By now, the majority of students across the nation have used Zoom, a video communication software, for lectures, tutoring, or class discussions. While often utilized in a school setting, especially nowadays, Zoom has become a well-known software used during this time.
With self-quarantine, social distancing, work from home policies, and online-only school for all ages being enforced and encouraged, Zoom has seen a boom in downloads between March and April of 2020. According to TechCrunch, Zoom has been downloaded 14 times more each week than it was downloaded weekly in 2019.
This boom in downloads signifies that a majority of businesses and schools are utilizing the zoom. Still, there are also many families and friend groups downloading zoom to stay better connected during times of encouraging social distancing.
Though it is far from sitting around a dinner table with loved ones, Zoom has been used for dinner dates among extended families who cannot be together at this time. Birthdays, holidays, and anniversaries have all been celebrated through Zoom as it can be downloaded on most computers and cellular devices.
Those who have had important events during this time, like birthdays or anniversaries, have been celebrating them via zoom with their families and friends to celebrate from a distance. Abiding by the Center for Disease Control recommendations of social distancing is crucial to help slow the spread of the virus, and apps like Zoom have made a big difference in the lives of many to allow people to see their loved ones still.
Another way Zoom is utilized nowadays is for hanging out with friends. For many students who have been displaced from college campuses, seeing their friends every day has become a challenge as they live in different states. Virtual hangouts, through the use of Zoom, have been a popular solution to this problem.
One of the more fun ways to hang out on Zoom has been by using Zoom to see and talk to one another while pairing it with an online game. Skribbl.io, an online game similar to Pictionary, is a great way to have a healthy competition while spending time with friends. Skribbl.io, much like Zoom, can be accessed on both cellular devices and computers, allowing many to have access to the game.
With the “Share Screen” feature on Zoom, friend groups and families can also host movie nights with one another. By having one member log into a Disney+, Netflix, or Hulu account and share their screen, the whole group can view the movie or show together. Though zoom has a forty-minute time limit for most zoom meetings, this is still an excellent option to bond and watch the same movie or show at the same time and talk about it.
The “Share Screen” feature can also be useful for homework to help with friends or studying with friends. By sharing the notes, students can study together in groups or quiz one another for an upcoming test. Homework like mastering biology or mastering chemistry can also be done in a group setting by using the “Share Screen” option, allowing everyone to see the questions and work through them together.
Alongside these options, using the “Share Screen” feature, group workouts can be done together. By streaming a work out video or a yoga flow video with the group, members can virtually work out together and still support one another via Zoom video communications. This allows groups to work out and stay healthy during this time together.
Zoom also has a multitude of different features to make hanging out with friends virtually a little less annoying. One can change their background to whatever they choose, and everyone else can see this background change as well.
In addition to background changes, Zoom has a whiteboard feature and a note-taking feature that allows a person to share their screen with others and write notes or draw pictures. This can be useful in both a class setting or a game setting, like playing Pictionary. This tool can be especially helpful with homework to help work through math-based questions together.
While, like every other app, Zoom has had complications with “Zoom Bombers” who get the meeting code from someone and then randomly pop up into the meeting uninvited, there are still many upsides to such a versatile platform. From hanging out with friends and family by watching a movie or playing a game to attending lectures and studying with classmates, Zoom offers a wide variety of features that have made this quarantine lifestyle a little less annoying.
While many still feel socially deprived, Zoom creates an outlet for those missing their friends and family to get together and hang out. Though this doesn’t replace the positive benefits of face to face interaction, it is a temporary solution for beating quarantine boredom.
