CORE Sync Review: How to Collaborate in Real-Time With a Sync Review Package

August 29, 2023

The Sync Review is a secure, shareable, real-time file review and collaboration experience via your computer and tablet browsers, as well as your Apple TV.

Sync Reviews are created via package sharing, and driven by a host. The invited participants are the package recipients.

Set a meeting on your conferencing tool of choice, and your teams can simultaneously view content within CORE from anywhere. This feature is ideal for review sessions with teams, partners, and clients.

Set Up a Sync Review Session

There are 3 steps in setting up your session as a Host:

1. Prepare your media
2. Share your Review package to your recipients
3. Start your session

1. Prepare Your Media

• Select your files and create a package to share as a Sync Review package.
• For specific instructions about how to create a package, see Creating and Modifying Packages.

2. Share the Review Package to Your Recipients

• Share your package and the Share Panel will open
• Choose Review Mode as your package type
• Add Recipients
• Add a Message
• There are no Settings or Download options for Sync Review packages

3. Start Your Session as Host

• Once you've shared your Review package, you can immediately start the session or meet with the other users at a designated time.

• Sync Review packages do not have video conferencing or VOIP enabled, so you'll need to meet over your conferencing tool of choice.

• When ready, open your package. In the top bar of the Package, select the Launch Review Mode icon.

• Start Sync: Click on the Start Sync button to start the sync review session. A pop message will display which shows that you have joined the session as host.

Join a Sync Review Session as a Participant

How to participate in a Sync Review package session:

1. You will receive a Package invite in your email. Click on the link Open in CORE to open and join the session.

2. The Package can be opened from your CORE inbox as well.

• If opening the package doesn't automatically take you into the live Review session, then select the Launch Review Mode icon.

3. Select the Join Sync button to enter the package in real-time as it's being presented. A confirmation message will notify you that you are viewer in the session.

Participating in the Sync Review Session

Review Session Player

The Review Mode player is a dark mode player with simplified controls tucked away to maximize screen space for the reviews.

As an attendee, when you first enter a Sync Review Session, you will see the Collaboration Panel on your right hand side. And aligned next to that is a list of other meeting participants by user icon.

Meeting Participants

1. Host/Presenter - Highlighted as the User in Blue, represents the Host that is presenting the Review session
2. Collaborators/Attendees- Initials of the other collaborators as well as yours will be displayed in grey circular icons
3. Collaboration Status The number of attendees in session is displayed above the user icons
4. Full names - See full names of attendees by hovering over the user icons

Viewing Experience

• A Sync Review package is driven by the host.

• As an attendee, you'll see what they are presenting with no ability to jump around to other files during the session.

• You can leave comments on the files being presented. Those comments will be displayed during the meeting.

• Temporary annotations are available to point out ideas and issues in real-time.

• Your personal watermark will appear over the presented files.

• If a host has triggered a Sync Review session, then the system sends another notification to all other share recipients that a Sync Review has begun on this package

• Host can Add Users during the sync session on the fly by clicking on (+) button. A new pop with user list will be displayed to add them further.

Select the user by scrolling throughout or search with user name.

1. Click on (+) next to each user
2. Once clicked it change to tick mark means user is selected
3. Click on Add Users button. A pop will be shown which states invitation is sent to invitee

• User receive the invite in the email and to join the sync review session. Click on Open in Core link directly in mail box or open the package from inbox.

• Leave Sync: Viewer can leave the session by clicking on leave Sync button anytime in between the review of package.

• If host leaves the session by clicking on the Leave Sync button then he prompts to transfer the control rights to any viewer.

• New host receives a prompt alerting them that they are now the host.

• If host exits the Sync, then everyone else sees the "waiting for host" screen.

Review Session Tools Available to the Participant

The Participants in Sync Review has the ability to use many of the existing tools from the Asset Player. A list of the tools are described below.

Sync Review Player Tools:

1. Pin Timecode - Pins the timecode on the left side, out of the picture frame.
2. Sound Toggle on/off - Toggle between Mute/Unmute
3. Annotate - Open the annotation toolbox
4. Subtitles/CC - Be default set to Off
5. Settings - Open Settings options (below)
6. Full Screen - Maximizes view to full screen

Annotating Media (PDF, Video, Audio, Images)

Temporary Annotations

• Temporary annotations are turned on by default for all users in the Sync Review session.
• You can turn them on and off by selecting the Crayon icon on the bottom right of your screen next to Quality.

Temporary Annotations color assignment - When you enter CORE Sync Review mode you are assigned a specific color throughout the duration of the session. Locate the area of interest and click and draw your section to bring attention to your annotation. In this example, the color assigned was Purple.

Annotation Tools

You can also leave annotations and comments on files that will be captured in the Discussion thread and viewable by the team during the Sync Review session.

• Switch from temporary annotations to annotation tools by selecting the Annotations icon.

• Select your annotation type.

• Add the annotation and a comment.

• Click Send next to the comment entry.

• The annotation and comment will appear in the Discussion panel under that file.

• To go back to temporary annotations, select the Crayon icon.

Positional Annotations

Chrome is the best browser for this annotation type. To create a positional annotation,

1. Turn off your temporary annotations by selecting the Crayon icon.
2. Then click anywhere on screen.
3. Move the anchor to your desired point.
4. Move the comment field so it doesn't block what you want to point out.
5. Add your comment by double clicking into the comment field.
6. Save.

Annotations and Commenting When a Host Switches to Another File

As this is a live review session driven by your host, you can give feedback on the files that are being presented to you. It's important to communicate with your host and team during a feedback session.

If you are mid-process adding an annotation or comment when the host moves to a different file, your feedback will be lost.

Host a Sync Review Session

The host isn't just the meeting host but is the sole presenter in a Sync Review session.

If multiple users need to present during one meeting, the existing host can transfer host rights to a participant by right clicking on a participant and selecting another participants. See the Transfer Control section below.

Presenting Package Files

• When you launch into a Review session, the first file in your package will automatically present on screen.
• You can manually move files forward to allow the time and space for conversation, or you can set the files to autoplay.
• Both host and Viewer can see the Playlist.
• Participants will not see the host selecting settings and other menu options during the presentation.
• A complete list of tools available to the host is listed below.

Review Session Tools Available to the Host

The Host in Sync Review has the ability to use many of the existing tools from the Asset Player. A list of the tools are described below.

Sync Review Player Tools:

1. Playlist Toggle - Open and close your playlist assets
2. Autoplay Toggle - Set your playlist to automatically play or set to manual mode
3. Timecode/Frame Toggle - Toggle between monitoring by timecode or by frames
4. Player controls - Adjust start/stop
5. Sound Toggle on/off - Toggle between Mute/Unmute
6. Annotate - Open the annotation toolbox
7. Quality - By default video quality set to Auto and it can be change as needed
8. Speed - Adjusts Speed settings
9. Settings - Open Settings options (below)
10. Full Screen - Maximizes view to full screen

Capturing Comments

Once a Review session is complete, the comments are available only to the host. Use package reports to assemble comments from the session and distribute to your teams as needed.

Transfer Host Controls

Host can transfer the control to other participants if they wish to do so.

• If Host wants to leave the sync review in between. After the host clicks on Leave Sync a prompt to transfer the control to other participants pops up, choose the desired participant.

• Another way to transfer the host control is to right click on selected participant. Click on Transfer host control

Once clicked it will ask for final confirmation and asking host "Transfer host controls to [Participant name]? You will become an attendee without playback controls". Click Ok to accept or Cancel.

• The old host’s player no longer has controls - looks like other recipients’ views
• New host receives a prompt alerting them that they are now the host and the new host’s player now has controls
• New host can do the same transfer during the session to any of the attendees, including the original host
• Only one host at a time is supported in this version

Troubleshooting

If someone joins in midway during the sync session then they can start viewing same thing as what the host is showing at that moment. Participants can also see all comments captured during the entirety of the sync review if they joined midway.

I lost connection and needed to get back into the session

If you lose connection you can easily get back into the session by opening your package share email and clicking on the Open in Core link.

Alternatively, you can click on the sync package in your Inbox with Core to rejoin the session.