Zoom meetings have come to stay

Yesterday I saw my three year old grandson on a laptop responding to questions by a lady on the screen. I was told this was his online LKG class. It was on Zoom.  I was amused and wondered how the word `Zoom` has come to dominate our lives. Not sparing even the kids.

`Zoom` has become a generic name for any online meeting. Like `Dalda` was for all types of vegetable ghee in the olden days. Or `Xerox` for any type of copiers even today.

“I am in a zoom meeting” is the common refrain we hear when people who are busy attending online meetings even if they are  using `Google meet` or `Skype` or any other App!

In the beginning of 2020 when  anti Chinese feelings were running high, there were many patriotic people  who refused to participate in online  meetings hosted on Zoom because the company was owned by a Chinese.  Zoom has survived all such attacks  to become  the best App for any type of meetings- one on one, small groups or even Webinars in which hundreds of people can participate.  

While Working From Home`(WFH) has made it inevitable for every one who is employed to work online, or students to attend online classes,  the biggest beneficial impact of  zoom meetings has been  on Senior Citizens. I am one of them.

Dignity Foundation, an NGO devoted to senior citizens with chapters across the country has been conducting zoom meetings for two hours every day  from Mondays through Fridays as a part of their `Chai Masti programme `. The objective is to   provide a regular activity which members look forward to. It also conducts interesting contests on zoom to bring out the hidden talents of its members.  The participation  at such meetings is much more than at the physical meetings they had before the pandemic struck.

As a technically challenged person I had a mental block about attending online meetings earlier. Today I not only enjoy attending such meetings but also actively participate and even give motivational talks on zoom.

Must share some interesting experiences I have had while attending zoom meetings. When the meeting is in  progress I have the habit of watching the proceedings by switching to the gallery mode on full screen which offers you the opportunity to see 25 participants at a time.

Often I find  participants forgetting  to put their audio and video on mute in spite of repeated requests from the anchor of the meeting when a guest speaker is addressing the audience. It is not only disturbing to the speaker but results in embarrassing situations. I found in one of the meetings a participant, who was obviously having a cup of soup shouting to his spouse `There is too much salt in the soup`, He was totally oblivious to the disturbance he caused to the meeting. A few suffering from  Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) can be seen picking their noses or ears or biting their nails or  indulging  in whatever else is  their habit.

Then there are participants who do not know how to position their mobile, or IPad or even laptop that you never get to see their full face. It is part of their face,  top of the head, or  a blank screen showing the ceiling  fan in full flow. It is much worse when a couple try to share the screen. Many have lights falling on them from behind resulting in their faces becoming unrecognizable.

Recently I saw a senior citizen attending the meeting totally restless. He will get up very often, vanish from the screen for a couple of minutes and again reappear. He was in his dhoti and a sleeveless vest. Every time, before occupying his seat , he would unwrap his dhoti and tie it properly. Suddenly I found him performing this act facing the camera- I was shocked but was spared any  embarrassment because he was wearing an underwear!

Many clever people avoid such situations by muting their audio/video and attending to other chores while the meeting is on. If for some reason, their name is suddenly called, they would not be available.  I know of a friend who uses this idea regularly to mark his presence at a meeting. After wishing every one before the meeting starts and participating in the `gup shup`, he vanishes from the screen once the meeting starts. He returns only at the end of the meeting. I use this idea if the meeting is boring but the speaker is known to me.

Zoom meetings also provide opportunities to listen to speakers from any part of the world as it is happening in our Rotary meetings these days. I do, however, miss the tasty snacks preceding the weekly physical meetings we used to have at Savera  Hotel. 

In the `New Normal` it is clear that Zoom meetings have come to stay because of the  many benefits they offer both in terms of saving time and money. I am sure, in the future all institutions having regular meetings will have a combination of Zoom and physical meetings.