This guide is directed at students at VIA. Zoom is an online meeting room which amongst other things can be used to share your screen, participate in break-out sessions and polls, etc. It is possible to participate in a Zoom meeting without having installed the app on your machine or device first, but there are certain limitations to this, so it is recommended that you install Zoom on your computer or download the app for your smart device.
Installing Zoom and logging in the first time
- Download the Zoom application:
- When the installation file (.exe) has been downloaded, click on it to open it and follow the instructions.
- Open Zoom and choose the ’Sign In’ option.
- On the ‘Sign In’ page select ‘Sign in with SSO’.
- Type viadk in the ‘Company Domain’ field
- Click ‘Continue’.
- Log in with your VIA ID and password.
The Zoom app has now been installed on your machine and you are ready to take part in online Zoom meetings.
Update to the latest version
- Open Zoom
- Choose your profile picture in the upper right corner (1)
- Choose Check for Updates (2)
- If you get the following message "You are up to date", you already have the latest version and do not need to do more.
- If Zoom is not updated then choose Install.
Participating in a meeting
- Click on the meeting link that has been made available to you either as a link in Itslearning, in an email, or as an Outlook calendar invite.
- Click on ‘Open Zoom Meetings’ option.
- Select the ’Join with Computer Audio’ option
- If the meeting host has opted to use the virtual lobby, you will be asked to wait there until the host lets you into the meeting. Use the time in the lobby to test the computer audio by clicking on the ‘Test Computer Audio’ button in the window to ensure the audio is ready when you are let into the meeting.
Options for participants during meetings
- Turn your microphone on and off
- Switch your microphone off when you are listening. If you experience problems with the microphone, it might be because the host has muted your microphone. If that is not the case, select a different microphone and speaker option if available. The list of available options is accessible from the microphone icon on the meeting toolbar at the bottom of the window.
- Turn your webcam on and off
- Choose from the available webcam options by clicking on the little arrow next to the camera icon on the meeting toolbar.
- Participant display options (controls the display on your machine only)
- Select the ’Speaker view’ option to highlight the participant who is talking. The video of the person talking will be enlarged and other displays will reduce in size to highlight the person who is talking. Select the ’Gallery view’ option to see the videos of all participants (up to 49 participants).
- Share screen / presentation
- Click on the green ‘Share’ icon on the toolbar.
- Select the screen you wish to share with the other participants.
- Click the blue ’Share’ button to start sharing your screen.
Different share options are accessible by clicking on the little arrow next to the green ‘Share’ icon on the meeting toolbar.
- Write in the chat field. You can also participate during the meeting through the chat option. Explore the different chat options by clicking on the three dots at the bottom of the chat field.
- Raise your hand and other actions
- Click on the ’Participants’ icon on the toolbar.
- Select ’Raise Hand’, or one of the other actions available.
- Participate in a group ‘breakout room’
- The meeting host may have set up ’Breakout Rooms’ for separate group discussions. You will be assigned to a group by the host.
- Click on the ’Join’ button to join the breakout room for your group.
- In the breakout room, you can call on the host to join you.
- The host also has the option to join the breakout room for all groups at any time.
- Leaving the meeting
- To leave the meeting, click on the ‘Leave Meeting’ link in the bottom corner on the right.
For more information, see Zoom’s own ‘Getting Started’ resources in their online ‘Zoom Help Center’.