Difference between revisions of "Classroom"

Latest revision as of 16:58, 8 November 2022

Our goal with Classroom is to provide you with an easy, versatile tool for hybrid teaching.
If you have any ideas on how to improve Classroom, please use this survey to let us know – your feedback is really appreciated.

Classroom is an online and fully browser-based platform for delivering lessons. It is designed to be easy to learn and to reflect a traditional physical classroom. There is no software to install and students do not need to create an account. There is also built-in support for Google Classroom, to easily invite students, and cloud integration, to easily share lesson materials.

Classroom works in two browser tabs/windows, with the initial tab displaying the digital whiteboard canvas, where teachers can import and edit lesson content. The second tab provides a dashboard for student management, with controls for chat and group (huddle) work and notices relating to student attention or students raising their hands. As such, two screens are recommended.

To get started, check system requirements and how to create a myViewBoard account.

Please note, myViewBoard Classroom is available to Premium and Entity user accounts only.

Quick Start Guide
for teachers

Quick Start Guide
for students

Toolbar Icons
Release History

System requirements

System requirements

Teacher Scenario	Recommended Specifications
Running Classroom to edit lesson content (no students or video streaming)	CPU: dual-core, Intel i5 6th Gen or above RAM: 8GB Network: 1 Mbps download and 1 Mbps upload Devices: PCs, laptops (including Surface Go), and ViewSonic ViewBoards with Windows 10 OS: Windows 10, macOS 10.15 (Catalina) or 11 (Big Sur), and ChromeOS (versions after 83). Browsers¹: Google Chrome (v83+) or Microsoft Edge (88.0.705.74)
Editing lesson content, video streaming, <15 students	CPU: dual-core, Intel i5 6th Gen or above RAM: 8GB Network: 13 Mbps download and 13 Mbps upload for a whole classroom Devices: PCs, laptops (including Surface Go), and ViewSonic ViewBoards with Windows 10 OS: Windows 10, macOS 10.15 (Catalina) or 11 (Big Sur), and ChromeOS (versions later than 83) Browsers¹: Google Chrome (v83+) or Microsoft Edge (88.0.705.74)
Editing lesson content, video streaming, > 15 students	CPU: quad-core, Intel i7 or above RAM: 16GB Network: 25 Mbps download and 25 Mbps upload for a whole classrrom Devices: PCs, laptops (including Surface Go), and ViewSonic ViewBoards with Windows 10 OS: Windows 10, macOS 10.15 (Catalina) or 11 (Big Sur), and ChromeOS (versions later than 83) Browsers¹: Google Chrome (v83+) or Microsoft Edge (88.0.705.74)
For student devices	CPU: dual-core Intel i5 6th gen or above RAM: 8GB Network: 2 Mbps download and 256 Kbps upload Devices²: PCs, laptops (including Surface Go), ViewSonic ViewBoards with Windows 10, Chromebook, iPad Pro (all models), iPad (6th gen or above), iPad Air 2 or above, iPad mini 4 or above OS: Windows 10, macOS 10.15 (Catalina) or 11 (Big Sur), ChromeOS (versions later than 83), iPad OS (latest 2 releases), and Android (latest 2 releases) Browsers^1,3: Google Chrome (v83+) or Microsoft Edge (88.0.705.74)

¹Internet Explorer is not supported.
²We recommend the device is not more than 3 years old.
³Safari is strongly recommended for iPad users.

If you experience performance issues, first close unnecessary programs and browser tabs. If your issue is still not resolved, contact your IT department for further support.
We recommend a screen resolution of 1920x1080 for best usability (with 125% zoom recommended).

Whitelist domains

Whitelisting domains is typically handled by IT administrators.

Domain	Description
*.myviewboard.com	Required for the web applications ecosystem to function.
myviewboard.com	Contains a sub-service ecosystem required to allow wildcard subdomains.
*.myviewboard.cloud	Required for proper functioning of web service resources.
myviewboardclips.com	Allows proper functioning of myViewBoard Clips.
*.visualstudio.com	VisualStudio API is used to enhance user experience.
*.pndsn.com	Chat Room API.

Note: Asterisks * must be included where shown above.

Please ensure the following compulsory ports are whitelisted:

Protocol: HTTPS/2 SSL
Port 443 for websocket connection

It is also strongly recommended to whitelist the following ports:

UDP port 40000-65535
Port 3478 (UDP and TCP listening)
Port 5349 (TLS and DTLS listening port)
For STUN servers: Recommended to whitelist port 19302 (UDP)

Auto timeout

If the Classroom browser tab is not used for 30 minutes, you (the teacher/session host) will be automatically signed out and the session will terminate. Student sessions will also terminate.

Please note that this auto-timeout is not the same as myViewBoard account timeout, which can be configured from the FollowMe settings on myviewboard.com (requires sign-in).

Current limitations

Users may encounter the following limitations when using Classroom.

The myViewBoard team is aware of these limitations and is working to resolve them.

If you notice an issue not listed here while using Classroom, please let us know via myViewBoard Support. With your feedback, we will continue to improve myViewBoard services.

General Limitations
1. On mobile devices, a session will terminate immediately if sent to the background (for example, by switching apps or going to the home screen).

Users currently in a session will drop.
The current session automatically terminates for the host.

2. Importing files to Classroom sometimes results in formatting issues. These details may result in issues:

Tables with cell spacing
Page colors and page borders
Images/Fonts: effects, spacing, position
Audio, video, and PDF active elements
PPT: effects and animations
PDF: bookmarks, tags, comments

3. If text or other elements aren't displaying correctly, consider adjusting the browser zoom level and the system zoom level. On Windows devices, search for Scale and layout in settings, and adjust to 100% - this may help resolve display issues in Classroom. 4. Classroom currently supports up to 60 students per session.

Browser

Chrome: Underlined text sometimes does not display properly.

Devices

iPad: When a teacher plays both a YouTube clip and a video call, students using iPads may only see the YouTube clip.
iPad: If a teacher first gives a student permission to talk, and then revokes that permission, students using an iPad may still be able to talk if they click the microphone pop-up after the teacher revokes permission. In other words, the talk permission from the teacher triggers the microphone pop-up on the student's iPad, which remains there until the student clicks Cancel or Allow. If the student clicks Allow after the teacher has already revoked speaking permission, the student can still speak to the class. The teacher can disable this by again enabling and then disabling the student's speaking rights.
iPad and Android tablets: The screen record feature is not supported on Android tablets and iPads.
iPad: .mp4 files may not work due to incompatibility with the browser.

Open Classroom

Classroom works directly from within a suitable web browser. There is no need to download software. We recommend using Google Chrome or a Chromium browser such as Edge. Accessing Classroom is simple:

Go to http://myviewboard.com and sign in with your myViewBoard account (Premium or Entity account required).
On the main screen, click the Classroom tile .

After opening Classroom, teachers are presented with a blank canvas.
Click the dashboard icon to open a second tab where teachers can view the dashboard, which displays class information.
This is the student view after they join a session.

Digital whiteboard tools

For a printer-friendly overview of all Classroom icons and features on the Classroom whiteboard, see Classroom Toolbar Icons.

The main toolbar contains most of the key tools to create lessons. You can also import lessons from this toolbar. It appears on the right side of the screen by default but can be dragged to either side of the screen.

Teachers have the following tools to create a lesson:

Move Toolbar

File Manager
Create, share, import, and export files.

Magic Box
Access cloud and local storage, as well as media and other resources.

Select tool
Select objects and pictures.

Pen
Draw freehand lines. Click again to open pen options.

Eraser
Erase objects. Click again to open eraser options.

Sticky notes
Add sticky notes with text.

Shapes
Draw shapes with different styles.

Text
Insert and format text.

Zoom
Zoom the canvas.

Undo
Reverse the previous action.

Redo
Reverse the previous undo action.

Background
Change the background of one or all pages.

Move Toolbar

File Manager
Create, share, import, and export files.

Magic Box
Access cloud and local storage, as well as media and other resources.

Select tool
Select objects and pictures.

Pen
Draw freehand lines. Click again to open pen options.

Eraser
Erase objects. Click again to open eraser options.

Sticky notes
Add sticky notes with text.

Shapes
Draw shapes with different styles.

Text
Insert and format text.

Zoom
Zoom the canvas.

Undo
Reverse the previous action.

Redo
Reverse the previous undo action.

Background
Change the background of one or all pages.

Open, import, and save lessons

Teachers can create a new lesson or open an existing lesson into Classroom. Many file types are supported, so if you have existing lesson materials it is easy to open them in Classroom.

To save/export your lesson, click the File Manager icon in the main toolbar to view the following options:

Option

Description

New file

Creates a new blank canvas.
Note that the current canvas will be discarded if you proceed.

Open

Loads the contents of a .qb or .olf file from either your local or cloud storage into the lesson.
Note the file type must be toggled in the Windows file explorer to view either file type.

Save

Quick save a lesson you have been working on.

Save as

Saves a copy of the lesson into either .qb, .olf., or .pdf file format.
You can choose to save to your local or cloud storage.
Note: When bound to a Google Classroom, the option to post your session to the bound Google Class is available.

Share by QR Code

Classroom generates a PDF file of the lesson, uploads it to your connected cloud storage account, and displays a QR code and URL.
Students can see the QR code during the Classroom session and scan it to download the PDF file. You may also share the URL to the students.

Tip: Connecting cloud storage such as Google Drive or Microsoft OneDrive to your myViewBoard account enables easy access to your files from any device you run Classroom on. It works with other myViewBoard apps like Whiteboard too, and allows easy sharing of lesson content. See the below section for more information.

Files may also be imported through the Magic Box (see below). Students can upload their own content during a Classroom session this way.

Supported file formats

Type	Format (Teacher view)	Format (Student view)
Image	.JPEG, .PNG, .GIF
Video	.MP4, .MOV
Audio	..WAV, .AAC, .MP3*
Scalable Vector Graphics	.SVG
Microsoft Word	.DOC, .DOCX	n/a
Portable Document Format	.PDF	n/a
PowerPoint	.PPT and .PPTX	n/a
Google	Jamboard, Google Docs, Slides	n/a

Magic Box: tools for interactivity

In Magic Box you can import content from your device, cloud storage, or the web. YouTube and myViewBoard Clips videos can also be searched within Magic Box, and added to the canvas.

Click the Magic Box icon on the main toolbar to access the following:

Icon	Description
	This PC Open files from your device.
	Google Drive Import resources from your connected Google Drive account. For multi-page files, each page is inserted into its own canvas page.
	OneDrive & OneDrive for Business Import resources saved from your connected OneDrive account. For multi-page files, each page is inserted into its own canvas page.
	Images Safely search for images from the web. To insert, drag an image onto the canvas.
	Polls (Classroom)¹ Create a quiz with True or False or Multiple Choice answer options.
	myViewBoard Clips² Insert curated, safe, and certified educational videos.
	YouTube Search for YouTube videos. To insert, drag a video onto the canvas. Switch to presentation mode (bottom-left icon) to have the option to play the video.
	Web page Embed a web page or a web page link onto the canvas. Switch to presentation mode to browse the page or open it in a new tab.
	Widgets^1,³ Animations that users can insert onto the canvas. In present mode, users can click on an object to trigger an animation.
	Sketchfab^1,³ Browse millions of 3D models. Let students explore models at their own pace in present mode.
	Assessments^1,³ Create Assessments to be delivered during a lesson with multiple choice, short answer, and essay response options.
	Tools^1,³ Collection of advanced interactive lesson elements like Ladder Shuffle, Dice, Ruler, and more to come.

¹Only available in Classroom; i.e. to Premium and Entity account users.
²Available only to Entity account users.
³Features marked with the tag TRIAL are available on a trial basis, free of charge until myViewBoard changes the terms of service.

Shortcut hotkeys

Classroom supports essential Windows keyboard hotkeys to help teachers navigate Classroom tools for lesson preparation and delivery with ease.

Hotkeys list

Keys	Actions
`Home`	Go to the first page (if the canvas contains multiple pages)
`End`	Go to the last page (if the canvas contains multiple pages)
`Ctrl`+`↑`	Go to the next page (if the canvas contains multiple pages)
`Ctrl`+`↓`	Go to the previous page (if the canvas contains multiple pages)
`CTRL`+`A`	Select all objects
`CTRL`+`C`	Copy object
`CTRL`+`V`	Paste object
`CTRL`+`X`	Cut object
`CTRL`+`Y`	Redo Reapplies an action that was previously undone.
`CTRL`+`Z`	Undo Reverses the last action taken.
`CTRL`+`O`	Open File Prompts the user to open a file, with auto-save and huddle options following.
`CTRL`+`S`	Save File
`CTRL`+`ALT`+`N`	New File Informs the user the current canvas will be replaced before opening a file.
`CTRL`+`R`	Screen recorder Opens a screen recording prompt.
`F12`	Save as
`Del`	Delete a selected object.
`CTRL`+`1`	File Management Opens a submenu.
`CTRL`+`2`	Magic Box Opens a submenu.
`CTRL`+`3`	Canvas zoom Opens a window allowing you to select the level of zoom.
`CTRL`+`4`	Selection
`CTRL`+`5`	Pen
`CTRL`+`6`	Eraser
`CTRL`+`7`	Shapes and Lines
`CTRL`+`8`	Text Editor
`CTRL`+`9`	Page Manager
`Alt` + `↑` / `↓` / `←` / `→`	Move a selected object.

Page management

Classroom 3 Page overview.svg
The current page number and total pages are displayed at the center of the class management toolbar at bottom of the screen.

Click or to navigate across the canvas pages.
The current page number is displayed over the total number of pages.
Click the plus icon to add a new page.

Classroom students list icon.svg Class huddle bar.svg
Similarly, when in huddle overview, clicking the left and right arrows at the bottom of the page cycles between all huddle pages corresponding to the currently opened teacher page.

Click the students list icon to view all the students currently in this huddle.

Page overview

To open the page overview, click the page counter displayed at the center of the class management toolbar.

Click the page counter on the class management toolbar for an overview of teacher and huddle pages.

The following actions are available:

Click a page to navigate to it.
Click to duplicate a page.
Select desired pages and click to duplicate a page to huddles.
Select desired pages and click to export the page(s) to a PDF.
Select desired pages and click to delete a page.
Click to add a new page.
Click and drag pages to reorder them. Note that reordering teacher pages will correspondingly reorder pages for every huddle.

Important note on how pages work in Classroom

Every page created on the teacher's canvas creates a corresponding page in student huddles. Adding and deleting pages on the teacher's canvas will therefore add and delete corresponding pages in student huddles. For example, if the teacher adds 5 pages to her canvas, 5 new pages will automatically be added to all huddles. If page 3 of 5 is deleted by the teacher, the corresponding 3^rd page is removed from all huddle canvasses, too. The same logic applies to reordering pages.

Huddle overview

To open the huddle overview, open the page overview and then click the Huddle tab at the top.

Here, you can view and manage all teacher pages corresponding to huddle pages. The following actions are available:

Click a teacher or huddle page to navigate to it in the teacher canvas.
Click next to a desired teacher page to duplicate it to huddles.
Select desired huddle pages and click to duplicate to huddles.
Select desired pages and click to export the page(s) to a PDF.

Click to download one or all pages to your device as a PDF file.

Note:

In lecture mode: The page view you take on the teacher canvas corresponds to the page visible to your students. For example, you are viewing teacher page 3 of 5. All students, no matter which huddle, will also be viewing teacher page 3 of 5. Likewise, you click into page 3 of Huddle 2. Huddle 2's page will be visible on the teacher canvas as well as visible to all huddles.
In huddle mode: The page view you take on the teacher canvas dictates the huddle page visible to your students. For example, you are viewing teacher page 3 of 5. Students in Huddle 1 will view Huddle 1's page corresponding to teacher page 3 of 5. Students in Huddle 2 will view Huddle 2's page corresponding to teacher page 3 of 5, etc.

Invite students

Students do not need to create a myViewBoard account to participate in lessons. As well, they can access Classroom directly from a web browser and do not need to download any software.

Note: Classroom supports up to 60¹ students per session.

¹Session quality and connectivity may be impacted depending on PC performance, bandwidth, and router configuration.

To invite students:

The Classroom host can click their ID in the top-right corner of the screen (see image below) to display a pop-up containing a unique session QR code, ID, and URL.
- Students can scan the QR code with the myViewBoard Companion App or another QR code reader, after which the student will be redirected to join the Classroom session. This method is convenient if students are using mobile devices.
- Students can input the URL shared by the teacher in a browser. The URL format is the following: https://myviewboard.com/classroom/student?c=xxxxxx¹
Next, the student enters their name and the session password (if a password has been set by the teacher), and can join the Classroom session.

¹Tip: Teachers can copy the session URL by clicking the URL.

Importing students via Google Classroom

To import students via Google Classroom, a Google Classroom account must first be bound to the teacher's myViewBoard account. Do this in the Cloud Integration section of the FollowMe settings at myviewboard.com.

After binding the Google Classroom account, follow these steps:

In Classroom, click the settings icon at the top right of the screen. Go to Cloud Integration click Bind next to Google class.
In the pop-up window, follow the steps to link your Google Classroom to myViewBoard Classroom. Make sure you sign in to the same Google account that you use for Google Classroom, the same one bound to myViewBoard in the FollowMe Settings area (mentioned above).
Finally, from the Cloud Integration section in Classroom settings, click the drop down arrow to select which Google Class to bind.
An invitation to this Google Classroom session will then be posted to the Google Classroom you just selected.

Classes from your Google Classroom account will appear in the drop-down menu.

Note: Binding your existing Google Classroom class to myViewBoard Classroom allows you to share invitation links and session materials to Google Classroom.

Share your audio and video

Allowing students to see the teacher as well as hear her voice helps with student engagement.

First, click the streaming icon at the bottom of the screen.
Once streaming has begun, your video and audio feed will turn on and be visible to any students who have joined the session.
- Click to stop sharing video from your device camera/webcam.
- Click to reopen video sharing.
- Click to stop sharing audio.
- Click to reopen audio sharing.
Hide or show the video feed by clicking .
Drag the video feed mini window around the teacher's canvas by clicking and holding the drag button .
To end audio and video sharing, click the stop button .

Video feed view from within the teacher canvas.
Video feed view from in the Dashboard.
Video feed view from student canvas.

Dashboard: Manage students

Classroom supports up to sixty students. When launching Classroom, only the teacher canvas is visible. To access student management controls, teachers must open the Classroom Dashboard.

To access the dashboard, click the dashboard icon in the classroom management toolbar.

In a second tab, teachers can view the dashboard, which displays class information and offers student management controls.

Read more about Dashboard here.

Huddle discussions

Just as in a physical classroom, myViewBoard Classroom also allows for group discussions. The teacher can switch from lecture mode, which shares the teacher canvas to the whole class, to huddle discussion, which groups students into huddles for discussions.

First, in the dashboard, make sure to set the number of huddles (from 1 to 60).
After the huddles have been created, drag and drop students into desired huddles, or simply click the shuffle button to randomly and evenly distribute students into huddles.
Click the huddle discussion icon in the dashboard (above the video feed box).
- Note: The huddle discussion icon can also be found in the teacher canvas window at the bottom-right.
Set a timer for the discussion on the pop-up prompt.
- Note: When the timer runs out, all students will be brought back to the teacher's canvas page.
Now that huddle discussion has started, the teacher can join discussions by clicking the join discussion icon next to the huddle .
- Note: The share camera and audio feature must be enabled before the huddle is initiated for joining discussions to be available.
Leave a huddle discussion by clicking the button again .
Extend the huddle discussion period at any time by clicking the timer in the top-right of the dashboard (also available on the teacher canvas at the top-right).
End the discussion before the timer runs out by clicking the lecture mode icon .

Using video quizzes with Clips

myViewBoard Clips videos and quizzes can be added directly to Classroom. Access Clips from the Magic Box . From here you can search videos and see your existing playlists, collections, and quizzes. Click the Quiz icon to select which quiz to add from the selected video.

Learn how to create a playlist or quiz in Clips here.

Note: Quizzes can only be created via a web browser, whether by accessing Clips through the Magic Box on Whiteboard for Windows or through myviewboard.com.

To add a Clips quiz to your Classroom session:

Click to expand images

1) Open Clips from the Magic Box
2) In the Clips window, select My Quiz
3) Choose a quiz version for a video by clicking the question mark quiz icon.
4) Enter present mode to play the video. Students and the teacher will view the questions as pop-ups.

Record lessons

Save to cloud storage and share by QR Code, upload to Google Drive or other bound cloud storage, or download to your local storage.

You can record your current session to allow students to review it at a later date. To record your session:

Click the Record your screen button in the classroom management toolbar.
If prompted, select the screen that contains the Classroom session and click Share.
If prompted, grant browser access to your microphone and/or camera.
Recording should begin immediately. A recording control bar should appear with a timer . Most browsers will also display a dialogue box informing you your screen is being shared, and a record icon will appear in the tab title bar.
Once the session is over, click the stop button to stop recording.
A browser pop up will prompt you to choose a save option. The session will save as a WebM or MP4¹ video.

Record up to an hour at a time.

Note these recording details:

Sessions recordings are permitted up to a maximum of one hour. After reaching the limit you may save the video and begin a new recording.
Sessions are saved as WebM or MP4¹ videos. To open WEBM videos, you can advise your students to do one of the following:
- WebM videos can be played in a web browser.
- WebM videos can also be played in the default Windows video app Movie & TV Player.
- To view on Windows Media Player, install the K-Lite Codec Pack.
- Download and install other media players which have built-in support for WebM, like VLC Media Player or Media Player Classic.

¹A session can only be saved as an MP4 if Classroom is being run in Chrome browser.

Create a myViewBoard account

To get the most out of myViewBoard, users can create a myViewBoard account at http://www.myviewboard.com.
Sign up with a Google, Microsoft, or Apple account, or simply with an email address.

Having a myViewBoard account provides the following benefits:

Host Classroom sessions.¹
Use FollowMe to maintain your personalized settings across devices and sessions.
Access to files stored in bound cloud storage services.
Use all the features of Whiteboard and other myViewBoard apps.

¹A Premium or Entity account is required to access Classroom.

First select Try now from the top-right of the myViewBoard homepage.

On the next screen you will encounter various sign-up options:

myViewBoard.com registration page.

Sign up with an existing Google, Apple, or Microsoft account:

Click one of the following:
Sign in with Google

Sign in with Microsoft

Sign in with Apple
On the next window, grant permission for myViewBoard to access the account.

Sign up using a regular email:

On the myViewBoard sign-up page, enter the following:
- Unique myViewBoard name
- Email
- Password
Select the checkbox to comply with the myViewBoard terms of service and privacy policy agreement.
Click Sign Up.

After successfully signing up:

An activation email will be sent to the account. Click the link in the activation email.
After activation, sign in and set up the new myViewBoard account.
On first sign-in, myViewBoard.com prompts the user to update the user's Personal Profile and Account Name.

myViewBoard.com registration step 2
myViewBoard.com registration step 3
myViewBoard.com registration step 4

Integrate with cloud services

Your myViewBoard account and Classroom can be connected to third-party services for cloud storage and lesson management.

Sign in to http://www.myViewBoard.com.
Click your avatar, and select FollowMe from the drop-down.
Click Cloud Integration on the side panel.
On the Cloud Integration screen, select the cloud storage account you want to bind.
Sign in to your account and allow myViewBoard to access your account.

After binding, a new folder named myViewBoard is created in the root directory of your cloud storage account. This is where session QR shares and backgrounds are stored, among other files.

Cloud Integration page on myViewBoard.com.

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Learn More

Access online resources to learn more about myViewBoard.

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