The 25th International
Annual Virtual Congress
of the World Muscle Society

28th Sep – 2nd Oct 2020

How to use the Virtual Congress Platform

You should have received your unique Access Credentials to enable you to log on to the virtual congress platform SEE LOGIN PAGE.

The virtual congress platform will be accessible from 12:00 midday BST on Monday, 28th September 2020 and prior to then, although you will not have access to the congress platform itself, you will be able to update your profile information before the congress starts.

We advise you to take time to view the walk-through video below to show you in detail how to use the platform, including how to log in, access pre-recorded and live sessions, as well as meet exhibitors and network.



Technical Requirements
What are the technical requirements to attend the virtual congress?
- You need a stable internet connection, your computer or device, and a valid registration. Which browser should I use?
- Google Chrome will be the best option, but other browsers are also supported.

Virtual conferences are new to most of us, so here are some steps to follow, to help you smoothly adapt to this new and exciting experience:

Enter the Virtual Congress platform.
- Go to the Virtual Congress access page And click on the small computer screen on the right to go to the virtual congress platform.
- Type in the Access Credentials you received via email (you must have a valid registration, to get access to the platform).
- Click on “Sign in”.

Explore the virtual venue!
- Once you are at the Virtual Congress, clicking on text and display screens will take you to further information and features.
- Areas marked in red below are clickable and will open new screens with information for you.

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From here you can:

Explore the scientific programme and save sessions of interest.
Click on the “Scientific Programme and on Demand Sessions” banner in the lobby You will be redirected to the interactive scientific programme.
In there you can:

1. Explore sessions by day or session type.
2. Search for specific session names, topics or presenters.
3. Click on session names to open more details.

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Once you open the specific session, you can:

1. See who is presenting in this session and the topics they will be discussing.
2. Watch the session recording (if it is a recorded session).
3. Message the presenter.
4. Download a calendar reminder, so you don’t miss this session (especially for the live ones).
5. Bookmark the session (add it to the list of bookmarks), if you want to review it later.

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Please note that industry and teaching course sessions will be available On Demand, the day following their live session, and the main congress programme sessions can be accessed On Demand from the scheduled presentation day, regardless of the scheduled time specified in the Scientific Programme.

Watch live sessions
Click on the “Live Auditorium” or “Industry Symposia” buttons in the main lobby.
You will see the list of live sessions.

1. If a session is already live, you will see a button “Join”.
   a) Click on this button to access the session.
   b) Click on “Unmute” to hear speakers’ presentations.
2. If a session hasn’t started yet, you will see a countdown showing you how much time there is until this session starts.
3. If a session has already finished, you can watch its recording. Click on “Play” to see it.

Watch pre-recorded sessions
If a session has already finished, you can watch its recording in the “Live Auditorium” or “Industry Symposia” hall. Click on “Play” to see it.

The main congress sessions will be available on demand from the morning of their scheduled presentation day.
To watch pre-recorded sessions: click on the “Scientific Programme and on Demand Sessions” screen in the lobby.

Find the session you want to watch and click on its title to open and read the details.

Click on “Webcast” to see the recorded presentations.

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When the session recording opens up, you can switch to watch in full screen mode by:
- double clicking on the area of the video.
- or clicking on the dedicated button in the bottom right corner (marked on the image).

When and where will the sessions be available?
Industry Sessions will be available from their scheduled time on 28 September in the “Industry Symposia” button accessible from the main lobby. Once the session has taken place, it will be available to view on demand in the same place. Within 24 hours, the webcast of the full session including live Q&A (when permitted by the sponsor), will be available for viewing also in the “Scientific Programme and On-demand Sessions”. Please note: Some industry sessions will no longer be available to view after the live Congress days.

The Pre-Congress Teaching Course sessions will be available from their scheduled time on 29 September in the “Live Auditorium” or the “Teaching Course” button accessible from the main lobby. Once the session has taken place, it will be available to view on demand in the same place. Within 24 hours, the webcast of the full session including live Q&A, will be available for viewing also in the “Scientific Program and On-demand Sessions”. Note that the Teaching Course will be available in the virtual platform until the end of October only. From November the webcast of the teaching course will be available to WMS members only via the WMS website.

The Scientific sessions (main congress programme) will be available on demand in the “Scientific Programme and On-demand Sessions” from the scheduled presentation day, regardless of the scheduled time specified in the Scientific Programme. They will be shown at their scheduled time on 30 September – 2 October in the “Live Auditorium” button accessible from the main lobby, followed by the live Q&A. Within 24 hours, the webcast of the full session including live Q&A, will be available for viewing also in the “Scientific Programme and On-demand Sessions”. The scientific content will be available on demand for a period of 3 months after the meeting ends for registered participants only, unless speakers/presenters/exhibitors have requested their content/recording be removed post-congress.

The E-Posters will be available from the opening of the congress platform until 3 months following the live event.

Message presenters from sessions you are interested in
Click on the “Scientific Programme and on Demand Sessions” banner in the lobby.

Find the session you want to watch and click on its title to open and read the details

Click on the message icon next to the presentation name, to contact the author.

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A new window will pop up, allowing you to send a comment or question directly to the presenter’s email (not in the platform). Please note by sending an e-mail to author you are providing them with your e-mail address.

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Don’t forget to check you own message inbox in case someone has contacted you.

Explore the E-Posters
Click on the “E-Posters” banner in the lobby to be taken to the E-Poster Gallery Homepage.

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- Browse through over 350 e-Posters. View them per session, per topic, or view them all at once by clicking “View all e-Posters” at the top of the gallery homepage.
Click on the e-poster you want to see to open it.
Click the play button to hear an audio introduction if the presenter has recorded one.
Click the magnifying glass and use the scroll on your mouse to zoom in and out to comfortably read all the details.
Send an email to the e-Poster author by clicking the envelope icon.
Filter e-posters by multiple topics using the search bar and selecting more than one ‘Presentation Topic’.
Search through the titles with any keywords by entering text in the search bar. If you use quotations ie. “SMA type” the search will return results that contain the phrase.

Engage with the E-Poster presenters
Abstract authors are requested to be available during the scheduled poster session Thursday 1 October between 17:30-19:30 BST to answer questions and collaborate with you during the congress dates.

- Chat with the presenter at any time during the congress week via the public chat. Click “Join Chat” or the chat icon to leave comments. We strongly recommend to you leave your comments to “All” so they can be easily answered and viewed by all.
Please note: if you send comments to “Presenter”, here only the poster presenter and the participant corresponding with them will see the chat. However, in order for the presenter to see the private chat messages they need to be inside the e-Poster upload area (note this is not in the virtual platform). The chat window is available from the e-poster upload screen. To see private chat messages from fellow participants and to answer them privately, the presenter must enter the e-poster upload area using his/her token and via a different browser or in Incognito mode.
- Some presenters have included a URL, linking to their own personal or institutional e-meeting room, where they can meet other delegates face to face during times they have indicated.
- Send an email to the e-Poster author by clicking the envelope icon.

Visit the virtual exhibition hall.
Click on “Exhibition” in the lobby.

Scroll through the list of booths by clicking on the arrows to the left and the right of the screen and click on the booths you want to visit.

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After you enter a specific booth you can:

1. View the exhibitor profile and visit their website.
2. Learn more about the exhibitor, by viewing their Resources and download materials where permitted.
3. Submit an Enquiry – Send a message so the exhibitor can get back to you.
4. Contact the booth staff via the Interaction Panel.
5. Chat with the booth staff via the Group Chat (where permitted by exhibitor).
6. Visit the exhibitor’s social media channels.
7. In some booths, the bottom desk panel will be clickable with more information.

View the list of delegates and contact colleagues worldwide.
Click on the “Delegate List” banner in the lobby. A map will open in a new window.

Click on a country flag on the map, or on the flag and country name in the list at the bottom, to view the list of participants from this country. You can search for a participant from this country.

If you would like to contact any of the participants from the list, you can go back to the main lobby and under your profile click “Messages” to compose a message and enter the participant’s name in the To field. The message will be sent to the participant’s messages inbox in the virtual platform only.

You may also chat live with other participants via the “Who’s Online” feature, located under the “More” button.

Here you can chat, leave a message, Video call, and more. Please note if there are a high number of delegates logged in at the same time, this feature may be disabled, but you may still message delegates via “Messages” under your profile.


Visit the Social Hub


www.wms2020.com/social-hub

This is where all the fun stuff happens! From here you can find out more about the WMS25 Challenge, join a Networking Room, have fun with our Photo Booth, get updates on the Anniversary Quiz, find out who has won the Daily Raffle, keep your mind and body feeling at its best with the Take a Break videos, join your colleagues and friends, old and new for some Networking Drinks and remind yourself of all the Social Media details for that all important post. Don't forget to tweet your takeaways from the day using #WMS2020.

Ask for guidance or technical support

If you don’t find the information you are looking for here, we are happy to answer your queries via the Live Chat Support which will be on the bottom right corner of the virtual lobby during congress open hours.
Click on it, and a new screen will pop up.
Type in your question and click on the “enter” keyboard button.

Please note: The “Live Chat Support” feature is available in accordance with congress programme hours (BST):
28 September 12:00-20:30
29 September 14:00-22:00
30 September 14:00-19:30
1 October 14:30-22:00
2 October 14:30-18:30

Need additional assistance? See our Contact Page.

Have you also looked at our Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) page?.


Congress Organiser:

Azura Events Ltd, Devon, UK
Office: +44 (0) 1803 732362 Mobile: +44 (0) 7584 176583
On behalf of WMS Congress Ltd. Registered Company Number 10385332
VAT Registration Number: GB 250494608
Copyright © WMS Congress Ltd

Azura Events
WMS 2019 Congress