Common recording problems
If you are having trouble recording, walk through the following steps.
- Update your browser to the most recent version.
- Set your browser permissions for Camera and Microphone to "Allow."
- Test your recording equipment in a different app (such as Photobooth, Facetime, Skype, cam-recorder.com)
- After verifying that your recording equipment works in a different app, be sure to close out the application, because your camera can only be used by one application at a time.
- Make sure you have a 0.5Mbps (500K) or better upload speed by testing your connection below. We strongly recommend a wired connection on the recording computer. (Using a USB extension or longer network cable if needed to optimally position your camera.)
If you are still unable to record in your particular environment, you may wish to upload your video or record in a different environment (different computer and/or internet connection).
Chromebooks
If you encounter a "Can't connect to media server" error, this could be caused by a known Google Chrome bug. To fix this error, copy and paste this link into your browser "chrome://flags/#disable-accelerated-2d-canvas" and then disable that setting. After that, please restart Chrome and try again.
GoReact's video features can be resource-intensive (especially on stimulus assignments where two videos stream simultaneously). Due to the widely varying hardware and (often limited) system resources in Chromebooks, GoReact may not perform well or work at all in some cases. In our testing, more robust, higher-end Chromebooks generally work fine, while less expensive and/or older Chromebooks will struggle. If your GoReact experience on a Chromebook isn't satisfactory, you'll need to use a different device.
Failed recordings and error messages
Black recording screen
A black recording screen generally means that your camera and microphone aren't enabled correctly. The Enabling your camera and microphone guide will help you enable those.
The "Start Assignment" button is grayed out
If the "Start Assignment" button is grayed out on your dashboard, one of the following typically applies:
- The course is expired - videos cannot be submitted to expired courses.
- The course is not yet active - videos cannot be submitted to a course until the Start Date. Please contact your instructor if the course should be available now.
The Record Screen video preview is frozen (or blank)
A frozen (or sometimes blank) "preview" window on the "Record" screen usually indicates that another application or browser is already using the webcam. Make sure that other apps that use your camera (like Skype, Facetime, etc.) are closed, then use the browser refresh button to reload the GoReact recording screen.
I get the error message "Can’t Connect to Media Server"
If this message appears, it typically means something is interfering with the recording connection. Try recording in GoReact in a different browser (Chrome, Firefox, Edge, or Safari).
If it works in a different browser, you most likely have a browser-specific plug-in interfering with camera access in the first browser. Try recording in a different browser.
If you can't record in any of your browsers, you may have a network-related issue. You’ll need to either:
- Try recording from another location (on a different network connection).
- Contact your network administrator and have them ensure that the network considerations in this guide are being met.
Recording stops unexpectedly
Because live recording requires a reliable internet connection to stream to the GoReact servers, an interruption to that connection would stop the recording. If you can determine that your connection has been restored, click the "Resume" button to continue recording from where you left off. If the connection is interrupted for a long enough period of time, the recording session will be terminated and you will need to start again.
If the connection is lost during a test assignment and the session is terminated, you will not be able to resume. The instructor must delete the partial recording before a new one can be submitted.
My video quality is choppy/blurry/poor
GoReact captures the video delivered by your webcam according to your webcam quality, environment lighting, computer performance, AND the speed/reliability of your internet connection. (Please note that virtual desktop environments will not work well with GoReact and will cause lag and choppy video quality.)
If the video quality is poor, do the following:
- Run through the Video recording checklist to make sure you've optimized your recording environment for the best possible quality. That includes lighting, computing power, and internet connection.
- If you are still unable to make a quality recording in your particular environment, you may wish to either record with offline equipment (camcorder or mobile device) and upload your video, or record in a different environment (different computer and/or internet connection).