How-To Guide Contents:
Registration
Viewing presentations
Zoom links
Session format
Chairing instructions
Zoom tech assistance instructions
How does this virtual conference work?
The conference will hold virtual sessions via Zoom, from 8-11 September, at the times indicated on the conference schedule. Attendees can view, listen to, and read presenter materials in advance of the regular sessions on the conference website. The regular sessions themselves will be primarily devoted to discussion among presenters and attendees. Keynote talks will also take place over Zoom, but there are no advance materials for these events.
The Zoom link for each session is posted to the password-protected page for that session on the conference website (see below for more information). There is no need to register for individual sessions ahead of time.
Please review the schedule as posted on the conference website to plan your participation, as some changes have been made in recent weeks.
How do I register for the conference?
Select the Registration tab of the conference website; simply enter your name and email address and hit submit. You will receive an automated email notification that includes the password to access all password-protected areas of the website. Please note that this message will not include the links to the Zoom sessions. See the next question for information about Zoom session links.
Where can I view the schedule
and the presentation materials themselves?
Visit the tab for each day of the conference (Day 1, Day 2, Day 3, Day 4) for the daily schedule of presentations. Click on the title of a panel to be taken to the presentations (videos, podcasts, papers) themselves. Registrants will be prompted to enter a password. This password will have been sent to you automatically upon registration. If you have not received it or cannot find it, please contact RSVP’s Communications Coordinator, Alison Hedley.
Please view, listen to, and read presenter materials in advance of the session; presenters will not be giving full papers during the session, but will give a brief overview followed by Q&A discussion.
How do I access the session “room” on Zoom?
The link the Zoom room for each panel or event appears at the top of the password-protected page for this panel. Please note that there are different rooms/Zoom links for every event. When you click on the Zoom link at the beginning of the event, you will be directed to a Zoom waiting room; one of the session hosts (the chair or the tech assistant) will let you into the meeting.
We recommend having the most recent version of Zoom downloaded on your computer to limit technical hiccups.
For information on Zoom use and troubleshooting, please see Zoom’s video tutorials; to quickly find the answer to a specific question, use the search function of the Zoom Help Center.
What is the format of regular sessions?
Please review the schedule as posted on the conference website in case any changes have been made to a panel.
The sessions themselves are structured to facilitate engaging discussion. To listen to the full version of each paper, participants can access presenters’ materials in advance on the conference website (see above). Sessions will take the following format:
– The chair will introduce the speakers, their bios, and conference presentation titles
– Speakers will give a recap of their presentation in 5 minutes or less
– The chair will then open the floor to Q&A from audience members
– The panel will be 60 minutes in total
How do I chair the panel I’ve volunteered for?
Thank you for agreeing to chair a panel! Please be sure to read/view/listen to the presentations in your session in advance. If you have not already done so, email your session panelists to solicit brief biographical statements. You should have received an email from RSVP’s Communications Coordinator with information about how to contact panelists; please refer to this email or contact Alison Hedley.
Please review the schedule as posted on the conference website in case any changes have been made to your panel. Plan to arrive at your session 15 minutes early so that one of the conference’s local organizers can make you a co-host of the Zoom room. This will give you essential administrative privileges, such as the abilities to enable screen sharing and adjust room settings if/as needed. Please see above for the format of regular sessions. Your role involves introducing panelists and sharing or reading their bios; moderating discussion, and keeping the session to time.
OPTIONAL: If you wish, you can copy and paste panelist bios into Zoom’s chat function rather than reading each statement aloud prior to each paper brief. If the session has many presenters, this option has the benefit of opening a bit more time for discussion. If your panel chooses this option, please let attendees know to look for presenter bios in the Zoom chat window.
Wherever possible, another RSVP member has volunteered to serve as a tech assistant/backup in your session in case of any problems with Zoom. Their duties are listed below. If you do not have tech backup and you run into Zoom tech issues: you may find your solution on the Zoom Help Center; otherwise, send a text message to +1 215-629-6773, clearly stating the session for which you require support.
How do I offer the Zoom assistance I have signed up for?
Thank you for offering Zoom assistance for a session! Please arrive 5-10 minutes early for the session so that a local organizer or the panel chair can make you a co-host.
Your role involves the following tasks:
– managing attendee questions that are posed in the chat function (jumping into discussion if/when appropriate to articulate these questions)
– adding any appropriate links in the session chat as needed (such as the link to the session webpage on the conference website)
– taking over for the chair if their wifi cuts out;
– any other tech troubleshooting you might be able to offer if needed (perhaps with assistance from the Zoom Help Center). For any major technical difficulties, please send a text message to +1 215-629-6773, clearly stating the session for which you require support.