In order to make the most of each video, here are a few tips:

Sorting comments

You can sort the comments in the Comments Space by clicking on the sorting drop-down menu:

Comments can be sorted according to:

Newest - sorts the comments according to when they were added (newest to oldest)

Top Comments - sorts by the comments that were most voted (liked) and replied to

Timestamp - sorts the comments according to their timetag

Comments representation in the Timeline

At the bottom of the video, you can see the Annoto timeline.

The timeline presents a visual representation of all the comments that were written, according to when they were written.

• The height of the bar represents the number of comments (the more comments, the higher the bar)

• The colors of the bar represent the sentiments of the comments

Hi , it's great to have you here!

This is the place to learn all about Annoto and find new ways to empower your learning experience!

Annoto enables time-based comments & notes on top of a video, meaning: you can ask questions, share thoughts and ideas, answer fellow learners and even maintain your own learning notebook without having to leave the video at all!

Comments

People

The Annoto People Space enables to have a one-on-one chat with any of the course participants, as well as to see the users' presence (whether they are online or offline).

Personal Notes

In addition, you can manage your very own personal notebook, that is visible only to you.

User Space

Learn all about the Comments Space

• Adding comments

• Following discussions

• Quickly finding what's important

• Editing/ deleting/ liking comments and much more

Learn all about the People Space

• Seeing who is online

• Having a 1*1 chat

Learn how to manage your own Personal Notebook

• Adding to and managing your personal notes

• Exporting your notes to docx or even Excel

Stay on top of things with the Annoto User Space

Short on time? Head straight to our Tips

Have some questions?

Check out the Frequently Asked Questions:

Or feel free to contact us, we are here to help:

The Annoto Comments enable a discussion between all the viewers of a video - learners and instructors. Every comment that is added gets a time-tag, meaning: you can always see what specific moment in the video each comment refers to and understand its context.

If you want to add a comment, simply start typing in the "Add a comment..." section. The video will be automatically paused (so you won't miss anything while writing).

What else can you do with a comment?

Adding a sentiment

If you wish, you can add a sentiment to your comment to indicate its type:

You may choose your sentiment by clicking on the smiley icon near the comment that you are typing, as you can see here:

Once your comment is ready, simply hit Enter, or click the send button (green arrow, as you can see in the image below):

And your comment will be added to the discussion:

Multiple lines

If you want to move to the next line in your comment, click Shift + Enter.

Rich Text messages

You can format your messages:

Ordered list (Type 1. (or any other number followed by a period) at the beginning of a new line and it will magically transform to an ordered list)

• Bullet list (Type * , - or + at the beginning of a new line)

• Emojis (Add smiley faces, hearts, winks, etc. by typing their shortcuts and a space after them: :-), <3 , ;) or :p )

• Bold - Type double asterisks for **Bold text**

• Italic - Type underscores for _Italic Text_

• Highlight - Type equal signs ==like this== to highlight

• Blockquote - Type > at the beginning of a new line

Mention a user

To mention someone, type '@' in the editor, then start typing their name. Next, choose the person you want to mention from the list of suggestions.

Write anonymously

In some cases, learners have the ability to post questions or comments anonymously. In this case, only instructors will see the user's name.

Writing anonymously is done by clicking on the mask icon above "Add a comment":

In the following images you can see how fellow learners see anonymous comments and how instructors view them:

Adding an external video as a comment

In order to add a video in your comment:

1. Go to the video you would like to add

2. Copy the video's link (URL)

3. Go to "Add a comment" in Annoto (you may either write a comment in addition to the video, or not - as you wish)

4. Paste the video's link (URL)

5. Hit "send"

The video will be embedded in the discussion, as you can see here:

Recording video as a comment

When Video as a Comment is enabled, Annoto users can reply not only with text, but also in any of the following recording options:

• Self-recording (camera)

• Screen recording

And just like everything that happens in Annoto, this ability is performed within your LMS (without having to go to a different platform) and without the need to download anything.

How to record?

In order to record a video as your comment:

1. Click “Add a comment” in the Annoto widget

2. Click the video camera icon:

3. Choose what you want to record: Camera or Screen

4. Select the settings (Microphone? camera)

If you chose Camera – you will see on the left bottom a screen of what will be recorded

5. Click “START RECORDING”.

6. You can pause the recording anytime by clicking the Pause button and you can continue recording by clicking on the red button:

7. Whenever you want to end the recording, click on the Stop button:

8. Now you can choose what you want to do with the recording:

a. Post – will add the video as a comment

b. Click the X button – will not save the video

If you clicked the X button, and want to record again, click on the video camera icon in the comment and start recording.

The video will be added to the discussion, as you can see here:

Checklist for recording a video as a comment

In order to record a video as a comment, there is no need to download anything or go to a different platform. Everything is within your environment!

If you want to make sure everything is set up to record, feel free to check out this list:

• Internet connection – Internet connection must be stable

  • Make sure you have a 0.5 Mbps (500K) internet speed

  • If possible, a wired connection is preferred

​Equipment (Camera\ Microphone)

• Make sure you are not currently using your camera in a different app (a camera can be used only in one application at a time)

• Make sure your browser permissions allow using the Microphone and Camera

  • If a prompt shows up, make sure to allow using the camera and microphone:

​

• Browser

People Space enables personal communication and networking between video viewers, as well as shows users' presence (whether they are online or offline).

People Space tabs

Clicking on People opens a space that includes 2 tabs:

• People

• Chat

People Tab

The People tab enables you to see all the users in the course and their presence.

Users in the People tab are in the following order:

First – all the users who are online (indicated by a green dot) – organized in alphabetical order

Then – all offline users (indicated by a gray dot) - organized in alphabetical order

Clicking on a user’s name will show the user’s details and the option to chat with them:

Of course - there is also the option to search for a specific user:

Clicking on “Chat” button opens a conversation with that person.

Click “Type a message” to chat.

You can stay on top of things by following the discussion.

Following a discussion means you will receive notification email whenever someone replies to your comments in a discussion or whenever a new comment is added in the video.

By default, you will not be notified of new comments, so you must manually do this if you wish.

Following a discussion is done by either of the following:

• Adding a comment in the Comments Space (once you add a comment in the shared comments area of a specific video, you will be notified of new comments created on this video).

• Following a video via the Annoto menu

You can follow the video discussion without adding a new comment by clicking the Bell icon in the Annoto menu:

Click on the bell icon in order to follow the discussion.

When the bell is green, it means you are following the discussion (meaning: you will get notification emails for new comments and replies on the video).

When the bell is clear, it means you are NOT following the discussion (meaning: you will not get any notification emails for new comments and/ or replies on the video).

Notifications' preferences

You can enable/disable which email notification you will get from Annoto in "my Space". Accessing it is from the Annoto menu:

Choose which email notifications you would like to receive:

• Followed Discussions - once enabled, you will be notified on new comments and replies in this discussion (video)

• Replies - once enabled, you will be notified when a comment you wrote received a reply

• Mentions - once enabled, you will be notified on comments that you are mentioned in

Toggle right (green) = Enabled

Toggle left (grey) = Disabled

Disabling notifications

If you would like to stop receiving notifications for a specific video, click the bell icon so it will be clear :

The activity feed helps you stay updated with everything that interests you :)

In order to get to your Activity Feed (in the User Space), click on My Space in the Annoto menu:

Then, on the left side, choose "Feed":

In the activity feed, you can see all the latest activity that happened in the Comments Space (the Annoto shared environment) on the videos that you are following.

You can see the activity in two aspects:

• Me – shows only content submitted by you

• Everyone – shows all the activity on the videos that you are following

Here is an example of what you can see in "Everyone" mode:

There are so many more things you can do in the comments space!

If you wish to get the gist of it, you may find it in the following image:

If you want to learn more about each option - keep reading, it's right here:

Reply to a comment

If you want to reply to a comment - all you have to do is click on REPLY below the comment, write and hit send, as you can see here:

Read replies

Whenever a comment has replies, the number of replies is mentioned below the comment. Clicking on that will open the replies so you can read them.

Like a comment

You can “like” other comments simply by clicking on the red heart near the “reply” button.

The number of "likes" a comment received is shown as well.

Whenever an instructor “likes” a learner's comment or reply, that comment/ reply is marked with “Educator’s thumbs up” (yellow medal on the comment).

This is demonstrated in the following image:

Edit/ delete my comment

You are free to edit or delete any comment you write within 24 hours of when it was written, as long as no one replied to this comment.

The one-on-one conversation provide you the opportunity to discuss the learned material with fellow learners, as well as with the instructor.

Clicking on the Chat tab shows all the users you have conversations with (and the last message that was written).

Clicking on any of the conversations shows all previous messages with that person.

Getting notified on a new messages

Once a new chat message was sent to a user, the user will see an indication with the number of new messages:

Clicking on the chat enables you to read the messages and dismisses the indication for new messages.

Rich text messages

The chat enables a richer experience of writing:

• Ordered list (Type 1. (or any other number followed by a period) at the beginning of a new line and it will magically transform to an ordered list)

• Bullet list (Type * , - or + at the beginning of a new line)

• Emojis (Add smiley faces, hearts, winks, etc. by typing their shortcuts and a space after them: :-), <3 , ;) or :p )

• Bold - Type double asterisks for **Bold text**

• Italic - Type underscores for _Italic Text_

• Highlight - Type equal signs ==like this== to highlight

• Blockquote - Type > at the beginning of a new line

The Personal Notes space in Annoto is 100% yours, to summarize, bookmark and highlight everything you want in the video. Nobody else will be able to view the content of this space.

If you want to add a personal note, all you have to do is start typing in the "Write a personal note..." section. The video will be automatically paused (so you won't miss anything while writing).

What else can you do with a note?

Adding a sentiment

Once your note is ready, simply hit Enter, or click the send button (green arrow, as you can see in the image below):

Multiple lines

If you wish to move to the next line in your note, click Shift + Enter.

Rich text messages

You can format your messages:

Ordered list (Type 1. (or any other number followed by a period) at the beginning of a new line and it will magically transform to an ordered list)

• Bullet list (Type * , - or + at the beginning of a new line)

• Emojis (Add smiley faces, hearts, winks etc. by typing their shortcuts and a space after them: :-), <3 , ;) or :p )

• Bold - Type double asterisks for **Bold text**

• Italic - Type underscores for _Italic Text_

• Highlight - Type equal signs ==like this== to highlight

• Blockquote - Type > at the beginning of a new line

Adding a video as a note

You can also add videos as your personal notes

The video will be embedded in your personal notebook, as you can see here:

Once you click on the “Export” button, you get to choose the format for exporting your personal notes (spreadsheet or document).

If you're having trouble deciding - you may export to one format and then to the other. There is no limitation for the number of times a user exports.

Each file contains:

• Course name

• Video name

• A link to the video

• Video duration

The notes are sorted chronologically and for each comment you can see:

• Its timetag (the time of the video it was written at)

• The date it was written

• The note’s sentiment (if there is one)

Comments & Notes Timetag

Each comment (in the Comment Space) and each note (in the Personal Notes Space) gets a timetag that reflects on what specific moment in the video it was added. Therefore, every question, comment or note is always in the context of the video.

Clicking on the timetag will take you to the exact moment in the video that a comment was written about.

Timeline

At the bottom of the video, you can see the Annoto timeline that provides a visual representation of what was written in that space (Comments? Personal Notes Space).

The height of the bars represents the number of comments (or notes) & the colors represent their sentiments (if no sentiment was used, the bar will be gray).

Clicking on a bar in the timeline:

• Takes you to that exact moment in the video

• Scrolls the discussion to its place

A high brown bar, for example, represents a place that includes many questions. It might be worthwhile to see what it's all about ;)

In order to enter My Space, click on My Space in the Annoto menu:

Then, on the left side - choose "My Space":

My Space presents your learning activity throughout all the videos in your courses. For example:

• Number of comments you added in the Comments Space

• Number of personal notes you added in the Personal Notes Space

• Number of Educator's Thumbs Up you received

My Space also enables you to export your personal notes on a course level, meaning: all personal notes you wrote on all of the videos in a course, hence providing you your very own personal journal of that course.

Want to make your comment special? More accurate? More noticeable?

You are more than welcome to:

Add a sentiment to your comment

For every new comment, reply or note that you are writing, you can add a sentiment that indicates its type.

Add a video as a comment

You can add a video as a part of your comment (or as the comment itself). Once the video is added, it is automatically embedded in Annoto.

If you want to stay on top of everything, you can:

Register for notification emails

This way, you will be notified on replies your comments are receiving & on every new comment that is added in the discussion.

Visit your activity feed

You can keep track of all the new activity in the course in your User Space's Activity Feed, which gathers all the new comments & replies in all the videos of the course.

The Annoto widget includes all kinds of ways to personalize the way you view the discussion.

The Annoto tour

The Annoto tour is a quick-few-steps tour in the Annoto widget, to make sure you are familiar with the basics of Annoto - main features and how you can use them to optimize your learning experience.

The tour will automatically appear on the first time you will play a video with Annoto.

You can dismiss the tour window by clicking on the X button, but it is very recommended to finish the tour.

If you accidentally dismissed the tour window, or you want to take the tour again, this can definitely be done!

Simply go to the Annoto menu and click on "Take a tour" to retake it, as you can see in the following images:

Finishing the tour is done once adding a comment in the discussion, or by clicking on the "Add a comment" section.

Widget sizes

The Annoto widget has 3 sizes:

Mini mode

This is the discussion bubble icon on the side of the video. It can be positioned on the right or on the left/ up or down, but it is easy to spot, especially if there are already comments in the discussion. In this case, the bubble even presents the number of comments in the discussion.

Peekaboo mode

With the peekaboo mode, you see only the comments that are relevant to the moment in the video that you are watching. No distractions!

You can get to the peekaboo mode simply by clicking on the Annoto minimize button when the widget is open:

Full mode

The Annoto widget full mode enables you to view the entire discussion in the video and, of course, to be an active part of it.

You can get to the full mode simply by clicking on the Annoto icon (when the widget is in mini mode) or by clicking on the open button (when the widget is in kuku mode)

Discussion sorting

You can sort the discussion to your choice.

You can easily recognize faculty's comments, questions & likes.

The Educator indicator

Every comment (or reply) provided by the instructors is marked with the Educator indicator (the graduation hat beneath the user image). Learners' comments do not have this icon.

Educator's like

Whenever an instructor “likes” a learner's comment or reply, that comment/ reply is marked with the “Educator’s thumbs up” (yellow background with a white star)

We are here for you!

Feel free to contact us:

• If you need any additional information

• If you have any questions

• For anything else