Zoom For Dummies

Phil Simon is a frequent keynote speaker, dynamic trainer, recognized technology authority, and college professor-for-hire. He is the award-winning author of ten books, most recently Slack For Dummies and Zoom For Dummies. He consults organizations on matters related to communications, strategy, data, and technology. His contributions have appeared in The Harvard Business Review, The New York Times, and many other prominent media sites. He hosts the podcast Conversations About Collaboration.

• Introduction 1About This Book 2Foolish Assumptions 2Icons Used in This Book 4Beyond the Book 5Where to Go from Here 5Thank You 6Part 1: Staying Connected with Zoom 7Chapter 1: Communicating and Collaborating Better with Zoom 9Introducing Zoom 9Discovering Zoom’s origins 10Understanding what Zoom does 11Reviewing the numbers behind Zoom’s rapid ascent 13Assessing how COVID-19 changed Zoom’s trajectory 14Reviewing Zoom’s industry awards and recognition 16Analyzing Zoom’s competitive landscape 17Reaping the Benefits of Zoom’s Tools 23Zoom solves some of today’s key communications problems 23Zoom makes people more productive 24Zoom just works 25Zoom is affordable 26Zoom is flexible and interoperable 26Zoom stays in its lane 27Zoom lets people rediscover their humanity 28Chapter 2: Getting to Know Zoom’s Suite of Communication Tools 29Zoom’s Core Services 30Ready to Go 31Zoom Meetings & Chat 31Zoom Video Webinars 37Some Assembly Required 39Zoom Rooms 39Zoom Phone 43Part 2: Communicating and Collaborating in Zoom 45Chapter 3: Setting Up Zoom 47Taking Your First Steps 47Creating a new Zoom account 48Modifying your Zoom plan 52Downloading and installing the Zoom desktop client 54Signing in to the Zoom desktop client 56Completing your Zoom profile 57Getting to know the Zoom UI 58Reviewing Zoom Account Management 59Adding new users to your Zoom account 60Deactivating existing accounts 61Deleting existing users from your Zoom account 62Unlinking users from your Zoom account 63Unlocking the power of Zoom user groups 64Discussing the Importance of Zoom Roles 67Reviewing Zoom’s default roles 67Creating new user roles 68Changing an existing user’s role 69Chapter 4: Connecting with Others via Zoom Meetings 71Getting Started with Zoom Meetings 72Reviewing Zoom’s meeting-specific roles 72Locating your personal Zoom information 74Augmenting your Zoom meetings 75Hosting Zoom Meetings 78Inviting others to your current meeting 80Planning a future Zoom meeting 82Letting others in to your current meeting 89Joining others’ Zoom meetings 90Putting your best foot forward 93Performing Mid-Meeting Actions 95Reviewing your recording options 95Using virtual backgrounds 97Managing and interacting with meeting participants 99Launching live polls 100Using breakout rooms during meetings 102Sharing content with meeting participants 105Putting a Bow on Your Meeting 115Viewing meeting transcriptions 116Accessing your recorded meetings 117Chapter 5: Getting to Know the Other Side of Zoom Meetings & Chat 121Managing Your Zoom Contacts 122Adding contacts to your Zoom directory 123Removing an existing contact from your Meetings & Chat directory 125Inviting an existing Zoom contact to a new meeting 126Adding internal contacts to an existing meeting 126Performing contact-specific actions 127Understanding User Status in Zoom 128Getting familiar with Zoom’s status icons 129Changing your status in Meetings & Chat 130Staying current with Zoom notifications 133Chatting in Zoom 134Exchanging messages with your individual Zoom contacts 134Holding group chats 136Creating threads in Zoom 139Saving message drafts 141Editing and deleting your messages 141Referencing other Zoom members in a group discussion 142Adding some flair to your messages 143Uploading and sharing files in Zoom 146Sending screen captures 148Performing message-specific actions 149Searching in Zoom 150Performing basic Zoom searches 150Performing more advanced Zoom searches 153Performing searches with wildcards 155Part 3: Becoming a Zoom Power User 157Chapter 6: Getting Even More Out of Meetings & Chat 159Managing Users via IM Groups 160Understanding the need for IM groups 160Adding a new IM group 161Adding users to IM groups 162Exploring Additional Options and Features in Meetings & Chat 163Understanding Zoom Channels 163Refining your Zoom notifications 174Sharing code snippets 178Running Reports in Zoom 181Reviewing Zoom’s role-based reporting 182Running a simple report 185Customizing your reports 186Exporting raw report data 188Chapter 7: Enhancing Zoom with Third-Party Apps 189Understanding the Rationale behind Third-Party Apps 190Benefits of using third-party apps 190Why Zoom relies upon external developers 191Introducing the Zoom App Marketplace 192Searching for a specific Zoom app 193Browsing for Zoom apps 194Managing Your Zoom Apps 195Installing a Zoom app 196Uninstalling a Zoom app 197Viewing your organization’s installed apps 199Restricting apps in Meetings & Chat 199Limiting apps that members can install 200Recommending a Few Useful Zoom Apps 202Treading Lightly with Apps 204Chapter 8: Connecting with the Masses through Webinars 207Taking Your First Steps 208Creating your first Zoom webinar 209Setting your registration options 210Preparing for your webinar 212Reviewing Zoom’s webinar-specific roles 217Taking Zoom webinars up a notch with third-party apps and integrations 223Canceling your webinar 224Running Your Webinar 225Launching your webinar 225Sharing and annotating your screen 228Interacting with webinar attendees 230Concluding Your Webinar 236Accessing your recorded webinar and sharing it with the world 236Downloading your recorded webinar 238Running webinar-related reports 239Deleting your recorded webinars 241Part 4: Deploying Zoom in the Organization 243Chapter 9: Protecting Your Communications in Zoom 245Putting Zoom’s Challenges into Proper Context 246Understanding creative destruction 246Managing the double-edged sword of sudden, massive growth 247Zoombombing 247Gauging Zoom’s Response 251Bringing Zoom’s privacy and security settings to the forefront 252Enhancing its encryption method 253Enabling default passwords and waiting rooms for all meetings 255Increasing the length of meeting and webinar IDs 255Configuring Zoom for Maximum Privacy and Security 256Keeping Zoom up to date 256Enabling two-factor authentication 260Authenticating user profiles 264Intelligently using passwords 267Following Zoom’s best security practices 272Using your brain 274Looking toward the Future 276Chapter 10: Taking Group Meetings to the Next Level with Zoom Rooms 279Revisiting the Early Days of Immersive-Telepresence Technology 280TelePresence by Cisco Systems 280Halo by Hewlett-Packard 281The underwhelming results of early immersive-telepresence technology 282Introducing Zoom Rooms 283Features of Zoom Rooms 283Cost and functionality 284The types of environments that typically benefit from Zoom Rooms 284Setting Up Your Zoom Room 285Software 285Hardware 286Lighting 291Chapter 11: Making Calls with Zoom Phone 293Getting Started with Zoom Phone 294Adding Zoom Phone to your existing plan 294Setting up Zoom to receive inbound calls 296Setting up Zoom to make outbound calls 298Reviewing the Basic Features of Zoom Phone 302Before distributing your Zoom Phone number 303Talking to people via Zoom Phone 306Performing other call-related actions 309Chapter 12: Getting Everyone to Zoom Together 313Understanding the Relative Ease of Zoom Adoption 314Zoom is remarkably easy to use 314Zoom doesn’t step on email’s toes 314Zoom doesn’t require people to rethink how they work 315Zoom benefits from network effects 317Applying Different Types of Techniques 318Organizational techniques 318Individual techniques 321Chapter 13: Zooming toward the Future 325Cutting-Edge Technologies 326Augmented reality 326Virtual reality 326Artificial intelligence and machine learning 327Voice 329Better voice transcriptions 330More useful commands 330Real-time language translation 331Other Developments and Enhancements 331More robust third-party apps 331Key acquisitions and partnerships 332Increased security 332Part 5: The Part of Tens 335Chapter 14: Ten Great Zoom Tips 337Try Before You Buy 337Consider Upgrading Your Firm’s Existing Zoom Plan 338Take Security Seriously 338Keep Zoom Updated 339Create a Personal Zoom Account 339Explore Zoom’s Advanced Features 340Measure Twice and Cut Once 340Develop a Contingency Plan for Important Meetings 340Expect Some Resistance to Zoom at Mature Firms 341Avoid Zoom Fatigue 342Chapter 15: Ten Common Myths about Zoom 343Zoom Is No Different than Legacy Videoconferencing Tools 343Zoom Is Fundamentally Insecure 344Zoom’s Customers Use the Tools in a Uniform Way 344Zoom Ensures Flawless Business Communication 345Zoom Decimates the Need for In-Person Communication 345Zoom Eliminates the Need for Email 346You Can’t Overuse Zoom 346Zoom Is Too Expensive for Our Company 347Zoom Won’t Integrate with Our Key Enterprise Technologies 348Our Workers Don’t Need a Tool like Zoom 348Only Hipsters at Tech-Savvy Startups Use Zoom 348Chapter 16: Top Ten or So Zoom Resources 349Resources for Everyday Users 350Zoom support 350Zoom training 351Zoom on YouTube 351Zoom apps 351Zoom blog 351Zoomtopia 352Zoom virtual backgrounds 352Zoom on social networks 352Resources for Software Developers 353Zoom developer guides 353Developer forums 353Chapter 17: Ten Ways to Socialize via Zoom 355Cooking and Eating Meals 355Visiting Sick Friends and Family Members 356Dating 356Sharing a Few Drinks over Happy Hour 356Playing Brick-and-Mortar Games 356Playing Video Games 356Watching Movies and TV Shows 357Performing Stand-Up Comedy 357Staying Fit 357Holding Miscellaneous Parties 357Index 359