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Zoom. How and for what to use?
Video conferencing is very often created for the purpose of conducting online meetings, business discussions, online lessons, lectures, seminars and simple communication. Today this technology has become very popular, and one of the most famous tools that allows it to be used is the Zoom application..
Zoom - application installation, functional overview
Video conferencing is one of the types of group telecommunications that allows a group of users, consisting of three or more people, to communicate with each other, see each other and exchange various files in real time, regardless of how far away the conference participants are from each other.
Zoom is a cloud-based conferencing platform that has become even more popular after schools, institutions and companies moved to distance learning and work due to the global pandemic. The service developed at an enviable speed: for 2 years of its operation (from 2013 to 2015) Zoom attracted 40 million private users and 65 thousand organizations. At the moment, this service is used daily by about 200 million people.
Zoom has both a paid and a free plan, and the free version is pretty extensive. It is possible to organize a video conference in which up to 100 people can participate, but the maximum session duration is only 40 minutes. If this is not enough, you will have to switch to a paid plan, or restart every 40 minutes.
You can use the Zoom service both on a personal computer and on a smartphone using the official mobile application. During a video conference, you can not only talk, but also write chat messages, exchange files, turn on screen sharing and leave notes on it using the built-in tools.
How to get started with Zoom?
Zoom's user interface is intuitive, but a user who is not familiar with modern Internet technologies can still get confused. First, decide which device you will be working from, since installation methods differ depending on the type of user device.
On computer
Go to the Zoom website, click on the "Register for free" or "Free registration" button.
Enter your e-mail address, click "Register". You can log in via Google mail or Facebook account.
A letter will be sent to the mail with a link to confirm your account. Click on it to confirm registration.
Then we are asked to enter first name, last name and come up with a password. Fill in, click "Continue".
You can immediately enter the addresses of your colleagues - they will receive an email offer to register in the service. You can skip this step.
Next, you will be prompted to start a test conference. To do this, click on the link or on the "Start conference now" button. You can also skip this step - click "Go to my account".
The service can be used on the Zoom website, but it's better to download the PC version - so you won't miss incoming chat messages and conference calls. And in general it's more convenient.
You need to go to the Download Center, download and install the Zoom client for conferences on your computer. After installation, run on the computer and go under your username / password.
To work with the desktop version, you must identify yourself. Click on the "Login" button and enter your data. You can save the data so as not to log in again every time.
To phone
You can register on the website and then download the application or register directly from the application. Downloading Zoom from the app store:
Open the application, click "Register" or "Enter the system", where we enter your username / password.
In the application, you can start conferences, connect to strangers, schedule future meetings, correspond with participants.
How to use Zoom
If you plan to use Zoom for PC on a daily basis, configure the program to start automatically when Windows boots. To do this, you need to click on the gear icon and go to settings.
Next, in the "General" section, you need to check the box next to the item "Launch Zoom on Windows startup".
You need to immediately adjust the video and sound. We go to the corresponding sections.
Video . The most important thing here is to configure the following parameters:
The rest of the checkboxes can be left as default..
Sound. Check your speaker and microphone connections and settings. You can adjust your volume for the program or leave a checkmark in front of the item "Automatically adjust the volume".
Contacts. To add contacts, go to the appropriate section and click the plus sign. Then "Add Contact".
We register the mailing address of the person. He receives an email offer to sign up for Zoom or download the app. Click "Add contact". It is saved in the address book.
How to create a meeting in Zoom
There are two ways to start a conference.
By default, the conference starts with video and audio, but you can switch to audio mode without video, to do this, click "Enter the audio conference".
All conference control takes place on the bottom panel with buttons and the side panel with participants. To display the Listener Panel, click Manage Participants. Their number is displayed next to this button. A sidebar will open with everyone attending the conference.
Microphone and camera icons are displayed next to each participant. A crossed-out icon means the microphone or camera is turned off. The screenshot below shows that the camera is turned off, and the microphone is working.
In the process, you can turn on your camera or turn off the sound. This is done on the bottom panel.
Inviting participants
When everything is ready, you can invite participants. For the future, it is better to do a scheduled conference and send out invitations in advance.
Participants can be added in two ways. First - call directly from the conference. To do this, click the "Invite" button on the bottom panel.
Then we write an email address or select people from the contact list. Selected people will receive a notification of participation by email or in the application.
A green circle is highlighted in front of those who are online, and a gray circle is in front of those who are offline. If a person is holding a conference, a red camera is displayed next to his name..
The second way is to click the "Invite" button on the bottom panel, then copy the link to the conference and send it to the selected messenger.
For a scheduled meeting, a link is immediately formed, which can be found under a specific conference.
After the end of the conference, click on the bottom panel "End conference".
You can complete it for everyone or go out yourself, having previously appointed a person who will finish the speech for you.
How to join someone else's conference
The participant to whom the invitation was sent will receive a link to the mail, to the messenger of your choice or a notification in the Zoom application. Accordingly, he needs to click on the link to get to the conference.
If you get a call in the application, press "Accept" to answer. Or "Reject" if you cannot receive the call.
A participant in someone else's conference can turn off / on his camera and microphone, write in the general chat and ask the organizer to record.
How to schedule a meeting
The meeting planner is on the main page of the app.
What are the settings here:
After all the settings, click "Schedule".
All scheduled appointments are displayed in the main application window. You can also find a link to the conference there.
How to enable / disable sound
When setting up a scheduled conference, you can pre-assign who will have the microphone turned on - the host or all participants. If you just created a conference and added participants there, then by default everyone will have sound and video, but each listener can turn off these functions for himself.
Also on the sidebar of the listeners for the conference organizer there are 2 buttons - "Mute for all" and "Unmute for all".
If you want to mute a specific participant, then opposite his name, you need to move the mouse to the microphone and click “Mute”. The microphone will be crossed out.
Feedback from listeners
This feature allows you to receive feedback from participants. For example, the listener can raise a “virtual hand”, say “yes” or “no,” say that he has left for coffee. Reactions are displayed in the participant sidebar. The organizer can see not only the answers, but also the quantitative ratio of "yes" and "no". Also, the organizer can clear all reactions. The participant can remove only his own reaction.
Screen demonstration
Zoom has a screen sharing function. You can show your desktop, browser, connect a virtual board and keep notes on it. This function is also located on the bottom panel and is called "Screen Sharing".
It has several sections in which you can choose what exactly we will show:
Messenger
Zoom can also be used as a messenger. This function is in the chat tab.
In chat, you can send messages, files, or a screenshot. You can also start a conference with a person directly from the chat.
Conclusion
Zoom is a video conferencing and online training software. You can work in the web version, but it is better to additionally download the application for PC and phone. Zoom has a built-in messenger for communicating with those who are in contacts. Accordingly, to communicate with employees remotely, it is not necessary to use a separate messenger (WhatsApp or Telegram) - one Zoom is enough.