The start of the third Polymer Art Summit (PAS) is a few weeks away, and while a lot of people have used Zoom, there are some for whom the PAS event will be their first exposure to online polymer education. We want to give you a few tips and tricks to get you started with confidence.
About Zoom
Zoom is an online video conferencing service that allows for voice/video interaction, as well as the ability to broadcast to an audience, enjoy text chat, and more. The PAS event will be using the Zoom platform for all events.
Although you can join a Zoom meeting without having a Zoom account, there are advantages to having an account like:
- Upload a static profile image
- More options for meeting settings
- Ability to host a 40 minute Zoom call with up to 100 participants, for free.
Zoom recently pushed out a number of updates to their app.
PLEASE make sure you update your Zoom client a day or two before the event.
The PAS Zoom Experience
- All attendees will be placed into a waiting room prior to admission to the event. You will be admitted to the event by one of our facilitators.
- All attendees must use their full name when they sign in to Zoom and the name must be displayed throughout the event. For example Polly Merr.
- Turning on your camera is optional. If your internet connection is slow, your experience may be improved by turning off your outgoing video.
- You can use Zoom on a computer, tablet, or mobile device. You will find the best experience using the official Zoom app on your chosen device.
- The event facilitators will mute participants during sessions.
- Participants that unmute and cause audible distractions will be prevented from unmuting without permission.
- Questions for presenters should be put in chat, and will be passed to the presenter for an answer or collected for discussion in the Q&A session.
- The use of custom backgrounds will be moderated.
- Our preference is for you to blur your background or use a simple static image.
- No video background, please.
Tips and Tricks
- To talk you will need a microphone or headset with microphone. Please test your camera and audio setup before the event.
- Do not connect to audio from multiple devices – it will echo for everyone in the session. Muting your microphone is not the same as opting out of connecting to audio.
- Although we have scheduled breaks, please remember to get up and stretch at least once or twice an hour. No-one will know you’re dancing around the room unless your camera is on! 😀
- Have note-taking supplies on hand – paper & pencil, tablet, whatever works for you.
- There are number of teaching articles as well as training videos on this page: https://support.zoom.us/hc/en-us/categories/200101697
- Try this one first: https://support.zoom.us/hc/en-us/articles/360034967471-Quick-start-guide-for-new-users
- This video is very helpful: https://support.zoom.us/hc/en-us/articles/201362193-How-Do-I-Join-A-Meeting-
Be sure to check out our Frequently Asked Questions page too!
PAS REGISTRATION CLOSES IN TWO WEEKS!
The clock is ticking away as we close in on July 31, the last day to register for PAS 2024. We’re sure you don’t want to miss out on:
- Four presenter sessions with Maggie Maggio, Corliss Rose, Alice Stroppel, and Joan Tayler
- An Artist Spotlight event featuring Lucy Štruncová
- An Artist Retrospective event honoring Tory Hughes
- More frequent breaks and longer lunch breaks than in previous years
- Access to the recorded sessions and question & answer sessions for 90 days