Host controls
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The Host controls are available when Meeting mode is active, and they help you run a productive collaboration session.
Either by selecting 'Start Meeting' at the top of the board UI or by using the mode switcher in the toolbar.
Click on the 'Meeting In Progress' status indicator at the top of the board.
Change Tools
Change the board tools available to meeting participants
Hosts
Add or remove hosts to help with your meeting
Private Writing
Enabled by default. Show or Hide text on participant sticky notes
Meeting Timer
Enable/Disable a timer for your meeting
Hide Identities
Create a space for candid feedback by making everyone anonymous
Ready Check
Provides a button for participants to mark themselves as ready
Run Poll
Anonymously ask your participants a question and view results
End Meeting
Finish the meeting
In the Meeting Tools menu you can adjust what your participants are able to access, these options are grouped in 3 categories, Collaboration, Design, and Gestures.
If you do make any changes to our defaults, be sure to click the 'Update' button when you're done.
One of our Host Controls which requires special mention is Hide Identities, it allows you to make all participants anonymous, and to stop Metro Retro tracking what they wrote or where they voted.
When Hide Identities is on:
you can’t tell who is who
you can’t tell who wrote a sticky note, ever!
voting is anonymous
Hide Identities is a mode that you can turn on and off, to use whenever you need - whether for the whole session or just one activity.
Anything written or voted on when Hide Identities is active stays that way, forever. Nothing can ever be tied back to an individual.
When you’re done, turn Hide Identities off to go back to regular mode, where all new contributions and votes are tracked again.
Everyone has an avatar
All avatar pictures replaced with a single question mark
All sticky notes show the author
No authors
Individual handwriting for each person
Everyone’s handwriting is the same font
Can spotlight a person’s stickies and votes
Spotlight disabled in anon mode
Can spotlight a person's votes
All votes are anonymous
Can Follow other people
Following is disabled during anonymous mode
Export contains who wrote and voted
Export does not contain who wrote and voted while in anon mode
In short - we don’t believe anonymity should be default for team sessions, but we recognize that anonymity can be a useful tool in certain scenarios:
helping newer teams raise awkward issues
reducing bias like zombie groupthink, or the HIPPO effect
is another useful tool in a facilitators toolbox
