Overview
Connect v11 is a major change in the interface used to access your Connect rooms and content. With Flash Player being retired at the end of 2020, everything in Connect has moved across to HTML.
This release adds a significant amount of functionality to the browser-based (HTML) client and also the release of a new-look Connect Desktop App. that is consistent with the browser-based version.
This blog post is intended to try to cover as much of the preparation a Connect host can address prior to, during, and after the upgrade of your Connect account.
What do I need to do to prepare my Connect Rooms for Connect v11?
From the perspective of your rooms, content etc., there is really nothing to be done. Think of the browser-based HTML client and the new-look Desktop App. as ‘windows’ into your rooms. Your rooms will not change, the way you and your users interact with the rooms has changed.
Similarly any content, registrations etc. on your account will remain the same. In fact when you view content in your new Connect v11 account, you will be using an HTML viewer so there is no requirement for Flash Player to view an MP4 recording as you would today.
What do I need to do to prepare my attendees and learners for Connect v11
Technically, you could do nothing. When your account is upgraded to v11, any users that attend through the browser will automatically have the additional features available to them. If they are promoted to a presenter or host in the room then they will have the option to share their camera, use the whiteboard, load content and change slides (remember that the current browser-based client does not offer presenter or host features).
If they enter the room as a presenter or host and try to share their screen, they will be prompted to download and install the new Connect Desktop App. Connect will typically prompt a presenter or host to use the Connect Desktop App. as it will always be more robust and reliable than just using the browser.
It might take a few minutes for the room to update the content to be viewed in the new clients, so it is recommended that you open your rooms, download and install the Connect Desktop App., test out the new interface and ensure their content is all good to go before your first live session.
The recommended way to approach this is to install the new Connect Desktop App. *prior* to the date of the upgrade. The new Connect Desktop App. is backward-compatible…meaning once installed it will essentially ‘sit there’ until the user accesses a Connect v11 account.
Once installed, you will see no difference when accessing the current (v10.6.2) account. You (and your attendees and learners) will see the current Connect Desktop App. or the current HTML/browser-based client. When your account is upgraded to Connect v11 and you access the updated account you will see the new Connect Desktop App. or the new HTML/browser-based client.
Same rooms, different ‘windows’ into the rooms.
When will my Connect account and rooms be upgraded to Connect v11?
Connect accounts on the hosted/cloud deployment will be upgraded over the month of August. You can see your specific upgrade date by entering your account URL into the upgrade timetable tool on the page below.
Note – Enter just the text for the URL, not the prefix of ‘http://’ or ‘https://’. So in my case I enter ‘getconnect.adobeconnect.com’ and see that my account is upgraded on August 30th 2020
Connect Upgrade Timetable Tool
https://helpx.adobe.com/adobe-connect/connect-downloads-updates.html
Where can I get the Connect v11 Desktop App.?
You have a few options for downloading and installing the new Connect Desktop App. from the link below. You should of course follow the guidelines of your IT group when managing installations of software.
https://helpx.adobe.com/adobe-connect/connect-downloads-updates.html#Application
Is the new Connect Desktop App. for Windows Only?
Yes, at this time the new-look Desktop App. is only available for the windows Operating System. Below is a summary of the options for other Operating Systems in Connect v11.
Mac OS – There is a new version of the current-look Connect Desktop App. for Mac OS. This version will look the same as the v10.6.2 release, but it does have enhanced reliability and better support for USB microphones. The Mac OS Desktop App. can be downloaded from the same link shown above.
Chromebook & Linux (Ubuntu, Red Hat and OpenSUSE) – There is no Connect Desktop App. for these Operating Systems at this time, however, with the release of the v11 browser-based version, these users can do everything in Connect *except* share their screen.
This is a very significant leap in functionality ad Chromebook and Linux attendees can use cameras, whiteboards, become presenters and hosts and participate far more actively in breakout rooms etc.
There is no download required for Chromebook and Linux for Connect v11.
Custom Pods in Connect v11 (‘extensions’)
This is a little bit of a ‘gotcha’ that you might want to act on sooner rather than later in your rooms. The original custom pods in Connect rooms (timers, clocks, games etc.) were written for the original Flash Player based ‘windows’ into your rooms. The new HTML/browser-based clients will see these older pods as ‘Unsupported Content’.
Many of the most common extensions have been re-written as hybrid pods that can be viewed using both the older Desktop App. and the HTML clients. You will need to have your users remove older versions of these pods and replace them with the ‘hybrid’ versions. You can see the hybrid extensions at the link below under ‘Hybrid custom pods’:
https://www.adobe.com/products/adobeconnect/apps.html
Note – not all extensions have been re-written to support the Connect v11. the decision to convert pods to the new version lies with the developer of the pods.
Note – You can check if an extension is a hybrid by looking at it in the current Connect version of the Connect Desktop App. (v10.6.12). If a pod is not supported in Connect v11 (or in the current v10.6.2 HTML /browser client), you will see a small red triangle/warning icon in the Share Pod in question with a message ‘Unsupported Content…’ (figure 1). Replace the legacy extension with a hybrid extension.
If you see the message ‘Content disabled by Administrator’ in the pod then you need to contact your account administrator and have them follow the instructions in this blog post to ‘Enable Custom Pods in HTML Content’.
Figure 1
Figure 2
