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Jitsi Meet vs Big Blue Button

Coming soon - Jitsi Meet, XR UK's new Zoom alternative

We now have two different Zoom alternatives which are free for XR UK rebels:

We started working on Jitsi Meet mainly because of problems with subtitles (closed captions) in Big Blue Button (especially on mobiles). It solves that problem, but documentation is still a work in progress, and we expect to introduce a calendar later this year.

How to use Jitsi Meet

This video explains most of what you need to know. We will update it with a more polished version soon.

Go to meet.extinctionrebellion.uk to create a meeting, log in with your Hub account, and then share the link to the meeting with other participants. The controls should be reasonably familiar, but please have a look at the video if you are not sure, or come to one of our regular tech support drop-ins.

Jitsi Meet vs Big Blue Button

Advantages of Jitsi Meet over Big Blue Button:

  • Subtitles work, even if somebody is on a mobile phone
  • Subtitles are more secure than on Big Blue Button
  • Subtitles are easier to set up than on Big Blue Button
  • Screen sharing works on mobile if you use the app
  • Does not require emailing XR Global to get an account, you can use your hub account

Disadvantages:

  • You need a Hub account to start a meeting in Jitsi Meet
  • Big Blue Button has better background blur / background replacement
  • XR UK's Jitsi Meet is a work in progress, especially the documentation, but we consider it stable enough to use for regular meetings
  • 2 minute delay before subtitles start working (contact us if you're using it regularly, see below)
  • No built in meeting schedule, just click on meet.extinctionrebellion.uk to create a new meeting and share the meeting link, add it to your calendar etc
  • Recording works, but you'll need to contact us within two weeks to get the recording file, or use the record to local file option (lower quality) - we are working on this
  • Polls are turned off due to issues with mobiles
  • Jitsi Meet does not seem to work properly in Firefox

In general, Jitsi Meet provides both security and accessibility at the same time, unlike Big Blue Button (which is secure as long as you don't use subtitles, and isn't accessible if anyone is on a phone) or Zoom (which isn't secure for XR purposes). So we hope most circles will eventually move their regular meetings to it. But there are some minor drawbacks, so some circles may wish to continue using Big Blue Button. Either is preferable to Zoom!

Note that meet.extinctionrebellion.uk is hosted by XR UK. There is also a separate XR global Jitsi Meet which does not have working subtitles, and even a public site (which does not have subtitles either). We suggest you use ours!

Security basics for Jitsi Meet

You need a Hub account to start a meeting in Jitsi Meet.

Once a meeting has started, anyone can join: they do not need a hub account. However you can control who joins the meeting by enabling the lobby, as in Zoom. You can also login after joining the meeting from Profile under Settings (on the menu), which will make you a moderator. You need to be a moderator to enable the lobby, to mute other people or kick people out, to enable closed captions, etc.

While you can technically pick any meeting name, please use a randomly generated name by e.g. clicking on meet.extinctionrebellion.uk, starting a meeting, and sharing the link. Otherwise if you use a guessable meeting name you will need to enable the lobby and/or put a password on the meeting, every time you start the meeting. Thanks!

One big difference with Zoom is that meetings only exist while there are people in them, so if you need to put a password on a meeting, you will need to do that every time. We are working on a scheduling system on the hub, but it could be a while before that is ready.

Help us

We know who is using Jitsi Meet, because of the need to login through the Hub to start a meeting. We will keep this information private, but we may reach out to you if you use it regularly.

If you use XR's Jitsi Meet, especially if you are holding regular meetings, or have any feedback on what works and what could be better, please contact us, either via the Tech Reception on Mattermost or by email at tech@rebellion.earth.

Future plans

We plan to implement scheduling in 2026. We hope to let you schedule a regular meeting on the hub for your circle, which will solve some problems (e.g. the captions lag starting a meeting). It's possible that you may be able to start a meeting without a hub account, but we're not sure yet, and in any case you may need to login to become a moderator ("host" in zoom terms, to e.g. enable the lobby). We may also enable some of the missing features.

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