Zoom: Hosting a Web Conference for Presenting or Teaching

Summary

Zoom is a web conference solution provided by Minnesota State for use by faculty, staff, and students. This tool is simple to use and works well at delivering features that faculty wish to use in an online collaborative solution. Zoom has the ability to record the session. Through an integration with Kaltura MediaSpace, students can revisit the recording of a lecture or collaboration session. This guide will give you a quick overview on how to get started with Zoom.

For more detailed questions, check the Zoom Help Center.

Accommodations

Should you need special accommodations for your Zoom meetings, please contact Center for Accessibility Resources (CAR) at 651.793.1549 or by email at accessibility.resources@metrostate.edu. Please know that these accommodations may have a lead time, contact CAR as soon as possible so that they can get accommodations in place by the time of your scheduled meeting/event/class.

Getting to your Zoom Room

The web address to access your zoom account is minnstate.zoom.us. Click on the Sign in button to manage your account and find the link to your personal zoom room.

Select Profile in the sidebar. The web address underneath your Personal Meeting ID is the direct link into your Zoom Room.

You can see an overview of the meeting controls by visiting Zoom's help on meeting controls.

Starting a Meeting

There are two ways to start a quick meeting with a colleague in Zoom:

Via the Minnesota State Zoom landing page

1. Go to Minnesota State's Zoom page
2. Select the Host button.
3. Open the Zoom meeting room.
   1. If zoom is installed, click on the Open Zoom Meetings button on the window that pops up.
   2. If zoom is not installed, Zoom will trigger a download that will install Zoom on the computer.
4. Select the context menu to the right of the Participants button in the bottom of the menu bar, select Invite. 

5. Select the Copy Invite Link Button on the window that pops up.

6. Open up Microsoft Outlook and open a new email.
7. Place your cursor in the email message and press Ctrl+V (Command + V on Mac) to paste the link to your Zoom room.
8. Send the email to the individuals that you want in your room.

Via the Zoom Profile page

1. Go to Minnesota State's Zoom page
2. Select the Sign in button to log into your account.
3. Select the Profile tab in the sidebar.
4. Highlight the link to your personal Zoom Room and press Ctrl+C (Command + C on Mac) on your keyboard to copy it

5. Open up your email program and email the link to your meeting guest.
6. Paste the link into your web browser address bar.

Recording your Meeting

You are able to record your meeting by clicking the Record button in the lower menu bar. After clicking the button, a menu will appear asking you if you want to save to your computer or save to the cloud. It is highly recommended to save to the cloud. Minnesota State has integrated Zoom with Kaltura MediaSpace and your meeting will automatically be exported to MediaSpace once it is done processing. You will then get an email in your Metropolitan State University email account when the transfer is finished and your video is ready to be shared.

To publish your meeting for students, consider using the work flow for Ordering Captions and then Linking your saved meeting to D2L Brightspace.)

Sharing your screen

The smoothest way to share a document on the screen is to have it open before clicking on the button to share your screen. When you click the Share button, Zoom will ask you what screen or application (e.g. PowerPoint, Word, etc.) you want to share. Having the document open before clicking the Share button will allow you to just share the document and not the rest of the things on your full screen.

This link will take you to a Zoom video that will discuss sharing your screen in a Zoom Meeting.

Sharing Documents through Chat

Users are able to share documents through the Chat window. When the chat window is open, there is a button that will allow you to select a document that is saved on your computer. Refer to the screenshot below to see where the button is in the chat window:

Breakout Rooms

You are able to break your meeting into smaller groups to collaborate by clicking the button in the menu bar.

You can get more details about how Breakout rooms work by clicking this link.

Polling

Users have the ability to create polls to use in their meeting rooms. You are able to set them up ahead of the meeting or during the meeting.

Setting up Poll Questions during the meeting

1. Select the poll button in the menu bar at the bottom of the window.

2. If you have no poll questions saved in your meeting room, click the blue button labeled Add a Question on the window that popped up.
3. Fill out the form and click the blue Save button at the bottom of the pop-up window
4. Go back to your Zoom room and the poll pop-up window should be populated. Click on the blue Launch Polling button.
5. Once the poll is done, click on the End Polling button at the bottom.
6. To share the results, click on the Share Results button at the bottom.

Managing the Poll Questions

The questions here will be stored in your Personal Meeting room. Follow the steps below to set up poll questions before the meeting or to manage the questions available in your room.

1. Go to Minnesota State's Zoom page
2. Select the Sign in button to log into your account.
3. Select Meetings in the sidebar.
4. Select Personal Meeting Room on the secondary menu bar.

5. Scroll down to the bottom of the screen to the poll section.
6. Select Add to add a question.

If you already have questions in your meeting room, you will be able to edit those here.

Hardware Alternatives

• Use a smartphone or tablet with Zoom
  • Download the Zoom app on iOS or Android and:
    • Use the camera as a replacement for webcam
    • Use Zoom’s whiteboard for annotation/drawing on the touchscreen
    • Use the camera with some innovative rigging as a document camera to write with pencil and paper or show another item
    • Instead of a headset, use your smartphone or tablet microphone
      • Many earbuds that come with popular phones also come with a microphone that works well too
• Instead of a webcam, share your screen with content like a slideshow or your lecture notes
• Instead of a headset, leverage Zoom’s “Call Me” feature to use any phone for audio

Additional Resources

• Order Captions for your saved Zoom meetings
• Link your saved Zoom meetings into D2L Brightspace for distribution
• Tips and Tricks for Teachers Educating on Zoom (pdf file)

Troubleshooting

• Issues with camera or screen sharing on MacOS