User's guide

Introduction

This guide is designed to assist you in getting the most out of your Accessible Event experience.

Accessible Event allows blind, deaf, and deaf/blind individuals to view, hear or feel content in an online meeting or ‘event’ presented verbally, in Microsoft® Word™, Excel®, PowerPoint®, and standard web pages. It works alongside traditional meeting and event programs such as Microsoft® Live Meeting, Cisco WebEx, Citrix® GoToMeeting® or GoToWebinar®, Adobe® Acrobat® Connect®, and IBM® Lotus® Sametime® Unyte™, and renders a presenter’s content accessible in HTML format through an attendee’s web browser.

System requirements

Accessible Event can be hosted on any computer running the Windows® operating system, XP or later. It can run on 32 and 64-bit versions of the Windows operating system. A presenter’s audio and video, if available, are transmitted to attendees, so a microphone and camera are recommended for best results.

Accessible Event attendees must log in with a browser which has Adobe Flash® Player 9 or higher installed. Attendees will use the assistive technology currently installed on the computer or portable device to access the presented content. The content is presented in a standard web page, so an attendee is encouraged to become familiar with navigating standard web pages on the computer or portable device using the assistive technology installed.

Creating a meeting or event

Getting started with Accessible Event is easy. It is very much like setting up a conference call; the meeting or “event” presenter establishes the event and the attendees log in to the event with a code provided by the presenter.

Once you have purchased your Accessible Event subscription (purchase options include a single event, a day pass, a monthly or annual subscription, or an enterprise level server option) simply visit www.accessibleevent.com to log in.

Logging in is easy. On the Presenter Control Panel at www.accessibleevent.com, select the link which says: “To host an event, please log in”. You will then be prompted for your email address and password, which you received during the Accessible Event subscription process. Enter this information and select the “log in” button.

Once you are logged in, you will find links to any previous events you have created, as well as the option to add a new event.

To create a new event, simply select the link entitled “add a new event”. You will then be prompted to enter the name of the event, and to choose the date upon which the event will expire and no longer be available. Once you’ve done this, select the “add” button and the event will be created. A page will be displayed providing the event information, including the event code which your attendees requiring accessibility will need in order to join the event.

The Accessible Event host

The Accessible Event host is a small piece of software which makes it possible for the presenter to share information with event attendees. This small program does not require installation, but rather can be run in the background and closed when no longer needed.

You may either select the host directly from the event page, or download it for later use.

To begin this process, log in to Accessible Event and select the event you wish to launch from the list of events you’ve created. You will find the event code and an option to select the background host program. Select this option and select “download.” You will be prompted to “run” or “save” the program. If you wish to begin your event right away, you may simply run the program. If, however, you’d like to save the event for later use, choose the save option in your browser, and navigate to the location in which you’d like the file to be saved.

Organizing a Meeting or Event

To conduct a successful meeting or event, you’ll first want to ensure that your attendees have the necessary information to log in. This information includes the URL which must be opened in the attendee’s web browser, and the event code needed to access the event you are hosting. The URL which attendees will use to log in is http://www.accessibleevent.com. You can find the 9-digit event code associated with your event by logging in to Accessible Event and selecting the desired event from your list of created events.

Now that you have all the necessary information, you may include it in your standard invitation that you use for all attendees. Simply offer an accessible option and your blind, deaf and blind/deaf attendees will have everything they need to experience the same event as your sighted and hearing attendees.

Real-time captioning

Real-time captioning can be made available to deaf and deaf/blind individuals. In order for a captioner to provide this service during an event, the option to allow captioning must be enabled. To do this, select the “enable captioning” link found on your event page. You’ll be presented with a captioner code, which can then be sent to the captioner attending the event.

Testing your camera

Before you begin your event, you’ll want to test the placement of your video camera if you intend to use one. To test that your video camera is focused appropriately, simply select “test camera” from the Accessible Event main page after you have logged in. If you have vision, you’ll be able to observe how your video feed will appear to attendees of your event. Once you have verified that your video positioning is optimal, you may close the “test camera” window.

Beginning an event

Now that you and your attendees are all set up, you’re ready to begin your event. To begin hosting an accessible event, select the Accessible Event host, either from your Presenter Control Panel or by choosing the executable file you’ve saved on your hard drive. Once selected, the host program will inform you that it is active and awaiting content. Now you may conduct your event utilizing any meeting or event service you choose, with Accessible Event running in the background.

Please note that as soon as the Accessible Host is active, your audio and video stream is available to attendees, regardless of whether you are currently displaying content. In other words, just like hanging up after a conference call, you will want to close the Accessible Host when the event is adjourned.

Displaying Content

Content supported by Accessible Event includes:

To begin displaying your content to attendees, please make sure that the window containing any of the supported content types displayed above has focus.

If you are presenting in Microsoft PowerPoint, ensure that the content is being displayed in slideshow mode. If you are unable to see this option on your screen, you may accomplish this by pressing f5 while the PowerPoint document is open. To move to the next slide in the slideshow, simply press the space bar.

Attendance log

If you’d like to see how many attendees are currently logged in to your event, you may choose the “show attendees” option from the Accessible Event Host menu. To do this, right select the “Accessible Event Host” icon in the task bar, or if using a screen reader, select the system tray and choose the right click option when the Accessible Event Host icon is selected. From here, select the “show attendees” option.

Handling questions from attendees

Attendees using Accessible Event have the option of asking questions during a presentation. When an attendee asks a question, you will be prompted that an attendee has submitted a question. To accept the question, press control+shift+y. To discard the question, press control+shift+n.

When a question is accepted, a browser window will gain focus on the presenter’s computer. If the question is submitted in text format, the text will be displayed in the presenter’s browser. If the question is presented in audio format, the audio will immediately begin to play from within the presenter’s browser.

Note that since the question is displayed in the presenter’s browser, it is also displayed to all event attendees, so there is no need to repeat the question before answering it.

Exiting Accessible Event host

When your event has concluded, you’ll need to exit the Accessible Event Host in order to cease transmitting your audio/video stream and your content. To exit the Accessible Event Host, right click the Accessible Event host icon in the system tray, or open the system tray with your screen reader and choose the right click option. Then, select “exit Accessible Event Host.” When this is done, you will no longer be transmitting content to your attendees, and the event will be concluded. Since there is no installation associated with Accessible Event Host, you need not remove any programs from your system once the event has concluded. A concluded event does not necessarily mean the event is no longer available. That date is selected by the presenter in the Presenter Control Panel.

Attending an event

To attend an event, you’ll first need a 9-digit event code from the event presenter. This will be sent to you most likely by email from your presenter, or given to you verbally.

Once you have this event code, simply visit http://www.accessibleevent.com from the computer or portable device you’ll be using to attend the event. In the edit box labeled “event code”, enter the 9-digit code you received from your presenter. Enter your name in the next edit box, and select the “go” button.

That’s it! You have now joined the event and can participate fully.

Navigating content

When a presenter displays content such as a Microsoft Word document or Excel spreadsheet, the content will be displayed in an HTML format in your web browser. If a presenter updates content during the presentation, such as editing a document or proceeding to the next PowerPoint slide, the browser page will refresh automatically and you will be able to view the updated content.

When viewing content, you will navigate the content as though it were a standard web page. If links are present in the content, you may select those links just as you would in a standard web page. If a presenter displays a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet, you may use the table navigation functionality in your assistive technology to view the contents of the spreadsheet. You may scroll through the displayed content at your leisure as the presenter is speaking.

Asking a question during an event

There are two modes by which you may ask a question during an event. You may ask a question by typing in text, or by transmitting your question via audio.

To begin the process, select the “ask a question” button on the top of the event page. You’ll be presented with two options which are “text” and “audio/video.”

If you select the text option, you’ll be presented with an edit box, in which you may type your question. When done, select “send” and the presenter will be notified that there is a question and who initiated that question.

When choosing the audio/video option, you’ll be presented with a page containing buttons such as record, stop, play, and submit. To begin recording your question, select the record button by pressing the space bar. When done, tab to the stop button and press the space bar. If you wish to review your recording before submitting your question, press the space bar on the play button to listen to your recording. When you’re ready to submit your question, press the space bar on the “submit” button.

If the presenter accepts your question, it will be played or displayed in your browser so that you and all other attendees can hear and/or see the question.

Viewing captioning

If you are deaf or deaf/blind and a captioner is available for the event you are attending, you can view the captions in real-time by activating the “view captioning” button. Once you have done this, captions will appear in the event page displayed in your browser, and you may review them by sight or in Braille, just as you would view the contents of a standard web page.

Leaving the Event

If for any reason you need to leave the event before its conclusion, you may simply close the web browser displaying the event page. This can also be done at the event’s conclusion.

Conclusion

Thank you for choosing to improve accessibility with Accessible Event. We hope that this guide has been useful in making your Accessible Event experience a simple and easy one. Should you have any additional questions, please refer to the Accessible Event FAQ [link] or please contact your Accessible Event support center at info@accessibleevent.com or by calling (612) 246-4818.

NOTE: Product names, brands and other trademarks featured or referred to within this Accessible Event Users Guide are the property of their respective trademark holders. These trademark holders are not affiliated with Accessible Event and do not sponsor or endorse these materials.