weConnect V2.14.0
Enjoy a richer, more engaging teaching and training experience!
Our brand-new content sharing and video capabilities will help you deliver richer teaching and training experiences, enabling improved learning outcomes for all participants. We have worked on maximizing the performance of webRTC in weConnect, and are happy to introduce:
- 3 options for content sharing for host and operator
- 2 options for content sharing for participants
- 2 modes for camera streams that can be configured in advance by the administrator
HOST AND OPERATOR
1. Share screen (presentation with text)
- Build to present content with text or fine details for a comfortable reading experience.
- Best option for sharing: static slides, text, and static application
2. Share screen (movie clip)
- Build to share fast-moving digital content including lots of details and colors.
- Best option for sharing: slides with video embedded, videos or dynamic software application (e.g: training on 3D or video editing software)
Tip: If you want to share a video with sound don’t forget to tick the ‘share audio’ box in the pop-up window.
3. Share YouTube
- Built and enhanced to share YouTube video directly from its URL
Tip: With that option, you can only play the video full screen. You can start, pause, and end the video but you can’t browse within the video timeline.
PARTICIPANTS
1. Share screen (presentation with text)
- Build to present content with text or fine details for a comfortable reading experience.
- Best option for sharing: static slides, text, and static application
2. Share screen (movie clip)
- Build to share fast-moving digital content including lots of details and colors.
- Best option for sharing: slides with video embedded, videos or dynamic software application (e.g: training on 3D or video editing software)
Important: When a participant is sharing a video, the audio is never shared to avoid an audio loop.
CONFIGURATION (only for administrator)
1. Favor motion mode (for camera nodes)
- For participants who experience bandwidth issues, you can reduce resolution first before reducing framerate.
2. Favor detail mode (for camera nodes)
- Alternatively, if participants experience bandwidth issues, but the resolution is essential at a certain point, this option enables you to maintain it for as long as possible. We suggest enabling this mode for cameras pointed at the display wall (e.g. birds-eye cameras) or cameras pointed at a chalkboard.
Discover how to configure the 2nd option here (the 1st one is the default setting):
1. Go to the 'Locations' tab and select one room
2. Select the display node. E.g: USB Cameras
3. Check 'Favor Details above Fps'
Improvements
- Sessions created though the API can be edited in the UI
Bug fixes
- When the host is drawing on the advanced whiteboard with the 'hide' feature activated it doesn't notify the participant anymore that 'someone is drawing'
- Thumbnail sources on the host UI doesn't show black border anymore
- Wider compatibility for SSO through better support of the service provider single sign on descriptor (SP SSO descriptor)
- The raise hand button is now centered in Chrome 87
- Panopto recordings containing special characters in the title/description will be properly stored
- Fixed issue where the main content was not updating in local use cases (Interactive and Collaborative classroom)
Known issues
- Participants need to stop sharing before starting the breakout rooms
- As a participant, don't log out & log back in during the breakout session or you will lose video & audio. If this happens, refresh the page to recover.
- Since v2.13, the host/operator can't move participants between the different groups during the breakout session.
Technical information
Node firmware: v2.1.2-b77
The latest version of the Barco Pairing Tool: v2.4.1
Prerequisites:
The 2.14.0 update requires the software on the display nodes to be upgraded to v2.1.2-b77. You can control when to allow this update by disabling the “block automatic devices updates” option in the “general” tab on the admin interface. Disabling this feature will allow devices to start upgrading, typically at night. You can test this new v2.1.2-b77 version prior to enabling a full roll-out by executing a force upgrade action on individual devices from the device tab in the admin interface, even if automatic updates are blocked.
Please check the software version of spare devices: if the software version is too old (before v1.8) they will potentially need to be flashed with more recent software. It is best to connect spare display nodes every 6 months to keep the software up to date using the automatic update mechanisms.
