Disable Zoom rearranging windows when I share screen

[dtgriscom]

I'm hosting a church's services, using Zoom, Open Broadcast Software, Google Slides, and an audio mixing system. While doing so, I repeatedly start and stop screen/window sharing.

Problem: every time I start screen sharing, Zoom rearranges its window and tools, from a single window with the participants and tools, to a shrunk participants window with a floating toolbar at the bottom of the screen. And, when I stop screen sharing, it rearranges everything back. This is a pain in the rear when I'm carefully allocating screen space for a complex presentation.

Is there a setting that will keep Zoom from moving everything around when I enable/disable screen sharing?

[Rupert]

Hi @dtgriscom 

If you are trying to present a mixture of screen-share and camera feeds as a seamless production you may need to look at feeding in your entire production in as a seamless 1080p video feed into Zoom - rather than switching between video   and screen share.

Rupert

[dtgriscom]

Thanks, but I'm already doing a video feed into Zoom, using OBS to mix several cameras into a single feed. Unfortunately, I need the flexibility Zoom gives of sharing windows and/or screens, and displaying the shared information as prioritized material in the Zoom client, and alongside the current video feed.

My experience of the Zoom host UI is that it does you lots of "favors", but in some cases (such as mine) I don't want the favors. I just want the UI to stay put while I do my work.

[Rupert]

Screen Sharing should allow you to go to side-by-side view.

But Screen Sharing will always disrupt your Participants view to some extent.

OBS itself also has the flexibility to capture windows and and screens. You could build your side-by-side views in OBS and switch to them when you need them, and pipe your whole event in that way (without using Zoom Screen Sharing). If you are using an HD Meeting, that should work just fine.

[vcpaul]

Hi Rupert, do you have access to the Zoom techs?   I run Zoom on MacOS with 3 screens and every time a share a screening Zoom it rearranges all my Zoom screens for no good reason.  It should be easy to have a preference setting to NOT do this, yes?

[vcpaul]

Hi dtgriscom,  did you get a solution to this?  I run Zoom on MacOS with 3 screens and every time a share a screening Zoom it rearranges all my Zoom screens for no good reason.  It is most frustrating.  Thanks.

[dtgriscom]

Sorry: no solution to date, beyond "just dealing with it." (Bummer.)

[mileserickson]

This defect is a huge disadvantage of using Zoom -- there really needs to be a "don't rearrange my windows" mode, otherwise we get disrupted every time we share a screen or a window. Power users have multiple monitors with everything arranged exactly where it belongs, and it is extremely frustrating for that to be disrupted every time we share or join a breakout.

[vcpaul]

I fully agree.  Such a great product with this one ridiculous defect. I'm certainly looking for alternatives.

[cards4j]

 You may know this by now but I am throwing this out there for the community.  It's not at all a solution but a workaround!  I am using the MacOS application "Magnet" to position application windows -- it responds to keyboard commands and also has an icon with a drop down menu on the right side of the menu bar. Once sharing, I use the "pause sharing" function in zoom. 

[mileserickson]

Magnet is great! But I really wish Zoom didn't assume that it had permission to rearrange stuff that we've organized carefully between multiple monitors. The automatic full screen switching and rearranging is a disaster for teaching online classes. It would be so easy for Zoom to turn off that behavior.

[dougharris]

Yes, such a pain.

My common use case is that I share a single browser window which doesn't fill my screen. I arrange my view of participants alongside the browser. Then, when I share my view of the browser, the view of participants moves to my other monitor... and then I move it back. 

It's maddening!