Dear Temple Shalom Friends and Family,
We are very much looking forward to bringing in 5781 together as a community. This email contains technical details to help everyone have a meaningful experience for the High Holidays. Please read it carefully now so that we can answer any questions in advance of any services and programming and so you can test setup configurations or possibly obtain additional equipment.
There are many wonderful features of the technology we will be using this High Holiday season. We want to make sure that everyone is comfortable accessing services through Zoom and Facebook Live and that you are aware of the various features we will be using. Additionally, we want to make sure that everyone can engage meaningfully in our services and programs. Please read this entire email carefully so that the technology enhances, not hinders, our time together.
We anticipate that we will come close to the participant limit on Zoom for certain services. Please note that we are making the Zoom available so that our community has the opportunity to see each other, utilize the chat feature, and so forth. Because there is a cap on the number of devices, we want to ensure space for those who wish to see and be seen by others. It is especially important to prevent exceeding the limit during services so that all of our members can participate, therefore we have the following requests and recommendations.
NUMBER OF DEVICES
Most importantly, we request that each household access High Holiday services on Zoom on only one device for adults and one device for children (to allow them to participate in concurrent youth programming which will enhance the service). Those who need to pin our interpreter are also invited to use an additional device.
REMAINING MUTED
As always, please remain muted on Zoom unless specifically asked to unmute. We will utilize the chat feature to allow for participation during services and programs.
FACEBOOK LIVE
If you wish to use more than one device or if you do not wish to keep your camera on, we kindly ask you to enjoy services via Facebook Live and use only one other device for additional features. If we learn that we will have plenty of space for extra devices, we will let the congregation know during that service or program. You do not need a Facebook account to use Facebook Live and you will be able to see the individuals leading the service through that platform. There is a small lag between the Zoom and Facebook Live feeds.
HOW TO USE ZOOM FEATURES
We will be utilizing a number of Zoom features to make our services more engaging and accessible. We will use the chat feature to allow everyone the chance to participate even while muted. There are also different options for how to view participants in a Zoom meeting. Speaker view automatically switches to whoever is speaking while gallery view allows you to see every participant in a grid. You can arrange your gallery view by clicking and dragging participant’s boxes into the order you want. Instructions on how to change your view can be found here. You can also pin specific participants, whether they are speaking or not. This can be used to focus on an interpreter or to watch the slides for the prayer book (which may be available for some services). If you are pinning a video, we suggest also watching the service leaders on Facebook Live on a separate device or a second screen.
VIEWING SERVICES ON THE “BIG SCREEN”
In order to make viewing services for households with multiple individuals easier and more comfortable, we suggest you consider connecting your laptop or tablet to a TV screen. If you have an HD TV, the instructions are fairly straightforward. It requires an HDMI cable (basic version available to buy here) and an adapter if your device does not have an HDMI port. The adapter you need depends on your device, but is likely a USB-to-HDMI adapter or a Thunderbolt-to-HDMI cable. Make sure to check what connection is needed for your device. After plugging the HDMI cable into your device and the TV, you need to change the input on the TV and possibly the display settings on your device. This article explains the steps for a Windows device and this article explains the steps for Windows and Apple devices. You should also be able to find instructions for your particular device and TV through a Google search.
USE A SECOND SCREEN INSTEAD OF A SECOND DEVICE
One way to see both the gallery view and pin a specific participant is to connect a second screen to your laptop. For example, you can set up your “big screen” or a second monitor for watching the services as a family and pin the youth programming to your laptop screen for children (or the sign language interpreter or slides during certain services).
INVITING GUESTS
Please make sure any friends and family who are not members but will be joining us for the holidays as guests are identified by you when you complete your HHD Google form or have them fill out the form themselves. Please do not send them or others the links that we send you for the holidays. They will receive links directly from the Temple. The requested information on the Google form is critical to ensuring we do not have more participants than capacity and to maintain security.
WHAT IF ZOOM CRASHES?
We know that our technology can have glitches, particularly as we are not pre-recording our services to ensure the community feeling of a live service. Our service leaders will have back up computer batteries and mobile hotspots should power go out. If, however, Zoom fails to work during a service (we don’t anticipate this being an issue, but it could happen), you will receive an email promptly with steps on how to view the services on Facebook Live while our services leaders lead through an alternative platform. We will also send out links to other congregations’ streamed services in case of an emergency. We don’t anticipate these being necessary, but we want to have a back-up plan in place just in case.
If you have any questions, please email Alyssa at zoom@templeshalom.net by September 11 to ensure there is time for us to assist you. We will do our best to respond after September 11, but late questions may not be timely answered. Please help us help you!
Thank you for your cooperation in order to make everyone’s High Holiday experience easily accessible.
L’Shalom,
Alyssa Berez
TEMPLE SHALOM ZOOM MAESTRO
