Zoom Instructions

User Guide for Zoom Meeting

How to join a Zoom meeting https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hIkCmbvAHQQ&feature=youtu.be

• I will send you a link via email to join the Zoom session at the scheduled time (You can download Zoom prior to our session in preparation however no prior download is necessary because you can connect directly from the link provided in your email). The website to download Zoom if you choose to can be a found at: zoom.us
• Five minutes before our session time click on the Zoom link from my invitation from my email, this will take you to the Zoom platform. You will either be asked to download or launch Zoom
• Once you have done this and it is the scheduled time, the meeting will be launched (if this is before the meeting you will be placed into a waiting room)
• As the meeting host I will start the meeting promptly at the scheduled time
• To enable the session press start on the video at the bottom right of your screen
• There should be two screens, one for yourself and one for me so we can see each other
• Once our session has finished at the agreed time I will click on the button to end our meeting. If you want to leave the meeting before the end of the session click on the bottom right corner to leave the meeting

Troubleshooting

If this is your first time video conferencing, remember we are all learning to adapt to uncertainty and novel situations together and this is new for me too.  We can figure it out together.

• The call quality from Zoom is usually very good. If the quality is not good it may be beneficial to close any other browser windows or programmes running in the background to make the call quality as good as possible.  Sometimes the quality can be affected from other devices accessing the internet in your household.

• In the event that it is not possible to connect using Zoom, I suggest we try to connect three times and then communicate via email in order to decide whether to reschedule or try a different method of communication.

• When waiting to connect to Zoom a message may come up saying the host hasn’t started the meeting yet, this means I haven’t started the meeting. I will start the meeting at the scheduled time.  If you are waiting you could click on the link test your audio to: select your input levels, video and virtual backgrounds.

• When both of us are connected to Zoom for added security as the host I will be able to lock the room so no one else can join us.

• Once connected to Zoom you will see two screens with both our images in the boxes, this is video screen and means the video is on. To access the toolbar move your mouse for a few seconds above our images and it will bring it up.

• When connected to Zoom make sure you join with computer audio so that I can hear you. If I cannot hear you I will tap on my headphones or my ears.  Sometimes the sound can take a few seconds to catch up.  On the toolbar at the bottom left of the screen there is a picture of a microphone, this is for the sound.  By pressing on the icon it mutes and un-mutes the sound.  Please check that your microphone and speakers are switched on and are not muted when starting the session.

• At the bottom left of the screen there is a picture of a video; this is so we can see each other. If you would prefer for me not to see you then you can click on the picture of the video and I will not be able to see you.  This will be a blank screen or a profile picture if you have created one.

• Once connected you will see two video screens. There are two types of ways we can view each other.  This can be found at the top right hand corner of the screen from the tool bar area when you move your mouse over our images.  Speaker view is where we are side by side and gallery view is where the person who is speaking is large on the screen and the person who is listening is smaller above them.

• When connected our video screens will be small and not set at full screen. At full screen the video drops down and we would have to drop our eye level in order so we can see each other’s eye level.  The smaller the screen the closer the screen is to your webcam giving better eye contact.

• When using Zoom it may be difficult to see the whole of each other. The camera is generally limited to view the top half of our bodies. In order for eye contact it may be beneficial to reposition your device.

• I encourage you to use headphones or earphones. This will keep the content of our session private, improve sound quality and also minimises distractions.

• Although Zoom has the facility to record sessions, this feature WILL NOT be used by either of us unless we have discussed this in detail previously.

• I may want to share a document online with you this will be done through sharing my screen. I will click on the share icon from my toolbar and I will be able to share the document with you.  I will be able to see my screen layout the document and both our video screens will be in the top right hand corner whilst on your screen you will be able to see the whole document.

• I may want to use the chat icon in the toolbar to send you any websites which may be useful. Once the meeting has ended the chat disappears so it would be useful before the end of the session if you could write down the website if you wanted to access it.

Things to consider when using Zoom

• Before the appointment make sure you are in a confidential space free from distractions and you have tried out your earphones or headset beforehand if using.

• Make sure you have checked your device has recently updated before the appointment so it doesn’t update whilst we are in a session and there is enough charge in it.

• Depending where you are when using Zoom you may want to move anything which may identify you or others.