While Zoom is often used to hold video meetings, it also allows for separate text-based chat sessions with individuals or groups. Participants who will be included in chat sessions or added to groups, must first 1) have a Zoom account and 2) be added as a contact. The following instructions may help you get started with Zoom chat session and groups.
To be able to participate in Zoom chat sessions or be added to Zoom groups, participants must have an active Zoom account. (UW employees all have access to a Zoom account and can be accessed at http://uwyo.zoom.us. Others, such as UW students, retirees, and external collaborators, can obtain a free basic account directly from Zoom’s website. The free account allows participation in Zoom chat sessions and management of basic video meetings.)
To create a free, basic account: Visit the Zoom website (https://uwyo.zoom.us) > Click “Sign up, it’s free” > enter your email address > activate your account from within the email message > be sure to enter all requested information, including name and password
To use the chat feature or add people to a group, the person must first be added as a contact. To be a contact, they must either have a Zoom account with your organization (UW) OR you must manually add their Zoom account as a contact.
To manually add people to your contact list: Open the Zoom application > Contacts > Add Contact > enter the person’s email address > click Add (remember, they must have an active Zoom account; if they do not, Zoom will not be able to find them and will prompt you to invite them to create a Zoom account)
Once people are in your contact list, when they are online they will appear in the Contacts area (they will not be visible if they are not logged in to Zoom).
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In this image, notice that 1 out of 2 Other Contacts are online, and 233 UW Contacts are currently online.
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They can now be added to a chat session or group.
To chat with an individual: Open the Zoom application > Chats > New Chat > enter the name (or email) of the person (Remember, they must be in your Contacts list to be able to add them!)
To create a group: Open the Zoom application > Chats > New Chat > click the + next to Groups > select the Group Type (private or public) > name the group > invite members by adding their names (or email addresses) (Remember, they must be in your Contacts list to be able to add them!) > click Create
To chat with your new group: Open the Zoom application > Chats > New Chat > select the appropriate group (all members will automatically be added to the chat session)
