Virtual Convention Instructions

Log in prior to the Virtual Convention to test your access using the your ASEEES member site username and password. Your username is your primary email address that we have in our member database. Please note, you MUST accept cookies for the login to work. These cookies connect the convention website to our member site.

ASEEES staff will not be able to provide temporary passwords in real time during the event. If you are having problems logging in, please submit the problem on the problem report form; the ASEEES staff will respond as quickly as possible.

NOTE: Being able to log into the site doesn’t necessarily indicate you’re registered, as anyone with an account on our member site can log in. Only virtual convention registrants can see the “Join Session” button.

NOTE: Being able to view the site as a Guest does not indicate you are logged in. You must log in AND be registered to participate in the Virtual Convention.

NOTE: Make sure you have the latest versions of Zoom and the browser that you will use, especially Safari. 

Once logged in, you can browse the online program by using the Browse/Search features on the left of your screen, or the search bar at the top (using keywords or participant names). 

Time Zones: The program is in Eastern Time. The virtual convention will take place in EDT (daylight savings time). The in-person convention will take place in EST (eastern standard time). The program can be displayed in your local time zone by selecting your time zone preference. The first time that you log in, you will have the option to set your time zone. You can change it again by clicking on the highlighted button in the Navigation Menu. For time zones, see the World Time Zones Map.

We suggest that you create a virtual personal schedule for ease of use. See below for more information. 

The Personal Schedule feature allows you to create a list of all the virtual sessions you are interested in attending, gathering the “Join Zoom Session” button for each meeting all in one place. Note: This personal schedule will not sync with the Convention mobile app, which is designed for the in-person convention.

If you’re a participant in a session, that session will automatically be included in your personal schedule. To add a session to your personal schedule, locate the session in the online program; click on the calendar icon to the left of the session details to add it to your personal schedule. 

After you have added sessions to your personal schedule, you will see a button in the left navigation bar on your home screen labelled “Personal Schedule.” This will take you to your personal schedule page. Click the tab at the top labelled “Zoom Sessions in Your Personal Schedule.” The “Join Zoom Session” links will appear 10 minutes before the scheduled start time where it now says, “This Zoom session has not begun yet.” 

You can save as many sessions as you like in a scheduled time slot. For example, in the image to the right there are 3 sessions from the 8am CST time slot in this sample personal schedule. 

To create a personal schedule for the in-person convention, use the ASEEES app (available after the Virtual Convention.)

If this is your first year at the virtual convention, or you need a refresher, join a practice session:

Wed, October 16, at 10:00-11:00 AM EDT

Wed, October 16, at 2:00-3:00 PM EDT

This time serves as a drop in training or review process for virtual participants. A staff member will be available during this hour for your questions or to test your presentation. Convention sessions will be scheduled in a Zoom room with an embedded link which cannot be shared.

All Zoom links are embedded within the convention site and cannot be shared or sent out to participants separately. On the day of the session, “Join Zoom Session” button will appear on the session page. You will not receive individualized Zoom links or passcodes.

In the program, find a session you want to join. On the day of the session (and not before), the “JOIN ZOOM MEETING” button will appear on the session page.

Click on the “Join” button no earlier than 10 minutes before the start time, and you will be taken to Zoom session. If the session hasn’t started yet, you will be placed in the waiting room. If the session is already under way, you will be placed directly into the Zoom session.

If you try to join too early, you will get this warning message on top of the screen.

Troubleshoot Tip: If you don’t see the “Join” button on the day of the session, refresh the page and it should appear. Or click on “Main Menu” under the Navigation Menu to refresh the whole site. Or switch browsers – older versions of browsers, especially Safari, do not work well.

During the session, attendees will be muted by default. You can ask questions in the chat. If the audience size is small, the chair or the session manager may allow the audience to unmute and speak.

You can freely move about between sessions. Just leave the Zoom session, go back to convention program, and click the “Join Zoom Meeting” buttons for another session of your interest.

While the audience is in the waiting room, the Session Manager will:

• Let you into the Zoom room and make you a co-host, which allows you to share your screen and be able to mute/unmute yourself;
• Make sure your cameras and audio are working;
• Confirm that you can find the “share my screen” button and have any PowerPoint or other presentation materials ready;
• Remind you to close email, Teams etc.;
• Remind you NOT to hit the record button;
• Confirm that you want to be recorded and ask you if you would like to opt out;
• Decide whether Chair or Discussant will moderate the chat Q&A.

Screen Sharing

If you have a PowerPoint or other media you are showing for your presentation, click “Share Screen” in the Zoom control panel at the bottom of the screen and select which screen or window you would like to share.

• If you are showing a video or audio, make sure you click “Share Computer Sound.”
• DO NOT click “Optimize full screen video clip” as it compromises the quality of the video.

Chair or Discussant Should Read the Questions in Chat

The chair or discussant should take on the responsibility of reading the questions and comments in the chat. 

Note: Session managers should not be asked to manage the Q&A. Many session managers are volunteers (undergrads, ASEEES staff, virtual convention platform staff) and/or are serving as session managers on panels/roundtables outside their areas of expertise. 

Instructions on No Shows

While we have asked all participants to confirm participation and register, if a panel participant does not show, we recommend proceeding forward as best as possible. 

Sessions will automatically end 5 minutes after the scheduled end time. 

There are two ways to reach us for help during the Virtual Convention:

Submit your question to the problem report form.

Navigate to Drop-in Help Desk, staffed by ASEEES staff and open during the sessions to answer any questions and troubleshoot problems.  

Closed captioning is enabled for all the sessions. While the official language of the Convention presentations is English, we are offering auto-translated captions for the 2024 Virtual Convention.

Each person must turn on the Show Captions function in order to see the captions. 

To turn on closed captions, click the “Show Closed Captions” button on your Zoom dashboard on the bottom of your screen. If you don’t see the Closed Captions button, click on the three dots to the right to see more Zoom functions.

The default captions are in English but each participant can individually set auto-translated captions to one of several available languages in Zoom (please note that not all languages are available).

To enabled translated captions, click the ‘carrot’ (^) in the Closed Caption button to show more options. Turn on “Translation” by toggling the button to the right.

In My Speaking Language, click the language that you will be speaking in during the session.
In My Caption Language, click the language that you would like to read in. If a participant speaks in another language, your captions will auto-translate to the language you have selected.

Please note that closed captioning is automated and may not be accurate. 

Country Restrictions to Zoom: If you are joining the convention from certain countries that restrict access to Zoom, you may need to use a VPN.

Android Devices: Apparently, Zoom doesn’t work well on some Android devices. We suggest that you do not use an Android device; if you must, please have the latest version of Zoom on your device.