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Description
Follow this article to learn about the basic features of the Zoom client on Windows and Mac.
Environment
These steps are intended for the Zoom platform.
How to
https://bowdoin.ensemblevideo.com/Watch/n7Z4BrMg
Sign in and Join
After launching Zoom, click Join a Meeting to join a meeting without signing in (note: We highly recommend you login using your Bowdoin credentials).
If you want to log in and start or schedule your own meeting, click Sign In.
![](https://assets.zoom.us/images/en-us/desktop/generic/home/join-meeting-or-sign-in-screen.png)
To sign in, click Sign In with SSO to use your Bowdoin single sign-on credentials (recommended).
![](https://assets.zoom.us/images/en-us/desktop/generic/home/sign-in-screen.png)
Home
After signing in, you will see the Home tab, where you can click these options:
![](https://bowdoin.teamdynamix.com/TDPortal/Images/Viewer?fileName=bf7227e3-71c8-4ee6-a95c-4433a33f459f.png)
- New Meeting: Start an instant meeting. Click the downwards arrow to enable video or use your personal meeting ID (PMI) for instant meetings.
- Join: Join a meeting that is in progress.
- Schedule: Set up a future meeting.
- Share Screen: Share your screen in a Zoom Room by entering in the sharing key or meeting ID. This will NOT share your video or microphone.
- Date and time with background image: To change the background image, hover over the picture and click the camera icon.
![](https://assets.zoom.us/images/en-us/desktop/generic/home/date-and-time-with-background-image.png)
- Upcoming meeting: Displays the next meeting for the current day. Add your Outlook calendar if you want to sync upcoming meetings.
![](https://assets.zoom.us/images/en-us/desktop/generic/home/upcoming-meeting.png)
- Click your profile picture for these options:
- Add a personal note. This is a sort of "away message" that can be seen by other users. Not required and often left blank.
- Settings: Access settings you can change in the client.
- Change your status to Available, Away, or Do Not Disturb.
- My Profile: Open the Zoom web portal to edit your profile.
- Help: Open the Zoom Help Center.
- Check for Updates: Check if Zoom is up to date.
- About Zoom: View the current version.
- Switch to Portrait View: Switch the Zoom window to portrait view if you prefer a narrower window.
- Sign out
- Upgrade to Pro (if you see this, you are on a free account. Log out and log in using your Bowdoin credentials)
In-Meeting Controls
Once you have started or joined a meeting, you can access the meeting controls located at the bottom of the meeting window (move your mouse in the Zoom window to display meeting controls).
Learn more about meeting controls for hosts, co-hosts, and attendees. You can also join a test meeting to familiarize yourself with meeting controls before joining a scheduled meeting.
![](https://assets.zoom.us/images/en-us/desktop/generic/in-meeting/meeting-controls-with-marketing-images.png)