Field Notes on Speaker View Escape
A person has been attempting to switch from gallery view to speaker view during a meeting and has instead shared their screen twice.
Official Application: Speaker View Transition Request Submitted to the Video Conferencing Interface, April 2022
To: The Video Conferencing Interface
From: A Participant in Meeting ID 847-293-510
Re: Speaker View Access
I am writing to formally request assistance in switching from gallery view to speaker view.
I have been attempting this transition for approximately four minutes. The meeting has been in progress for eleven. The presenter is sharing a slide deck. I cannot see the slide deck at a useful size because the gallery view is displaying seventeen faces, each approximately the size of a postage stamp.
I would like to see the slides.
Incident 1: Screen Share
At 10:07, I moved the mouse toward the upper portion of the screen to locate the view-change option. The toolbar appeared. I clicked.
I shared my screen.
The screen I shared was the desktop, which contained several windows I did not intend to share, including a browser tab whose title was visible to seventeen participants for approximately three seconds before I ended the share.
The title was not confidential. It was, however, informal.
Incident 2: Second Screen Share
At 10:09, I attempted again. The toolbar had relocated to the lower portion of the screen.
I shared my screen again. This time, the share was ended in under two seconds.
The presenter paused to ask if I had something to share.
I said no.
Incident 3: The View Button
At 10:11, I located a button labeled "View." I clicked it.
A menu appeared with options including Gallery, Speaker, and Immersive. I moved the mouse toward Speaker. The menu closed.
Current Status
I am in gallery view. The slides are small. The faces are large. The presenter is on slide fourteen of thirty-one.
Request
I am applying for speaker view. I am prepared to remain in gallery view if the application cannot be processed before slide thirty-one.
The toolbar appears on hover and disappears before the intended button can be located. This is a feature.
I accept the feature.
Application submitted under protest, with goodwill.