This is a tutorial on how to create a meeting invitation and reserve the ROCS Lab for it.

TL;DR: The ROCS Lab (B1-4320 room) is a Room resource in the KAUST Exchange system and you can reserve it by inviting it into a calendar event.

Booking the room

First open your Google Calendar and press the top-left “Create” button.

Enter the title of the meeting.

In the “Add guests” placeholder enter the emails of all individuals invited to the meeting.

NOTE (Zoom call): As soon as you add a guest, Google Calendar will automatically include a Google Meet video conferencing. You should delete the Google Meet call and, if needed, add a Zoom meeting instead as shown below.

To book the room, click on the “Add rooms” placeholder.

Then use the room selector to add B1-4320. NOTE (Unavailable rooms): When working with Google Calendar, you must select the “Include unavailable rooms” option. Despite the apperances, the B1-4320 room is not listed as available even if it is not reserved.

You must click on the label that appears as B1-4320. Then click on the ← symbol.

Finally, you click save and accept to send the invitation email to your guests.

After a few minutes, you will receive an email from B1-4320@kaust.edu.sa that informs you whether the booking was Accepted. The booking would be Declined in case there is a conflict and someone has already booked the room in the desired time.

Room check-in (mandatory)

At the time of your booking, the Crestron Mercury table-top device in the room will show the meeting title and will show a “Check in” button. By pressing this button, you are letting the system know that the meeting has started. If you do not check-in into the room, after 10 minutes the room is automatically released and others may book it. So, remember to check=in, please!

Integration of Zoom and room booking

If a Zoom call was added at the time of the event creation, then a “Join” button is automatically shown on the Crestron Mercury table-top device. By pressing it, you will automatically join the scheduled call.

Viewing availabilty

Using the above tutorial, start to create an invite. Then click on “More options” button at the bottom right.

Add the B1-4320 room to the event.

Then click on “Find a Time”.

This will show a side-by-side view of your calendar and the room’s availability, with booked out times shown as “busy”