GoToMeeting Desktop App
Attendee Guide for Windows
Get started with the Control Panel & Grab Tab
How to Join as an Attendee on GoToMeeting
1Set up your audio
When you first join, you'll be prompted to choose which method you'd like to use to listen to the meeting audio.
- Select Computer audio to use your computer's mic and speakers.
- Select Phone call to use your telephone to dial in to the audio conference.
Once you're in the session, you will see your audio controls on the Audio tab. You can switch audio modes at any time.
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- If you select computer audio, you can use the next screen to test your audio devices. Speak into the microphone to see the audio meter light up, and click Test your sound to hear a test sound play through your speakers. Learn more.
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The Audio Pin is a unique code that lets GoToMeeting link your phone call with your GoToMeeting Control Panel. This allows you to mute and unmute yourself using the Audio button rather than your telephone keypad, and it also ensures other participants will be able to see when you are speaking. Learn more.
- To learn your Audio PIN, check the Audio section of the Control Panel (in the desktop app).
- When prompted, enter your Audio PIN using your telephone keypad. If you are already connected to session audio, enter a # before and after the PIN.
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Q:
Why do I see "View audio options" in the Audio pane?
- If you don't see the Computer or Phone audio controls on the Audio tab, that means that you haven't yet selected an audio mode. It's possible that the "Choose an audio option" window is hidden behind another application, so try minimizing other windows until you see the one shown at the right. Then select an audio option to continue.
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Q:
Why can't I connect to audio?
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First, make sure you have the right option selected in the Audio pane (shown on the right). For example, if you want to dial in using your telephone but you still have "Computer audio" selected, you won't be able to connect properly.
Still having issues? See our full Audio FAQs. -
Q:
Why can't anyone hear me?
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Most attendees are muted by default when they first join. Make sure the Audio icon at the top of your Control Panel is glowing green, and that your microphone or telephone's mute button is not on as well.
Still having issues? Learn more. -
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Why don't I see the "Computer audio" and/or "Phone call" options?
- If your Audio pane doesn't look like the one shown to the right, it's possible that the organizer disabled one or both of GoToMeeting's built-in audio options (for example, they might have made it a Computer audio-only meeting, with no phone numbers provided). They might even have provided custom audio information, in which case you should follow the instructions they provided in the Audio pane.
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2Mute & unmute
Control your audio feed using the Audio button at the top of your Control Panel or Grab Tab, which will glow green when you are unmuted and others can hear you. You'll see a Mic icon for Computer audio, or a Phone icon for phone call audio.
You can also switch between Computer and Phone audio if needed by opening the Audio pane in the Control Panel.
Note: Most Computer audio users are muted by default when they first join. If you are muted, click the red Audio button so that it glows green.
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Q:
Why is my Audio icon grayed out?
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If your Audio icon is not red or green, there are a few possible reasons why.
- You are not properly connected to the audio conference. See Step #1 above for directions on connecting and Audio FAQs.
- The organizer may have provided third-party conference call audio instead of using GoToMeeting's built-in audio. In this case, you will not be able to control muting/unmuting from your Control Panel.
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Q:
Why can't I mute myself?
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If you are successfully connected to audio but clicking the green Audio button won't mute your audio feed, there are a few possible reasons why.
- You connected to audio by dialing in with your telephone, but you did not enter your Audio PIN, which is listed under the phone numbers in the Audio pane). Without it, the Control Panel can't control your phone's audio feed.
- You connected to audio using Computer audio, but there is a connection issue. Try opening the Settings pane and switching to Phone audio, then switching back to Computer to reset the audio connection.
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3Share your webcam
Smile! You can start, pause and stop sharing your webcam all using the Webcam icon in your Control Panel or Grab Tab.
Want to preview your webcam feed first?
We know that you want to look your best! Just open the Webcam pane in your Control Panel (shown on the right). You will instantly see a preview of your webcam feed on the Webcam tab.
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To help save some space on your screen (or to help improve your internet speed), you can hide the webcams that are being shared.
- Click the Options icon in your Webcam pane.
- Select Hide All Webcams. You can also select Hide My Webcam in the same menu, but keep in mind that this does not stop your webcam feed from broadcasting to other attendees - it just hides it from your screen.
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You can see advanced webcam options (zoom, brightness exposure) in the GoToMeeting Preferences window.
- Click the Options icon in your Webcam pane.
- Select Preferences.
- Sometimes it's easier to focus if your webcams are on a separate screen! You can undock the webcams from your Viewer window and move them independently around your screen by clicking the Options icon in your Webcam pane and selecting Undock webcams.
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4Share your screen
If the meeting organizer grants you presenter permissions, then you can share your screen or even a specific application with the other attendees in the meeting. Use the Screen button in your Control Panel or Grab Tab to quickly start and stop sharing the screen of your main monitor once you have presenter controls.
Open the Screen tab to see additional options:
- Use the Start sharing my drop-down menu to share a different monitor or even a specific application (such as Powerpoint).
- Use the Change Presenter to menu to transfer the presenter controls to another person.
- Use the Share keyboard & mouse with menu to allow other attendees to control the mouse and keyboard on the screen you are sharing.
Note: You will not see the presenter controls in your Screen pane unless you are made the presenter by an organizer or the current presenter. Once you are made presenter, the additional presenter controls will appear in your Control Panel (like the one shown on the right).
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- Drawing tools can help you illustrate your point - and when everyone joins in on the fun, collaboration gets a big boost. Click the Options icon at the far-right of the Drawing Tools pane, and turn the Attendees can draw option to "On".
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Q:
Why don't I see the Drawing Tools pane?
- For some Windows users, the Drawing Tools pane is hidden by default (this happens when your monitor display settings are not optimal for drawing tools). To show the pane, click GoToMeeting at the top of the Control Panel and select Drawing Tools > Open. Then click Yes when prompted.
- If you'd like to freeze the broadcast of your screen rather than stopping it altogether, you can hover your mouse over the Screen button until you see a Pause icon appear below it. Use the Pause button to pause and restart the live broadcast.
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5Chat with others
The Control Panel includes a Chat pane where you can exchange messages with other attendees. You'll see message notifications appear if your Control Panel is minimized to the Grab Tab.
Use the To drop-down menu to select your recipients:
- Select Everyone to send a public message to all participants.
- Select Organizer(s) only to send a message only to organizers and co-organizers.
- Select a specific individual to send a private message to just that person.
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- You can save a .RTF file of the transcript by clicking GoToMeeting in the top menu, then selecting Save Chat Log. When prompted, select a place on your computer to save the file and click Save.
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6Minimize to Grab Tab
To save valuable space on your computer screen, you can collapse the full Control Panel into a small Grab Tab that will automatically "cling" to the sides of your screen. Use the Arrow icons to collapse and expand the Control Panel.
- Retain easy access to the Audio, Screen and Webcam buttons.
- Get new chat notifications when messages come in.
- Click the Attendees or Chat icons to expand only those panes.
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- You can rearrange the order in which the various panes appear in the Control Panel, and even split out one or more of them to be moved about your screen separately - just drag and drop the panes where you want them.
- The Viewer is the application window that shows you the presenter's shared screen. You'll also notice that it includes multiple tools in the upper toolbar, including webcam controls, the ability to rearrange its location and a Camera icon that allows you to take a screenshot of the currently shared screen.
- Sometimes it can be helpful to split out shared webcams from the main Viewer window so you can focus on the parts you want most. Click the Undock icon in the Webcams menu of the Viewer or Webcam pane.
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7Explore other tools
The GoToMeeting menu offers additional features and tools for you to use during you session, including checking your sound, saving your chat log and configuring your application preferences.
To access the drop-down menu, click GoToMeeting at the top of your Control Panel.
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- This option will change the name and email address that is displayed to everyone in the Attendees pane (as well as the "Talking" section at the top of the Control Panel).
- You can change the display language of the GoToMeeting Control Panel to Spanish, French, Italian, German, Chinese or English.
- All other settings for GoToMeeting can be accessed from the main Preferences window. Select Preferences to open the window.
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8Need more help?
Need some more help getting the most out of GoToMeeting? See these additional resources to learn more.
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Having some installation issues? There are a few different things that might be preventing you from downloading the GoToMeeting desktop software.
- Check your system's compatibility. Your computer's operating system must meet certain requirements in order to run the software. Make sure yours doesn't have any limitations on our System Check page.
- Try again and watch out for permissions requests. In order for GoToMeeting to properly install itself on your computer, you have to grant it permission to access your system. The ways in which you'll be asked to do so will vary depending on your web browser and operating system, so click your Join link again and then select the article that applies to you below.
- Check your system's compatibility. Your computer's operating system must meet certain requirements in order to run the software. Make sure yours doesn't have any limitations on our System Check page.
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GoToMeeting offers multiple methods for getting into session to make sure that you are able to join whenever and wherever you want. This particular guide applies to the GoToMeeting desktop app for Windows computers. If it doesn't look the same as what you see on your screen, please select one of the following.
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Q:
Did you join with a mobile device?
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If you used an iPhone, iPad, Android phone or tablet or a Windows Phone to connect, you likely are using one of our mobile apps. Select the right one below:
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Q:
Did you join from a Mac computer?
- No problem! As long as your computer meets the desktop software's system requirements, then you'll be able to use it to join the session and have access to all the same features and tools shown above (although they will look a little different). Learn more about the Mac Control Panel here.
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Q:
Did you join from a Windows computer, but it looks different than what's shown above?
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Depending on the organizer's account settings and the operating system of your computer, you may have instantly joined the session using your your web browser, which allows you to join quickly without installing the full desktop software. Take a look at the resources below to learn more about joining sessions using the Web App.
- If you have your own GoToMeeting account, then you are a GoToMeeting organizer and have access to additional features and tools! Please see our Organizer User Guide to learn more.
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