Are you waiting for a meeting to start and wondering why no one is letting you in? Are you suddenly having trouble with your video or microphone? It has happened to all of us, and I find myself wondering, "Is it me or is it Zoom?"
If you are fine with whatever happens, don't bother reading the rest of this article. But if you would like to know things you can try to figure out what is going on, here are some suggestions.
1) Is it Zoom? Anytime you have a meeting coming up and want to check whether Zoom is currently experiencing problems, click the Zoom status report link. We are using Zoom Meetings. If it is Zoom, watch for an email from the meeting contact to tell you about rescheduling a meeting or workarounds the group is trying.
2) Is it your internet? Check you internet speed to see if it is suddenly low. First, test it on a day it is doing well so you know your download speed (use speedtest and click on the Go). Remember that number. If your download speed is much lower before a meeting than usual (for instance, usually 60Mbps and now 30 Mbps), the problem is your internet. Call your internet service provider.
3) Still not sure what the problem is? Call or text the contact for the meeting or event to let them know you are waiting to enter, or are having a problem. They may not respond immediately, but they will get to you as soon as they can. Find the name of the contact in the CUCC Online Calendar. Contact information is in Breeze.
4) Breathe. As people said Sunday when our worship malfunctioned, remember:
- we are safe and we are together (even if we can't see and hear each other)
- God is with us in the problem and in the solutions
- “We need not listen for Zoom audio to find God” (a paraphrase of Sunday's call to worship from Greg Flynn)
Zoom has been a gift to faith communities as we learn how to be virtual church, and we are grateful to the employees who are working hard to adapt to the ballooning use of their service.
- another in the continuing series of learning the tools of virtual church
Jane Smith smithjeg@mindspring.com
If you are fine with whatever happens, don't bother reading the rest of this article. But if you would like to know things you can try to figure out what is going on, here are some suggestions.
1) Is it Zoom? Anytime you have a meeting coming up and want to check whether Zoom is currently experiencing problems, click the Zoom status report link. We are using Zoom Meetings. If it is Zoom, watch for an email from the meeting contact to tell you about rescheduling a meeting or workarounds the group is trying.
2) Is it your internet? Check you internet speed to see if it is suddenly low. First, test it on a day it is doing well so you know your download speed (use speedtest and click on the Go). Remember that number. If your download speed is much lower before a meeting than usual (for instance, usually 60Mbps and now 30 Mbps), the problem is your internet. Call your internet service provider.
3) Still not sure what the problem is? Call or text the contact for the meeting or event to let them know you are waiting to enter, or are having a problem. They may not respond immediately, but they will get to you as soon as they can. Find the name of the contact in the CUCC Online Calendar. Contact information is in Breeze.
4) Breathe. As people said Sunday when our worship malfunctioned, remember:
- we are safe and we are together (even if we can't see and hear each other)
- God is with us in the problem and in the solutions
- “We need not listen for Zoom audio to find God” (a paraphrase of Sunday's call to worship from Greg Flynn)
Zoom has been a gift to faith communities as we learn how to be virtual church, and we are grateful to the employees who are working hard to adapt to the ballooning use of their service.
- another in the continuing series of learning the tools of virtual church
Jane Smith smithjeg@mindspring.com