ProTip #4 - Help us help you on the Community!

[Bort]

When coming to the Zoom Community for troubleshooting help, our community of Zoom experts, Audio/Visual professionals, and other tech-savvy users might be able to help, but we often need more information to get a clearer picture of what the underlying issue is. This month’s ProTip is all about how to productively post in the Community and provide subject matter experts with the most helpful information, so that, in turn, a faster solution might be found.

Provide detail without giving away personal information

When detailing the issue you are having, it can often help us know the specifics of your device, such as the exact brand, model, OS version, and Zoom version you are experiencing the issue with. These details can help us track down issues specific to that Zoom app version, that OS version, that specific brand of computer, or a combination of all.

That being said, this is a publicly accessible forum, so any personally identifiable information  should never be exposed, such as full name, email addresses, phone numbers, meeting IDs, passcodes, company name, and login passwords. We want to protect your account and personal information, so personally identifiable information should only be shared through a private communication channel, such as contacting Zoom Support, and with the consent of the owner of that information.

Note: If you expose Personally Identifiable Information (PII) publicly on the community, your post will be removed to protect your personal information and Zoom account. 

Explain the circumstances around the issue

When explaining your issue, paint a full picture of what led up to and after the issue. Important details might include error codes or messages, screenshots of what is happening (with any exposed PII blacked out or pixelated), what you were trying to accomplish, other programs running at the same time, and how hot your device felt or how loud the fans on the device were, as this can tell us if your device was overheating. These details can help explain what caused the issue and allow for a more efficient resolution. 

What have you already tried to fix the issue? 

Have you turned it off and on again? We’ve likely all been asked this question before when talking to IT or other helpdesk, but knowing what you have already done to try to fix the issue is helpful. Knowing that you’ve already restarted your device, reinstalled the app, and/or any other steps you’ve taken to troubleshoot allows us to skip those suggestions and get to more advanced troubleshooting tips quicker.

We’re all here to help

Lastly, remember that we are here to help, discuss, and collaborate, so please have patience with everyone in the Community. We may be on different time schedules or only have a few minutes a day to help in the Community, so responses may not come immediately. If it's been a few days without a response from someone, feel free to tag them in another reply to see if they have any updates or other suggestions for you. For more urgent issues, please contact Zoom Support for official help. 

[Bri]

Great tip! Thanks for all you do @Bort  😎

[RN]

Amazing Tips here @Bort! 🚀

[IP-Man]

thank you for the helpful tips @Bort 

[Shaimaa]

Very detailed and useful thanks @Bort