With its exponential increase in popularity, Zoom has become a program used by virtually everyone, both in the workplace and in personal life.
This video calling app is very easy to use, reliable and customizable, but many of its features are probably unknown to most users.
Here are 7 tricks that will make video calling even more enjoyable.
- Use an online VPN.
Security is by far the most important aspect to consider. Although Zoom is a very useful and easy to use service, it has some security vulnerabilities. It does not use an end-to-end encryption system, so video conferences could be intercepted by some attacker.
To protect yourself from this danger, the simplest solution is to use an online VPN . Conversations will thus always be protected by encryption managed directly by the online VPN, which will also mask your IP address and protect you from phishing attempts and potentially dangerous links.
- Set a virtual wallpaper.
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As a background for your video calls, you can use any image you like after loading it into the app from the Settings / Virtual background menu. However, this is not a simple background: thanks to cutting-edge technology, Zoom is able to recognize the user’s body, “cut it out” and superimpose it on the chosen image. The result is very similar to what could be obtained using a green screen , without the need to make specific purchases.
This feature allows you to make video calls much more enjoyable and interesting with colorful and imaginative backgrounds, but even in the case of business conversations it can be a good idea to set a background. In this way you can in fact hide the room you are in, for reasons of privacy or simple laziness.
- Keyboard shortcuts.
When you are making a video call, it may happen that you want to mute your microphone, perhaps because you are in a noisy room and do not want to annoy the other interlocutors. Activating the option manually is a bit inconvenient, however, especially if you have to do it often. Fortunately, Zoom provides users with a series of keyboard shortcuts that allow you to activate and deactivate some features very quickly. For example, to mute your microphone just press Alt + M.
Other shortcuts available are Alt + A to mute all other participants, Alt + S to start screen sharing, and Alt + I to invite a user to the conversation. You can also change these shortcuts to suit your needs even better.
- Screen sharing.
One of the reasons why Zoom is particularly popular is the ability to share your screen. To do this, simply press Alt + S or press the “Share Screen” button located at the bottom of the main screen. This option is very useful in the case of remote lessons, where the shared screen can replace the classic whiteboard.
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In addition to the screen, you can also share computer audio – this feature is perfect for sharing multimedia content with friends. For example, you can organize a collective viewing of a film, to share an experience despite the distance.
- Audio and video recording.
On many occasions, it can be useful to record your video conferences so that you can review them later. For example, in the case of distance learning, students may need to review some steps to take more detailed notes.
To record a video call, press the Record button, and the file will be saved in the Documents folder. However, it is necessary to make a clarification: even if this feature is available for free, Zoom has a limit of 40 minutes for free video calls, so even recordings must be subject to this limit.
- Audio transcription.
In addition to audio and video recording, another very useful function for those who want to revisit their video calls is that of transcription.
Zoom is able to automatically transcribe the audio of a videoconference, with rather satisfactory results. The final text may contain errors, but if the audio quality is good enough, there should be no major problems with understanding.
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This feature is only available to paid users.
- Use Snapchat filters and effects.
Video calls aren’t just for remote lessons or business meetings – they’re also perfect for spending an evening with friends who live far away. A good way to make calls even more enjoyable is to use Snapchat filters.
After installing the Snap Camera app, you can set it as the default webcam in Zoom. By doing this, all Snapchat filters and special effects will be available during video calls, and can be used at any time.