Zoom meetings offer an easy way to video conference with others, but it’s essential that you know how to use them safely.
To protect yourself from Zoombombers, we suggest setting a password and disabling audio and video in the meeting settings.
Video
Zoom meetings are an ideal way to connect and collaborate with remote colleagues. Plus, they come equipped with many helpful features that make them more engaging and efficient for everyone involved.
When setting up for a Zoom meeting, it’s essential to optimize your settings for an optimal experience. This includes setting the correct amount of audio and video for your needs, as well as making sure everyone has high-quality connections.
The platform also has a number of other features that can enhance your experience, such as chat and reactions, filters, and virtual backgrounds. All these can have an impact on the quality of your meeting so be sure to test them out prior to starting it.
Screen sharing is an integral feature of Zoom meetings, enabling participants to see your computer screen activity. It’s a great way to explain complex processes and utilize software tools, as well as demonstrate new features.
Zoom Pro users have the added bonus of live streaming to connect with a larger audience. This is an ideal option for presentations or training sessions, and it’s simple to do with Zoom.
Access to co-hosting is another beneficial feature that can save time and energy during a Zoom meeting. Setting up co-hosting for your event is straightforward; all you have to do is enable this option in the meeting controls.
Once your co-host has been added, they’ll have full control of their computer including the ability to switch on or off video recording as required. You may also adjust microphone and speaker volume from within the app.
Security is a top concern for anyone using Zoom, particularly for meetings that involve sensitive data or customers’ information. Fortunately, Zoom has taken steps to address some of these issues and keep users’ data secure.
For instance, they’ve recently enhanced their security tab with a reporting system where people can flag unauthorized users for action. Doing this helps avoid disruption in meetings or potential issues in the future.
Zoom has also addressed the potential security risks associated with “Zoom bombing” and other scenarios where malicious hackers could display inappropriate content during video conferences. As these should never occur, it’s essential that users become familiar with Zoom’s security features before beginning a meeting.
Audio
When participating in a Zoom meeting, audio quality is absolutely critical. It allows for real-time communication with others, so make sure your sound is crystal clear and loud.
Zoom offers several solutions for audio needs. You can join a meeting using your telephone, take advantage of Zoom’s call-me feature, or host a Personal Audio Conference (PAC).
If you’re having difficulty hearing others on the call, try testing your speaker and microphone before the meeting begins. This will guarantee that you are connecting to the correct sound sources and that your device is set up correctly.
Before beginning a regular meeting, you can test the audio quality by hosting a test meeting. Playing music or voice recordings and hearing how they sound through different microphones are two great ways to assess sound quality.
One of the primary causes of poor sound quality is incorrect mic placement. This can make your voice sound muffled and make any background noises (like breathing or salivation) more prominent.
To enhance your audio, consider investing in a high-quality microphone or headset. These devices offer better sound quality and allow you to position yourself optimally for optimal results.
When hosting a Zoom meeting, the waiting room feature allows participants to enter the conference one at a time. This is an effective way of managing who can access the meeting and especially useful when welcoming in new employees or students.
Additionally, it’s wise to require a password for attendees. Doing so can help protect your meeting from non-Zoom users joining it.
Alternately, you can ask everyone to remain silent if they do not plan on speaking during the meeting. Doing this will prevent any unwanted feedback from other attendees in the room from being heard and making it difficult to understand everyone clearly.
As a paid Zoom subscriber, you have access to Personal Audio Conferences (PAC). This enables audio-only meetings with an optional phone dial-in number – perfect for when clients need to call in from mobile devices or working together across multiple remote teams.
Screen sharing
Screen sharing is a feature in Zoom meetings that enables users to show their computer screens to other attendees. This is an incredibly useful function, as it not only helps meeting goers understand what the host is discussing but also adds visual elements to what is being shared.
Screen sharing is an integral element of online training, where trainers use it to demonstrate a process to participants. By default, this feature is enabled for most accounts but can be disabled individually or the account as a whole.
Once enabled, screen sharing for a meeting will appear as a button within the Zoom meeting window that can be used by any participant during the gathering. This is an ideal way to demonstrate something and quickly switch between applications during your conversation.
Screen sharing is easy: just click the share screen button in your Zoom meeting window and select what to share (Figure 1). You can select from an application already running on your computer, a whiteboard or the screen of an iPhone or iPad.
If you want to optimize the video clip that you are sharing, make sure to select “Optimize for full screen video” when doing so. Doing this will guarantee that the screen does not become blurry.
In addition to sharing your screen with the other participants, you can also make audio from your computer available if you select that option. This comes in handy if you’re playing music or audio during the meeting.
When sharing a portion of your screen, it’s possible to adjust the size and position of the green border as desired. You can do this by clicking and dragging one corner, moving it left, right, or up.
For even finer-grained sharing controls, you can access the “Advanced Sharing Options…” menu within a meeting window. Here, you can specify who can share their screen, when they can share it and how many people can simultaneously share.
Chat
As either a host or participant in a Zoom meeting, you can utilize chat to send messages and share files with other attendees. Depending on the settings, you have the option of messaging individual attendees or writing a group message that everyone can see and respond to.
Enabling end-to-end encryption of your conversations is another option, ensuring sensitive information like personal photos and files remain encrypted when sent over the internet. Doing so can safeguard your company’s privacy and data security.
To chat in a meeting, simply click the chat button on your client’s control bar or open the chat window from the chat icon when screen sharing. Type your message and hit Enter to send it.
Hosts and participants of chats can save their conversations to a text file, unless the host has disabled this feature. These files typically reside in each user’s Zoom folder within their documents folder.
After a meeting is concluded, text files can be reviewed for messages sent to the entire group as well as private chat messages from both hosts and participants. Before sharing a copy of this chat with others, however, make sure that any private messages or other sensitive content has been redacted.
Another option is to save a chat locally on your device using either the Zoom app or browser. Doing this can help ensure important conversations remain preserved even if the Zoom app or browser does not function properly.
Finally, it is possible to disable chat entirely in meetings. This can be especially helpful if participants wish to refrain from engaging one another. Furthermore, this feature could serve as a safeguard against spam messages being sent in publicly shared meetings.
Zoom has had its share of issues in recent months, yet it continues to be a top choice for organizations. The platform offers features like end-to-end encryption and waiting rooms for unwanted guests; plus, it provides ways to make meetings more fun and interactive with emojis that let attendees express their reactions without disrupting conversations, automatic recording for meetings reviews or post-meeting note taking and waiting rooms where hosts can control who joins the meeting.
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