This guide will outline, step by step, how to set up a Google Hangouts meeting for use with courses.  We will do this through Google Calendar, which simplifies the setup process.


Step 1.  Navigate to webcalender.case.edu in your browser.   You will be taken to Single Sign-on, enter your Case ID and password to login.  This will take you to your personal Google Calendar page.

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Step 2. Create a new calendar event for your course session by clicking and dragging at the desired date and time.  In the speech bubble that shows up, type the name of your class, then click “Edit Event”.

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Step 3. On the Edit Event page, click the “Add video call” link (the second field under the Event Details tab).  The Google Calendar event you just created is now connected to Google Hangouts. Make sure you do this the first time you make your meeting.

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Step 4. To invite students, type their Case email addresses into the textbox to the right that is labelled “Add: Guests”, select them from the dropdown list that pops up, and click “Add” or press Enter.  Repeat for as many students as you need to add.

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Step 5.   If you do not want the students to be able to add others to the Hangout, uncheck the “Invite Others” checkbox under the guest list.  Similarly, if you do not want the students to be able to see the full guest list of the Hangout, uncheck the “See guest list” checkbox.

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Step 6. Fill out the rest of the event details as desired.  If you would like to add a notification for both yourself and the students invited to show before the event begins, Click the “Add a notification” link under the “Event Color” selector.

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Step 7.  Click the red “SAVE” button at the top of the screen – a popup will ask if you would like to send invitations to your students – press “Send” to send your students a link to the meeting.  If you or your students lose the email, the Hangout can also be accessed through the calendar event by clicking on it and selecting “Join Meeting”.

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Step 8. When you join the meeting, a new tab will be opened for the hangout.  You may be requested to install a plugin, which should download automatically – if so, follow the instructions on the bottom left corner of the page (which may vary for Windows and Mac users).  After the plugin is installed, you may need to go back to your Calendar and click “Join Meeting” one more time.

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Step 9.  Now in the window, you have the chance to change settings before you join the Hangout (which will also be available for the duration of the call).  You can mute the microphone or turn off the webcam with their respective buttons along the top.  If you’re experiencing network difficulties, you can turn down the call resolution with the button to the right of the “mute webcam” button.  To change your webcam, microphone or speaker settings, click on the gear button to the right of that.  

When all your settings are in order, click the green “Join” button at the bottom of the screen.

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Step 10.  If you would like to screen share (let the other call participants see what is on your screen), click the green icon on the left side of the screen, second from the top and follow the instructions of the window it opens.

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Step 11.  If you would like to type to your students, share a link, or hear from your students, you can open the chat dialogue by clicking the blue icon on the top left corner of the screen.

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Step 12. If at any point you need to add more students to the call, click the button to the left of the mute microphone button (Note: by default you can only add people with Case email addresses.  If you need to add someone with an external address, click the “Change” link at the top of the Invite popup).

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If you have any questions, please email Sarah Bailey at sarah.bailey@case.edu