Sessions How-To: Embedding Live Video Chat

In this article we're going to focus on embedding content within a Session, for more information on how to create Sessions on your Event Schedule, please refer to this help article.  

The EventHub platform offers our own, free live video chat for you to use in your Virtual Booths as well as Session programming. 

It's super customizable -- you can have only Hosts allowed to speak, turn video on and screenshare, in a presentation-style format. Or you can have all Hosts and Attendees with their mics and videos on, displayed in a Brady Bunch-style of video tiles on top of each other. 

Adding Programming to a Session

Once you have a session created, you add Programming slots by going into the Program tab of the Editing sidebar.

Let's take a closer look at the Programming section. 

One of the Types of Programming you can add is our Live Chat -- with either the Live Presentation presets or the Live Discussion presets. 

To do this, click the ADD button to bring up the editing pop up for Session content. 

From the Type dropdown list, choose "Live Presentation" or "Live Discussion."

You can change the presets in either of these options as much as you like, so below we'll show you what the presets for a Live Presentation look like: 

More explanation of these settings:

1. Name
2. Type: Both "Live Presentation" and "Live Discussion" utilize EventHub's built-in free video chat service.
3. Duration: This is the time that the Live Chat will be live. The video chat will cutoff immediately when the time is elapsed. You cannot extend, and the video chat will automatically terminate. Make sure you get everything in before this happens! 
4. Age Verification will default to Off. If you would like to enable it, select this box and choose the age limit from the dropdown.
5. Enable Chat: To allow the participants to chat you via typed messages (if they're camera shy), leave the Enable Chat selected.
6. Participant Limit: You can limit the number of participants who are allowed to enter your video chat at once, by entering a number into the "Participant Limit" field. You and your hosts are not included in the count.
7. XX Allow Recording XX
   • NOTE: This feature is no longer available. You must use a Zoom Meeting or Zoom Webinar to record your session. Click here to go to the article on Zoom Embed. 
8. In the bottom right corner, you will see a section devoted to Participant Controls
   • NOT Checking Allow Participant Controls 
     • This means that Participants cannot have their camera or microphones on.
   • Checking Allow Participant Controls
     • This will expand additional options for what you want to allow your Participants to have access to during your live chat. 
     • You can Allow Video, and then select Start with Video On so that anyone who joins will have their video on. If you do not want to start with videos on, but want to give them the ability to turn video on at some point, check Allow Video and uncheck Start with Video On.
     • The same applies to Allow Sound and Start with Sound On.
     • Allow Desktop Screen Share: This allows Participants to screen share during your session. NOTE: Screen share is only available on Desktop, not mobile. 

Click Save to save this Programming and close the editing box. You can always edit features of your Live Chat after you Save it, but you cannot change the Programming Type after you create it. That means that you can't switch Live Chat to a Zoom Embed after you create it, so you need to know your Programming Type when you start filling the details in. 

Live Chat Controls

Once you save a Live Chat Programming segment, it will appear in the editing sidebar like this, with a green "Enter Presentation" button.

When you click on this, it will launch the Live Chat. But don't worry, attendees won't be able to join until the scheduled time! Once in the Live Chat, you (the Event Organizer) and your other hosts and speakers will see the following controls:

These allow you to:

• Mute All: Turns microphones off for all attendees. You and your fellow hosts/speakers are unaffected.
• Stop Videos: Turns cameras off for all attendees. You and your fellow hosts/speakers are unaffected.
• Boot All: This kicks all attendees out of the booth. You and your fellow hosts/speakers are unaffected.
• Terminate Booth: This ends the session for everyone included you, your fellow hosts, and all attendees.