Use Backgrounds And Lighting To Improve Your Zoom Presence
Everyone is suddenly using Zoom. The company’s videoconferencing technology has overcome some of the limitations of Skype and Google Hangouts to provide an all-purpose that is good for enterprises as well as freelancers and telecommuters. It helps that Zoom is especially simple to use. When you download the application and log in you have the option to click an icon to start a new meeting. If you receive an invitation via email to join a company meeting you just click the link: Zoom does most of the work. Zoom offers some special features that make business meetings more effective. And, remember, that’s your goal. If you’re trying to do serious communications using Zoom then you want to present yourself at your best, just as you would in the office. That means getting dressed, shaving or putting on a little makeup, wearing meeting-appropriate clothing, being well-prepared, and doing whatever you normally would do in the physical world to meet the expectations of business associates and customers. Video Settings The most important users settings you need to be familiar with involve video. Let’s take a look at how they work. There are two ways to get to VIDEO SETTINGS in Zoom. The first is to click the gear icon in the upper right when you first log on . The second is to go to the lower left of your Zoom screen and click the up arrow next to Video and choose VIDEO SETTINGS. From the next screen you can experiment and perfect all of your video, screen sharing, chat, recording, and other settings. Most of these default to the basic settings you will need but you should check them out. Useful options such as which camera to use and the ability to enable high-definition video are included. When you are in a meeting you also can choose to display the participant names on the images that you see or to turn off your video when first joining a meeting. That way you can determine when to make yourself fully visible to other participants. There’s also a “Touch Up My Appearance” filter included in video settings. It’s not as extensive as the makeup filters available on phone apps but it will soften your features somewhat Virtual Backgrounds You’ll see that there are some virtual background images included with the app. But you can also add images from your photos file to customize how you look onscreen. One friend took a picture of the corporate lobby at his company office and made that his background. That leaves an impression on his customers that he is just as ready to do business as he would be in his office. Others might choose to have nature scenes or other backgrounds. But I think it’s best to have an image that relates to your business, or to a positive image of yourself that will resonate with your Zoom collaborators. To upload your own background click the “+” symbol on the Virtual Background screen. The first time you use it you may be asked to download the Virtual Background images in the program. You also will see the option for uploading a still image or a video of your own. Navigate to your Pictures or Photos folder and upload the images that you would like to try. For best results start with the highest possible resolution photo taken with your phone or camera. Click it and Zoom does the rest. While Zoom does not crop out your head perfectly against the background it does a credible job. Will Your Computer Support Virtual Backgrounds? Not all computers will support this virtual background feature. If you’re using a Mac you need to have at least OS version 10.15 installed. Click the Apple menu, select System Preferences and then click Software Update. o use Zoom’s virtual background feature without a green screen, you will need to have the latest iOS version installed if you’re on a Mac. Otherwise, you’ll be greeted with a “Computer doesn’t meet requirements” prompt. On a PC you’ll want to be running Windows 10. Ideally to support Zoom, you’ll also need 8 MB of RAM and an i3, i5, or more powerful processor. Some Tips For Better VideoConferencing Presentation You can also change your attire and your room to improve your appearance and presentation on video. Dress the part. Solids Work Well Choose a relatively solid color virtual background. And, make sure that the dominant color in your background is different from your shirt or blouse. Green tones are often a safe choice.You can look for dramatic backgrounds on sites that offer some royalty-free images, such as Pixabay, Pexel, and Unsplash. Lighting Try to make sure that you light from in front, not behind, and definitely not overhead. Especially at night or in an office, overhead flourescent-style lighting will cast shadows below your eyes and neck that are unflattering. Also, if you are using a laptop and looking downward it’s likely that your background may be the lights in the ceiling. Elevate your laptop or put it on books so you can look straight ahead. Balance If you lack a good daylight source in front of you you can try opening a word document on your screen. Ideally you would use multiple light sources from different angles to avoid shadows on your face. Stay Cool Get rid of any bright light behind you, such as open windows looking into the sun. Use a neutral or dark background wall to give a more balanced, serene impression. When you appear darker than your surroundings viewers are likely to focus on the background, not on you. Lighting Equipment If you’re going to be using Zoom daily in business you might consider getting lighting equipment. Daylight light bulbs can improve the balance of lighting in your office space. Fairly inexpensive ring lights and key lights are used by video bloggers and others who appear onscreen daily. And, light diffusers can be used to smooth the overall lighting and tone
Buying IT Help: Managed Services Versus Break- Fix
Your business is more dependent on your IT infrastructure and support than ever before. Without the internet and reliable information in your office, you’re out of business. Without reliability and security, you can’t plan, produce, market, sell, invoice, or serve your customers. Because the stakes are high it is important to understand what you’re buying when you purchase support services. This article will look at one of the key decisions you have to make concerning information technology: whether to choose a Break-Fix or Managed Services Provider for your company. What The Terms Mean? Though there is lots of overlap these two terms define two ways of delivering computer and communications services. Break-Fix refers to a model in which professional services are on call and ready when there is a problem to solve or system to upgrade. Break-Fix firms are paid based on the work accomplished. Managed Services, in its fullest expression, refers to a model in which the IT provider manages all of the information needs of the company, supplying equipment and support and providing a specified service level for a flat monthly fee. Managed services companies are referred to as managed service providers, or MSP’s for short. Both types of IT support can work for you, but they differ in how they deliver services. Whichever type of service provider relationship you choose, you need to know the pros and cons, so that these concerns can be addressed by involving your supplier in IT discussions. Key Issues with Managed Services And Break-Fix Fully managed services start with a contract that specifies what your MSP will do for you. This includes supplying all computers, networks, and may include peripheral devices such as phone systems, and printers. Larger MSPs can provide custom programming, national or global office support, 24/7 help desk and other services, either via their own staff or outsourcers. The MSP will remotely manage each desktop or mobile device, using a standard set of software. The typical contract may run for three or more years with opt-out provisions for both parties. The MSP helps the customer by proactively preventing customer problems through remote monitoring. And, where a large number of users are involved, they reduce the complexity for upper management, effectively operating as an outsourced IT department. For the MSP this arrangement works well because in return for taking on some of the IT risk such as equipment purchases, they get a steady, visible income stream from the client. The cost of dedicated IT people with support and benefits is $100,000 per year or higher so firms must factor that in when deciding whether to use in-house, managed, or break-fix services. For larger firms MSPs are frequently a must-have option. The costs of hiring, training and retaining a large IT staff often outweigh the costs of the managed service provider. The downside to managed services depend on the needs of your company. Because a managed service provider has complete access to your system—and in fact owns the underlying hardware—you are putting a lot of trust in them. We have seen worst-case scenarios in which a contract dispute led a managed service provider to turn off the office computers of a client—not a situation anyone wants to find themselves in. Small businesses often try to leverage existing resources and personnel to keep costs low. As a result their concerns are different than those of large firms, almost all of whom rely on managed services solely or in conjunction with an in-house IT department. And, there are hybrid models, in which the line between the two models is not so clear-cut. A second issue is cost. MSPS charge a flat fee for all services. Anything not included in the contract is charged at rates of $180 per hour or more. The services offered by the MSP are broad, but a small business with specific, defined needs just as well served with a break-fix solution. Relationships are another areas of concern. MSPs that deliver services to large companies have large staffs. When you call with a problem you may get support from someone you have never spoken to before. They know what your system is because they have the tools to evaluate it remotely, but they may not know you or your business situation well. Break-Fix By contrast in a pure Break-Fix model, you call on your IT support team only when problems occur. A good IT team will keep problems to a minimum, but you still pay for each service call. An upside to this model is that small businesses have more control over their expenses and their privacy. They may get a more customized solution than an MSP can offer a small firm profitably. However, in the Break-Fix model you are not getting as much proactive support and planning as with the MSP model. In addition, it is difficult to anticipate when hardware or systems may fail. Instead of cutting a monthly check you may periodically need to write a big check to replace computers or other hardware. In the Break-Fix model you may not receive daily reporting and status overviews that full-service MSPS can provide. In addition, if your goal is to you may not have access to a wide range of services, such as custom programming, all within the same company. Klearlogic’s Hybrid Model At Klearlogic we deal with small companies. We aim to exceed customer service expectations for these firms with a hybrid break-fix model. Small businesses often try to leverage existing resources and personnel to keep costs low. As a result their concerns are different than those of large firms, almost all of whom rely on managed services solely or in conjunction with an in-house IT department. And, there are hybrid models, in which the line between the two models is not so clear-cut. In practice that means that we do more than just fix your wireless network or server when it’s down. Our goal, like a managed services firm, is to be your information technology support. We can advise management on IT decisions and
Yes! Macs Have Fewer Viruses. Here’s Why.
Apple Macintosh computers are well-known for having fewer viruses and malware than their Windows counterparts. Partly this is due to the inherent security of the Macintosh OSX operating system. And, partly it is due to the much larger size of the Windows market. Like legitimate software companies, virus creators want to reach as many “customers” as possible, and they find it more efficient to target Windows users. There ARE three other reasons Macs get far fewer viruses and other forms of malware: passwords, sandboxing, and the app store. Mac users are asked to enter their passwords to change operating system functions. It’s more difficult for bad actors to get in the machine and affect system functionality. The Mac also is designed so that applications are “sandboxed.” Sandboxing means that applications run in such a way that they are isolated from operating system resources. This makes it difficult for a virus to affect other parts of your computer system, limiting its ability to spread. And, last but not least, many of the apps on a Mac come from the app store, where they undergo company inspection and automated malware scanners. By contrast, Google Play, the Android store, has been plagued by applications that contain adware and viruses and have been downloaded millions of times. Additional SecurityRecent iMacs and Macbooks include the Apple T2 chip. This custom chip makes possible Touch ID, secure boot, and encrypted storage capabilities. So, when an Apple user uses Apple Pay, or uses her finger as a passcode, the information is safe from prying eyes. In addition, all Apple models include Keychain (found in your Utilities folder) for storing passwords and secure notes. This information is protected by 256-bit AES encryption. That means that unless you give someone your computer password it would be very difficult for the passwords that you save when using Safari, for instance, are extremely secure. Software UpdatesFor all computer equipment, including Mac and Windows software, updates are crucial. When you receive a software update notification, we generally recommnd that you accept the update with a click and it will download automatically, Mac OS checks for updates daily. You should also keep all Windows updates current Mail and DownloadsInnocent-looking files downloaded over the Internet may contain dangerous malware in disguise. Files that arrive using Safari, Mail, and Messages are screened by Apple to see if they contain certain dangerous applications. They alert you with those popups you see sometimes that will ask if you really want to open the file in question. Google Mail, Outlook, and Office 365 take similar precautions. About the authors: Klearlogic consultants offer personalized on-site and remote tech support and IT services to home office and small business clients.
What To Do When Your Internet Fails
There are many reasons you can lose internet access. But only one right response: Don’t Panic. Ninety-nine times out of a hundred there is a simple quick fix. You can always call your friendly KlearLogic tech support, but the following steps may solve the problem quickly. The first step is to check if internet is working on other devices in your office or home. If it’s just your device then the problem has nothing to do with your service provider or your modem. That is often a good thing, so don’t despair. If your computer or device is the only one that is having problems you can try two things. Assuming you are using a wireless (Wi-Fi) connection, try toggling your Wi-Fi on and off. On a Mac computer you can do this by going to Status Menu Bar in the upper right of your Mac desktop. If you don’t see the Wi-Fi icon there, you must open System Preference/Networks and choose the option to display your Wi-Fi status in the menu bar. It’s toward the bottom of the Networks screen. This is a good idea anyway. If your Wi-Fi is having problems the status menu will display a grayed-out or flashing icon. On A Windows Device Locate your Wi-Fi icon in the System Tray of your windows device, located in the lower right of the screen. Today this is called the “Notification Area.” Poetic, right? Right-click it to see if you are connected to the proper Wi-Fi device. If All Devices Are Down What about the case where none of the devices in your office or home can reach the internet? If that is the case, then you will need to reboot your modem and router. If you are in a small office it is smart (and courteous) to ask any users of services or other networked data to log off or stop work because you are shutting down Wi-Fi. Turn the modem and router off for at least ten seconds. You should also unplug them from power for ten seconds. This forces your devices to make a new connection to your internet service provider. You should reboot your computer at this time, too. Give your modem 30 seconds to two minutes to finish rebooting and reconnect the devices in your home or small office. Is everything working fine? Great. If not, then there are at least two options: your connection settings are somehow really screwed up, or there is possibly an outage with your service provider If you’re in an office building one low-tech way to check is to go to the office next door and see if nearby offices are also experiencing issues. That would definitely indicate a problem with your internet service provider or some local issue like electrical problems in the building (rare, but it happens). You also should bookmark software tools that detect outages, including service notification pages for your internet service provider. Use your phone to access them when your computer can’t connect. Here are some typical ones for southern California. Spectrum Xfinity ATT Frontier Internet Settings If that’s not the problem you’ll need to double check your internet settings. But before you try that, make sure you’ve installed all available upgrades for your operating system from Microsoft or Apple. And, install software upgrades for your modem and router. Often, this will take care of the problem. Updates will get rid of bugs and security vulnerabilities that have emerged since the last time you checked, so they’re worth installing regularly. Overheating If none of that works you should also check for overheating. Overheating can cause any computer to fail and your router is a computer, too. Your router and other devices often have vents that need to be unobstructed for maximum airflow. Make sure they are clean. Distance It’s possible that your Wi-Fi network just isn’t carrying far enough—which will be obvious if you suddenly lose signal as you walk from one room into another. Try repositioning your router in the house if you find your connection is often dropping randomly. Keep any other wireless devices in the home such as baby monitors and microwaves, or office devices far away from the router if you can. The use of Wi-Fi repeaters, wireline ethernet adapters, and other solutions will be addressed in another article. About the authors: Klearlogic consultants offer personalized on-site and remote tech support and IT services to home office and small business clients.