#1 2020-10-01 10:53:58

Battenberg

Connect 11 - Connection Problems

We use Adobe Connect to provide lessons for children who are out of school for medical reasons, and this week has been a bit of a headache since we were updated to Connect 11 at the weekend.

We've always had a number of students who struggle to install the Connect app (e.g. because they're using a school laptop), and updates seem to be particularly problematic.  We also have at least one student for whom the latest version of the app won't display the meeting properly on his PC - it's just blank.

We've got a growing proportion of students who use Chromebooks, who can't use the app and "classic view" will no longer work when Chrome drops support for Flash in December.

We didn't switch to the HTML client before because some of my colleagues make extensive use of breakout groups, and users who join in the browser were previously unable to edit the Notes pods or draw on whiteboards.

Connect 11 allows those things, but seems to be causing huge connection problems for students joining using the HTML client - they get ejected from the meetings, they can't use the chat, they can't see what's written on the whiteboard and on documents, etc.  Some can't get past the "Preparing the meeting..." stage.

Most of those students are still able to use the app, but not all of them, so we're left in a position where they can't all use the app and they can't all use the HTML client.  It's making support very difficult.

Is anyone else having similar difficulties?  We're using Connect hosted at adobeconnect.com, so I'd hope that it's configured correctly.

BeenHere

Re: Connect 11 - Connection Problems

Hi Battenberg,

We are having similar problems, plus we are having problems with recordings.

I tried to use Classic view, it helps but then recordings are causing problems.

I hope you get an answer, if you happen to reach a solution would you please share here? At least we help each other, since Adobe doesn't.

RPruitt

Re: Connect 11 - Connection Problems

Hello, Serious problem of getting an opening page that says "Preparing the room" that stops about 80%. You have to close this and select "Open in a browser" to open the meeting room. This can be a host or a student. Chrome and IE do this, but IE does not offer the white page with the connection option.
Once in the browser version and as a host you wish to share video, I had to open via the application and I get the classic view. But it does work.
Two weeks of vILT coming up and trying all setting options. Big struggle.

Battenberg

Re: Connect 11 - Connection Problems

We have one student whose dad is a software engineer who was working at home at the time of a lesson, so he had a look into the problems she was having with being constantly disconnected.

He turned off an ad-blocking plug-in in Chrome and she's since done two full lessons with no interruptions.  That certainly seems to be an avenue worth of further investigation!

Battenberg

Re: Connect 11 - Connection Problems

Hmm... back to the drawing board!

I just had a one-to-one scheduled with a student and he was unable to join the meeting.  The blue progress bar was stopping about a centimeter from the end as the room was being "prepared".  We tried another meeting URL - that didn't work either.  I tried it myself - the same thing happened - but I was able to join that meeting with the Connect app using my two computers at the same time. 

The same student joined a meeting yesterday using the HTML client, using the same computer and the same browser that didn't work today.  This suggests to me that it's an intermittent issue at the server end.  The twice I've had problems with the HTML client were both in the afternoon (2-3pm UK time) - coincidence, or is it possibly a load issue (maybe as the US starts to wake up)?

Last edited by Battenberg (2020-10-07 09:45:11)

Battenberg

Re: Connect 11 - Connection Problems

Looking around the Support section in Connect, I noticed that there's a "Chat" option.

After directing me around the houses, trying different browsers, clearing cookies, etc., the "agent" finally admitted that:

Actually browsers are having some issues after the upgrade and its kind of intermittent. I would request to use app instead for now.

When I asked whether they were working on a fix, the answer was "You get notify".

uktraining

Re: Connect 11 - Connection Problems

We are having the exact same issue - the add-in version works fine and users can always access the room. If they try and enter the room via the web browser, it will very often get stuck on the 'preparing the room' screen and the progress bar about 80% complete.

There seems to be no consistent pattern to when it happens - sometimes it will work and they get into the room...but most of the time it doesn't.

I am hosting an event with 50 people booked on this Friday - the nature of their business means they are unable to download external software, so the add-in is not an option for them.

I have zero confidence that they will all be able to access via their web browsers and there is nothing I can do to help them fix it.

It is a major flaw in the HTML version of Adobe and needs urgently addressing - sadly communication from support seems to be very slow and when they do respond, it's not very helpful.

Need assistance ASAP from them.

Battenberg

Re: Connect 11 - Connection Problems

You can append something like ?launcher=false&html-view=true&proto=false to theURL to push them towards "classic view", but you seem to need to "allow" Flash every time.

uktraining

Re: Connect 11 - Connection Problems

Yes - that does work...but it is not something we should need to do. The new HTML web version should work. Extremely frustrating that it is so unstable. I have been testing the web browser version since 8:30am this morning and have not been able to access the rooms...very occasionally works (tends to be better on edge than Chrome) - but this is about 1 in 20 attempts. 

There are no server issues - you can successfully log in via the addin/application every time. It is a problem specific to the web version. Why do they communicate with the servers in a completely different way to the addin version?

BeenHere

Re: Connect 11 - Connection Problems

You can append something like ?launcher=false&html-view=true&proto=false to theURL to push them towards "classic view", but you seem to need to "allow" Flash every time.

Adding such parameters will work, but I have hundreds of clients, it's impossible to tell them to add these parameters.

DEAR ADOBE:

- Can you add these parameters at the end of the URL's so your product can work?
- Can you make selection box (open in app or in browser) visible after one makes selection? NO, DELETING CACHE, USING OTHER BROWSER OR INCOGNITO MODE DOES NOT WORK!
- Can you hire better engineers and UX experts?

AND I HATE TO CONTACT YOUR USELESS SUPPORT EACH AND EVERYDAY, I JUST WANT A WORKING PRODUCT.