Trainer Guide

Making course training effortless with DaDesktop Virtual Desktops

DaDesktop Virtual Desktops make it simple to run online courses no matter where you are in Romania.

Please keep in mind: DaDesktop (DD) now supports having one or more trainers for each course.

Each trainer gets their own DaDesktop login, so they can operate the ‘Trainer Desktop’ just like it was their personal machine. 

The concept is that both trainers join the audio conference, trading off at suitable times, while still being able to take command of the Trainer Desktop whenever needed. This is particularly handy for extended courses, or when it’s simply more effective to have two subject-matter experts contributing to the learning experience.

Before creating a new course

• The Trainer(s) should contact course organizer to provide the following information:

1. Course detail (course title, schedule, number of participants)
2. Location for trainer(s) and delegates (so the best data centre can be advised)
3. Trainer's email address(es)

• Recommended browsers for training

1. Chrome
2. Firefox
3. Microsoft Edge

• Network

1. DaDesktop users need a reliable internet connection
2. Using coffee shop Wi-Fi is not recommended; it tends to be unstable
3. Before training, please note once more: DaDesktop is a web-based training portal
4. You'll want an internet speed faster than: "10 Mbps download & 1 Mbps upload"
5. A dual-screen setup and a camera are recommended if you can manage it
    

First step: How to set up your course                                                                                

1. Course coordinators will assist you in setting up the course
2. Invite the trainer(s) to the course by sharing the registration link
3. The trainer will get an email containing the course details and a login link
4. Trainers can sign in using their account at https://dd4t.dadesktop.com 
5. Next, send the course invitation (the pink one) to participants
6. Note: When more than one trainer is involved, there is still only one Trainer machine in use
    

Second step: Prepare your "DaDesktop" in the course                                                    

1. Select "Create from OS template" for the Fresh Start desktop. The Fresh Start is the machine where you, the trainer, build the course content. Once it's ready, you'll clone it to your Trainer Desktop and to the Participants desktops. If you already have a 'Standalone' machine prepared with your course, just click the dropdown arrow and pick that Standalone instead.
2. Pick the OS template, the closest data centre, and the configuration you need for training. Then click 'Create Desktop'.
3. Connect to the desktop and get your course ready within the DaDesktop VM.

• If your course needs multiple machines, install Virt Manager (preferred on Linux) or VirtualBox inside DaDesktop, then set up several desktops concurrently.  This entire machine environment will be cloned to each participant and to your Trainer machine.
• We suggest converting documents to PDF if you plan to use Windows 10 Pro, because MS Office isn't part of the DaDesktop setup.
• Download and set everything up just like you would on your own computer 
• For Fresh-Start machines, stick to the automatically supplied DHCP IP addresses. DO NOT use Static IP addresses or modify MAC addresses or DNS settings, as that can create issues when cloning to the Course Desktop VMs. Also, avoid changing the computer name, as it may lead to problems within DaDesktop.
  
  Reach out to Tech Support if you need assistance with any of these steps.
   

Third step: Clone desktop to all participants

1. Wrap up preparing the "Fresh Start desktop", then exit and stop the desktop.
2. Click "Create from Fresh Start desktop" in the Trainer section to produce a clone of the fresh start machine.
3. If your delegates are in different regions, use the dropdown on "Create from Fresh-Start Trainer desktop" to clone to the appropriate region.
4. The dropdown also offers other choices, like Clone from Standalone and Create from OS Template
    

Final step: Join the Training Room

1. Both trainer(s) and participants need to click the Training Room to join together.
2. Upon joining the Training Room, the system automatically clones the FreshStart desktop for every participant.
3. Inside the Training Room, audio and video recordings happen automatically.
4. Each delegate sees two desktops -- the Trainer's and their own -- so no screen sharing is needed.
5. From the Training Room, the Trainer can view all participant machines alongside their own, and can take over any machine individually to assist a participant when necessary. Each participant sees only their own machine and the Trainer's Desktop.