appear on your screen.

Camera

move-videos.png

focus.png     camera-focus.png

Presentation

Interaction with drawing tools

draving-tools.png

Connection status

A connection status icon at the top right of the screen allows you to see how good connection you have and adjust data usage. This is especially important for mobile phones on slow connections.

bbb-connection-status.png

If it becomes red, your bandwidth is not very good at the moment and it is recommended that you click on it and disable cameras and desktop sharing.

connection-status.png

Personal settings

Clicking on three dots icon will open personal settings window that enables you to optimize your experience in BigBlueButton.

bbb-three-dots.png

Here you can adjust the user interface - animations, audio filters, application language.

settings-1.png

And in the Notifications tab you can adjust audio and popup alerts.

settings-2.png

 

Breakout rooms

When moderator opens breakout rooms you will receive a notification. If moderator has assigned you to a specific room you will be asked to join that one.

Join-breakout-room.png

When the choice of which room to join is left to participants, there will be an additional dropdown menu to select the room before you can join it.

join-breakout-room-select.png

When you enter the breakout room you will see time left until the breakout room closes displayed on the top of the window. Other functionalities are similar to the main room (recording is not available though).

breakout-room-remaining-time.png

To leave the breakout room just close the browser tab or window. If that happens accidentally, moderators in the main room can place you in a specific breakout room.

When you enter the main room again, reconnect audio and you will be able to participate.


Revision #8
Created 10 November 2021 11:27:16 by MajaK
Updated 10 November 2021 21:49:08 by MajaK