Whether you’re attending a U of I Tax School webinar or in-depth seminar, the platform used and testing instructions remain the same. This page contains a platform tour, details on testing your system, how to enter the session on the day of your event, and troubleshooting information. If you have questions beyond what you can find below, please call the Tax School Office at 217-333-0502.
The webinar platform that Tax School uses for all webinars and online seminars is BigMarker.
DOWNLOAD PDF – How to join a webinar and tour of the BigMarker platform.
Please test your computer system using the instructions below before the webinar or online seminar. If you fail to test your system in advance and experience problems, you may not be able to participate. We cannot provide refunds because you experience technical problems the day of the event. When testing, use the computer you plan to use for participating in the webinar or online seminar.
NOTE: We recommend using a desktop or laptop computer rather than a tablet or mobile phone.
This is an example of what the page will look like during the BigMarker System Check.
Use Google Chrome, Microsoft Edge, or Firefox as your browser. Do not use Internet Explorer. If you are working on a Macintosh, do not use Safari. We have seen intermittent technical problems when attempting to enter sessions using Safari.
On the computer you will be using for the webinar or online seminar, go to the following web page:
www.bigmarker.com/system_check
When the page loads, it will run through various network tests. Click on Test Speakers to make sure you can hear audio. You do not need to test your microphone or webcam for Tax School online events.
To enter the live webinar or online seminar the day of the event:
The problem users most frequently encounter is failing the Network Firewall Check, which usually happens when the required communication ports are being blocked by your Windows Firewall or your Internet router. For more information on how to solve this problem please see the I Failed the Network System Check page on the BigMarker support website. Please note that as this has to do with individual settings in your computer firewall or your router, Tax School cannot easily help solve these problems. Some additional steps to try that may solve the problem:
If you encounter additional problems testing your system, you can check the following resources:
Please call the Tax School office at (217) 333-0502 during normal business hours for options regarding webinar attendance if your technical problems cannot be resolved.