ZOOM
TIPS & Tricks
Here are some recommedations for online classes during COVID. These are not necessary, but have been helpful in my experience. Note that these assume you have basic proficiency communicating in a Zoom meeting. Feel free to ask me other questions or get in contact with the respective IT department, or just consult Zoom’s resources.
Spacebar is “push to talk” in Zoom
Because of the amount of people in each class, you’ll be muted on entry. When you want to say something simply press spacebar and start talkin’ Spacebar will unmute you while you press it. Note that Zoom has to have “focus” (you clicked on it so your computer knows this is the current application you’re using) in order for this to work. I will make an effort to make sure I give room for people to respond taking this into account. Turn off notification sounds
If you use Messages on a Mac the default “ding” is quite ear piercing if you are using your laptop microphone (this is coming from someone who likes Merzbow). Additionally if you have other commonly used services open (Slack, Discord, Purchase email) the notification bleeps and bloops can simply be confusing.The solution I recommend is to turn off notifications temporarily, or if it is relegated to a tab on a web browser, simply mute the tab
Windows has a function called the Volume Mixer that allows you to change the volume of individual applications that is super useful, however this is not available out of the box on a Mac. You’ll have to buy an app to do this if you really feel you want/need it on a Mac.
Use headphones / microphone.
Zoom does an admirable and unenviable job at filtering the audio when multiple people are talking without headphones so that it largely isn’t a problem. However, if there is crosstalk it usually ends up that some people get effectively muted, or inevitably there is some echo. This can range from being very mildly annoying to effectively muting someone. Headphones help this, and microphones just increase the net audio quality of the meeting. Not that based on the notification tip, if you have headphones we won’t hear your computer audio. Headphones have their own issues in that you may experience “ear fatigue,” but we’ll hopefully take enough breaks to help. If you have a headset, say for gaming, or earbuds with a microphone for your phone, I would use those. There are some good headphones you can buy for a “reasonable price” depending on your budget. 
Behringer BH770 these are more affordable copies of the Beyerdynamic DT770’s these are the ones I use and I like them a lot. I’ve had generally good experience with Behringer products and would like to know anyone’s experience if they get these.
Microsoft LifeChat LX-3000. I have one an old version of these and they are surprisingly good. I can’t speak to using them on a Mac, but nothing to install or set up on a Windows machine.
Raycon earbuds. This is not an #ad, but almost every video on YouTube I watch has an ad for these so you may be able to get a decent discount on them. They don’t seem terrible and I would rather support them than Apple to be honest.Use two “Monitors”
This is really helpful for being able to view work, things we might reference and everyone in the Zoom session simultaneously. I realize this may be a luxury and as it is I’m not going to enforce it as a hard and fast rule. Consider the following options:- Use a TV as a second monitor. If you have a large screen being used for gaming or watching TV, you can use it as your second screen. If it’s in a common room this may be more complicated, you may have to socially engineer how important it is for your education ︎
- Use your phone for Zoom. Zoom does allow you to connect via multiple devices to the same meeting on the same account, but you can use your phone to connect to the meeting itself (maybe you are already). Just be aware that it may be jarring if you are, for example walking around during a class or you may have to switch or reconnect if you want to show your screen.
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