Zoom Tip Sheet

From: George Otto <g_otto@comcast.net>

Sent: Tuesday, June 2, 2020 7:20 PM

To: FPboard <fullboard@folkproject.org>

Cc: George Otto <GeorgeOtto@mac.com>

Subject: Zoom tip sheet

As mentioned at the last board meeting, I have begun assembling a list of tips for how we can best use Zoom for our meetings. Here is my first pass at such a list. I hope this helps with the board meeting tonight.

Please let me know of ways to improve this list going forward. I would like to eventually put this into the newsletter as an article, for the general use of all our members for any of their Zoom meetings.

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Zoom Tips

The Folk Project, like so many other organizations these days, has been using Zoom to run its board meetings. Here are some suggestions about how to use Zoom to allow smooth, productive, and interesting meetings.

Zoom runs on different computers, devices, and operating systems. This list will not go into the different system menus or keystrokes needed to start up a Zoom session. It assumes the user already knows how to respond to a meeting invitation to join a meeting. The tips below are intended to inform users about various options and ideas that, hopefully, will allow a meeting to proceed with a minimum of confusion.

Also, this is a living document, so if anyone has any suggestions for improving this list, please let me know and I will modify it.

JOINING THE MEETING

Before you join the meeting, there are a couple of options you can control: whether the audio and video should be on or off when you join. It is best to start with both turned off, so you can make a few settings adjustments before actually joining the meeting, allowing your incoming to be less disruptive. The audio and video settings are accessed in the lower left-hand corner of the Zoom window. Clicking the microphone image will allow you to mute or unmute yourself, and clicking the up-arrow next to it will bring up a menu of options, allowing you to choose your audio source or go to the audio settings. Clicking the camera will turn the video feed on or off, and clicking the up-arrow next to it will allow you to choose your video source or go to the video settings.

Audio Options

During a meeting, there can be a problem with various microphones being active even though the participant is not actually talking. This means that background noises can intrude on the meeting, which can be distracting. It is best to keep the mic muted by default and only turn it on when you need to speak.

You can turn your spacebar into a "push to talk" button (like a walkie-talkie) by going to the audio settings and selecting "Press and hold SPACE key to temporarily unmute yourself."

Also, here is where you can select "Mute microphone when joining a meeting" to make sure you are always muted at the start of a meeting.

In the audio settings, you can also test your microphone input volume and speaker output volume so they are at just the right levels for your equipment.

Please note, if you have the option, using a headset with its own microphone is probably a good idea, since it captures your voice best against any background noise or room echo, and the headset usually delivers the voices of the other participants more clearly to your ears.

Video Options

In the Video settings panel are several options you might want to select. If you click on "Turn off my video when joining a meeting" then the video will be off by default for any meeting you join thereafter, allowing you to adjust your settings before you make your appearance.

An interesting option is "Touch up my appearance," which will smooth out the wrinkles and details of your face if you have a really high-quality camera that tends to show all the pores in your skin.

Another popular video option is to choose the background to be displayed behind you during the meeting. This can hide a messy room or make it appear that you are calling in from a sun-soaked beach in the south of France. This is controlled by the Virtual Background setting. There are several default options provided by Zoom. You can select one of theirs, or you can add one of your own holiday snaps from a file on your computer if you like. A Google search for "Zoom backgrounds" can yield other interesting choices.

Another setting to consider is not in the Zoom program itself, but it is the lighting to be used in the room from which you are broadcasting. The better the lighting, the better you will appear to others. Obviously, there should be a light that shines toward your face from the front so that everyone can see your expressions. This light should be beside or behind the camera at about head level. But a single light alone can wash out your expressions, so you might consider adding a second light that is behind you and shining somewhat down from above. This combination will allow you to pop out of the background and allow others to see your face better.

Another consideration to think about is the position of the camera. You might not have a lot of choice if the camera is a fixed part of your laptop or display screen, but if possible the camera should be at or slightly above eye level. If it is too low, people will remember your nostrils more than your smile.

PARTICIPANTS PANEL

At the bottom of the Zoom window are several buttons to help you be more involved in the meeting. An important one is labeled Participants. In its default state, this button just shows the number of people who have joined the meeting. Clicking on this button, however, will bring up a panel on the right of the Zoom window showing much more information, including the names of all the participants with useful flags indicating the status of each one. At the bottom of the Participants panel are several important buttons you should know about.

Raising your Hand

During a meeting, participants may want to signal to the host that they have something to say. This is done by clicking the "Raise your hand" button at the bottom of the panel. When it is clicked, a blue-hand flag is displayed by the participant's name in the panel above. After being called on by the host, the participant should click the button again to remove the flag.

Voting

If voting is enabled for a Zoom meeting, two more buttons should appear at the bottom of the Participants panel, labeled "Vote Yes" and "Vote No." Clicking on these buttons will cause a green checkmark or a red X to appear by a participant's name. After the vote is counted, each participant should click on the same buttons to remove their flag.

Please note that, unlike an in-person meeting, it is possible with a Zoom meeting for both the Yes and No votes to be cast and counted at the same time. All the Yes and No flags can remain displayed until they are counted, speeding up the voting process. Don't forget to remove the flag when the voting is done.

George Otto

Folk Project Newsletter Editor

newsletter@folkproject.org

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