In this manual we will use CouncilARS™ Hybrid with smartphones. If you only use the voting machines, you can skip the points for using smartphones.

When starting CouncilARS™ you will first be asked where you would like to save your log files. It is recommended to create a folder where you save your sessions. There is a “New Folder” button below the address bar of your dialogue window for this purpose.
When you are finished, give the log folder a name and press “Save“.

Start screen – Output

If you have never worked with CouncilARS before, you will get an empty window with a few elements.

1. Resolution number. Your resolution number is displayed in this area.
2. Resolution text. The resolution text that you can enter or import is displayed here.
3. Logo (can be changed in the options)
4. Status display receiver. If you have already plugged in a receiver and it is recognised, the display lights up in green. If no receiver is connected, this indicator is white.
5. This is where your results will be displayed later.
6. For the CouncilARS™ operator, this is the main area. Here they manage the participants, resolutions, options and Outputs.
7. In this area we will later see the names of the participants and their attendance. In the case of open (roll call) votes, the voting behaviour of the individual participants is also shown here.

Use of 2 screens

If you are using two screens (e.g. laptop and beamer), set the output to Expand.

To do this, press the following key combination Windows key+P before starting CouncilARS™.

When you set this mode, you get different views on your screens. A separate output (screen 2) and the control unit (screen 1) with which you can operate CouncilARS™ without the participants seeing every step you take. When CouncilARS™ is started for the first time, this unit looks like the example below.

In the next step, go to the “Options”