Conference layout management

During a conference you can change its layout which is the arrangement of participants' video windows on the screen.

To do it, click the button in the upper conference control panel.

Here you can:

1. Go to the advanced Layout settings

2. Check the Active speaker layout box, so that the participant, who is currently speaking, is displayed in an enlarged window.

3. Activate the checkbox Do not display non-video participants in the layout to hide the participants who are not streaming their video.

When the Layout settings button is clicked, the following menu will open:

Here you can select one of three video layouts and configure Automatic layout changes, specifically you can choose how the content window will behave when it is automatically enlarged. The following options are possible:

1. Display in a single layout window with other participants being hidden

2. Move to a separate application window

3. Display in an enlarged layout window.

Changing video layout for other meeting participants

If you are the conference moderator, go to Real-time meeting management by clicking on the button in the conference controls.

The real-time meeting management window will open. At first, you will be asked to select the users for whom you want to configure the layout:

1. For all. The layout you create will be sent to all users in the conference without exception.

2. For SIP/H.323 devices and WebRTC. If this option is selected, the layout will be sent exclusively to selected types of devices, which can be useful, for example, when streaming a conference to an external audience.

3. Individual video layout. You select an individual conference participant for whom you create the layout.

In this window, you can also view detailed information about a conference. Click the button in the upper panel next to the conference name and select the Conference details option.

Regardless of the option you choose, the window with video layout settings will open.

Here you will see:

• The Layout option — here you can add another layout so that it is possible to send different video layouts simultaneously to several individual users or types of devices. For example, you can create two layouts — one for a single user and another for all others.

• The Layout type — here you can select the logic by which windows will be placed in the layout. If you hover the mouse over each layout type button, its description will be displayed.

• The Number option allows you to choose how many windows will be in your video layout.

• The Name placement option determines if a conference participant’s name will be displayed and, if so, where it will be positioned (above or below the user's window).

• The Additional button opens a set of additional options: Enable users to change the video layout, Auto-fill the video layout, Clear the video layout and Delete the video layout.

• User windows — by clicking on each of these windows, you can choose its type: fixed participant (reserved for a certain user), randomly-selected participant, active speaker, reserved for shared content, automatic rotation (alternation) of participants at a certain frequency.

To learn more about the types of video windows in layouts and the specifics of their use, check the TrueConf Server user guide.

If you are not currently participating in an active conference, the link to real-time meeting manager may still be available in the application scheduler (or in the personal area). However, the following requirements have to be met:

• You are the operator added to the list of invited conference participants.

• You are the conference owner.

Adjusting your video layout of the ongoing meeting

You can always adjust your view of the current meeting.

If you change your video layout during the meeting, the view of other participants (both native and browser-based) will not change.

To change the order of video windows:

1. Press and hold the left mouse button on the pane you would like to relocate.

2. Drag the selected pane to another place on the screen.

3. Release the mouse button to switch the participants' panes.

To select a priority window, which will be displayed as the largest in the layout:

1. Double-click the left mouse button on the image you want to move to the center of the layout and make it large. You can also click on the button that will appear when you hover over the corresponding video window.

2. Other windows will be displayed as thumbnails. Double-click again on the larger window to return the video layout to its original position.

It is equally easy to select a window that needs to be spotlighted (enlarged). Double-click on any small window and it will be automatically spotlighted. It is also possible to drag-and-drop video windows when one of the video windows is spotlighted.

Can meeting participants decline the locked video layout?

Yes, if the meeting owner selects Enable users to change layout in the real-time meeting manager.

In this case, conference participants will receive a notification about the new layout created by the moderator and accept or decline this layout:

Even if the video layout from the moderator was declined, a user will still be able to enable it. The corresponding button will be available in the Layout settings section of the conference control panel.

Multi-window mode

During a conference, you can enable the multi-window mode. It will be useful if you work with multiple monitors: you manage your conference in the main window, while the video area switches to an additional window. There are two options to enable the multi-window mode:

1. Open conference controls, click on the button and select Enable multi-window mode.

2. The method described above can also be used to enable multi-window mode in the conference widget.

Once the above steps are complete, the application will split into several windows:

1. Video layout window

2. Main application window

3. Conference control widget.

You can disable multi-window mode by clicking Enable multi-window mode in the main application window (item 2 in the picture above).

Vertical orientation of windows in video layouts

Vertical orientation of participants' windows is supported for point-to-point calls and conferences with layouts that include windows of equal size and an enlarged window.

If windows in the conference layout are of the same size, and more than 50 percent of users are streaming video from a camera with a vertical orientation, this orientation will be applied to all windows (including those ones with a horizontal orientation).