Increasingly, enterprises prefer to deploy business applications that are browser-based. The delivery of new features, enhancements, and software fixes is much simpler for browser-based apps. Further, most modern enterprise cloud, SaaS applications are browser-based. More than ever, it is preferred (if not expected) to carry out day-to-day business activity within the browser.
Prior to this release, CareAR provided a browser version of the Assist application that was used exclusively by guest users - not host users. The guest browser app lets a guest to join a collaboration session with full duplex audio and one-way streaming of video, typically from the guest’s mobile device. Annotation is minimal: laser pointer on live video and the full annotation suite on a paused screen. The browser guest app fulfills the you-see-what-I-see use case scenario.
With this release we provide to all CareAR licensed users the ability to host a CareAR Assist session on a desktop browser. The web host app supports most of the capabilities of today’s native application that relate to starting, managing, and ending an Assist session, done from within a desktop or laptop-based web browser.
SCOPE AND LIMITATIONS
This feature will enable a user to host an Assist session in their browser so they can
- Start an Assist session (solo mode or with an invited guest)
- Manage audio and video
- Invite additional guests
- Annotate on the video feed presented in the session (if and only if the streaming participant is doing so with a native CareAR Assist app)
- End the session
Unlike similar products in the market, CareAR does not require the user to download or run any sort of plug-ins, helper apps, add-ons, extensions, etc in or alongside the browser.
Support on mobile browsers is not supported due to fundamental technical limitations of WebRTC (the underlying communications and collaboration technology) on mobile hardware platforms.
The browser app is not a full like-for-like replacement of the CareAR native app and, by design, not all features and capabilities on the native desktop CareAR app are available on the browser app. Future releases of the browser app may include additional features, based on customer need.
The following Assist functionality provided in the native desktop app is not supported in the browser app:
- Contacts
- Favorites
- Recents or History
- Surveys for Host user
- Recording
- Screenshare
- Share Image
Also please note that CareAR Instruct capabilities are not included in this implementation.
Features and Capabilities
ACCESSING THE WEB HOST BROWSER APP
We have added a new button on the lefthand menu strip that indicates "Launch Assist".
When clicked, the pre-session sequence will begin. Note that we have optimized the pre-session sequence popup modal as follows:
- If there is no properly formatted email address or phone number entered in the participant input box, we default a popup modal to let the user start a solo session. The label on the start button reflects starting a solo session.
- If there is a properly formatted email address or phone number entered in the participant input box, we prepare the user to send out an invitation. The label on the start button reflects sending the session invitation.
Since we are encouraging users to make use of the browser app, we have removed the “Download CareAR Apps” link from the lefthand menu strip. The CareAR Apps are still available to download from the downloads page here: https://carear.app/#/download.
AUTHENTICATION AND AUTHORIZATION
No changes have been made to how users are authenticated or authorized access to CareAR. Users are authenticated either via local authentication mechanism or via SSO. Authorized access to certain features is still governed by the roles-based permissions framework, as it is for desktop and mobile users.
The user will remain logged into the app based on the token clearing policy settings the user has configured in their web browser.
SESSION MANAGEMENT
Hosts can manage Assist sessions in the CareAR for Browser app in the same way that they do today using the native desktop app. Users are only permitted to host a single active Assist session inside a given browser app. For example, we prevent a user from hosting more than one Assist session inside the Google Chrome browser.
Note that hosts will not be able to mute users from the Participant screen in the browser app. We may address this in a separate release.
ANNOTATION TOOLS
Hosts are provided access to the same set of annotation tools that they have today in the desktop native app.
SNAPSHOTS
Hosts can take snapshots during video streaming or when engaged in pause-and-annotate mode. Snapshot images are stored in the file location assigned by the browser application; this is the same as the guest browser application behavior.
NOTIFICATIONS AND MESSAGING
Hosts are notified of events while an Assist session is active in the same way that they are notified in the native desktop app. There may be slight variations in the text displayed, but largely it is similar.
ANALYTICS AND STATISTICS
Hosts that use the web Assist app increment the standard counters and statistics, just as hosts using the native desktop app do.
SPECIFIC BROWSER SUPPORT
The CareAR for Browser app is supported on the following browsers:
- Chrome (Windows, macOS)
- Safari (macOS)
- Edge (Windows, macOS)
- Brave (Windows, macOS)
Note that there is technical limitation within Safari the prevents the selection of different speaker device options; whatever is the default speaker option will be used.