Conference Calls

[Ares]

Why are they so difficult for so many people?

Things people do during conference calls:

1. Double mute their phone and the app (WebEx, Skype, Zoom, etc)
2. Forget to unmute and start talking.
3. Unmute self and say "Sorry, was trying to umute."
4. Stay off mute because of 1-3 subjecting everyone to an obnoxious amount of noise.
5. Talk at the same time multiple times.
6. Awkward silence when both people trying to talk decide to not talk.
7. Talk off into a tangent over everyone on the call ignoring the waste of time... "Bob this is a call about the budget, not your team's HR issues."
8. Let people talk on a bad connection instead of alerting them.
9. Repeat 1-4
10. Call organizer opens call and remains silent while the call goes off the rails and accomplishes nothing.
11. Call organizer doesn't know how to end the call gracefully.
12. False start end of call by wrapping up and then deciding to continue on another subject.

This behavior transcends age, race, gender, intelligence, and competence.

Especially the mute/unmute thing.... I've heard "Sorry I was on mute" so many f***ing times.

 

[Hawkeye OG]

Thankfully I'm only subjected to this a couple times a week at most.

I thought it was funny when the pandemic started and everyone started working from home, video conferencing was ALL the rage. Like if you had a conference call, it HAD to be on ZOOM or it just wasn't going to be effective. A simple conference call still works, you don't have to video conference everytime lol

 

[Ares]

Thankfully I'm only subjected to this a couple times a week at most.

I thought it was funny when the pandemic started and everyone started working from home, video conferencing was ALL the rage. Like if you had a conference call, it HAD to be on ZOOM or it just wasn't going to be effective. A simple conference call still works, you don't have to video conference everytime lol

We had/have that too... people whom think video conferencing bridges the gap and makes virtual meetings the same as in-person meetings.

It fades, quickly in my experience.

I just see it everywhere now.... my work meetings, when I watch the news, when I watch NFLN or ESPN.... everyone is using conference calls of some kind right now.

Here's a protip... totally free.

Use a single mute mechanism, and pay attention to it.... get in the habit of checking/unmuting every time you begin talking.

 

[KittiesKorner]

We had/have that too... people whom think video conferencing bridges the gap and makes virtual meetings the same as in-person meetings.

It fades, quickly in my experience.

I just see it everywhere now.... my work meetings, when I watch the news, when I watch NFLN or ESPN.... everyone is using conference calls of some kind right now.

Here's a protip... totally free.

Use a single mute mechanism, and pay attention to it.... get in the habit of checking/unmuting every time you begin talking.

Shut up!

 

[Xuder O'Clam]

I read title as Confederate Calls.

 

[Chief Walking Stick]

Why are they so difficult for so many people?

Things people do during conference calls:

1. Double mute their phone and the app (WebEx, Skype, Zoom, etc)
2. Forget to unmute and start talking.
3. Unmute self and say "Sorry, was trying to umute."
4. Stay off mute because of 1-3 subjecting everyone to an obnoxious amount of noise.
5. Talk at the same time multiple times.
6. Awkward silence when both people trying to talk decide to not talk.
7. Talk off into a tangent over everyone on the call ignoring the waste of time... "Bob this is a call about the budget, not your team's HR issues."
8. Let people talk on a bad connection instead of alerting them.
9. Repeat 1-4
10. Call organizer opens call and remains silent while the call goes off the rails and accomplishes nothing.
11. Call organizer doesn't know how to end the call gracefully.
12. False start end of call by wrapping up and then deciding to continue on another subject.

This behavior transcends age, race, gender, intelligence, and competence.

Especially the mute/unmute thing.... I've heard "Sorry I was on mute" so many f***ing times.

What about boomers that take all their calls on speakerfone because they dont know earbuds exist?

 

[Xuder O'Clam]

I hope I'm still alive when Grimson hits 50 or 60.

 

[Chief Walking Stick]

I hope I'm still alive when Grimson hits 50 or 60.

I won't last that long.

 

[Xuder O'Clam]

I won't last that long.

Neither will I.

 

[Burque]

Ahhh conference calls, the perfect opportunity to tune out and fuck around on the internet.

 

[Tjodalv]

One of my favorites is idiots that forget to leave the meeting chat, then start attempting to have individual conversations within the chat, blissfully unaware that the entire fleet is reading what's going on. I'm waiting for the first incident where someone says some shit that gets them fired.

 

[Omeletpants]

Sat through thousands of con calls in my life. Retired now so I'm done with that shit

 

[KittiesKorner]

But somehow feel the need to tell strangers about it.

 

[KittiesKorner]

But somehow feel the need to tell strangers about it.

If not clear I hope that @Omeletpants rots in hell with the tedeschi trux band playing songs of a race @Omeletpants hates!

 

[TL1961]

Thankfully I'm only subjected to this a couple times a week at most.

I thought it was funny when the pandemic started and everyone started working from home, video conferencing was ALL the rage. Like if you had a conference call, it HAD to be on ZOOM or it just wasn't going to be effective. A simple conference call still works, you don't have to video conference everytime lol

I could not (can not) understand the desire for video calls when nobody was showing anything.

A Webex or Go To Meeting when sharing something on screen makes sense, but to just look at each other? What's the benefit?

Though I admit, when we the stay at home was new and we'd see people on TV startegically positioning themselves with something notable in their background, I swore to a friend I was going to get a fake Oscar and Emmy to put behind me if the need to Zoom arose. He sid he wanted a fake Heisman.

 

[TL1961]

A few years ago, while on a conference call at my desk, I was working on something else (because our insane COO who organized the call would dominate every discussion and it didn't involve me.

My equally goofy temp had screwed something up, and not realizing my phone was off mute, I said aloud "Sandy, what the fuck are you doing?"

Suddenly, silence on the call. I muted my phone and waited to be "outed", but nobody knew. All good.

 

[Omeletpants]

I was once on a conference call with Aunt Jemima

 

[airtime143]

We have been doing conference calls in place of meetings the past few months.
I usually earbud on mute and tune out, just sitting in my truck and surfing the web.

A c ouple weeks back I didnt have my earbuds so I had to put the phone on speaker, and when I tried to mute it it didnt take.
I drop the phone between my legs and tune out.
Then, I blast out a fart that sounded like a string of firecrackers going off- phone less than 6 inches from the source.
It was at that point I discovered lack of mute.

Not gonna lie- it has now become an occasional thing to bring joy.
There is no identification possible, so it is the perfect crime.

 

[Crystallas]

Been doing webcalls for a long time. If I had to dig and look for some kind of hard to forgive annoyance.....

And the amount of businesses that issue out the most cost effective laptops for their work-from-home employees, which always include some form of VGA webcam that only software enhances on spec to a higher resolution. Combine that with the worst piezo-based design microphone..... So then when you try to use noise canceling software, the accuracy is shit.

If you find yourself on cam a lot, think about upgrading certain things, dummy proof your setup. Come on now, be honest, you know you're not spending as much money on business apparel of late, buy a better headset or microphone, be done with it. It's worth while because once you hit a certain minimum standard, that is acceptable for 10-20 years, depending on the input used and quality of the construction. Come again, what did you say? Did you say do or don't? LMAO... sometimes those things don't come through as clean as you think, especially if someone has bad speakers or headphones that are possible bass designed but shit for a large range of compressed voices.

TL;DR
Don't lie, you're barefoot and in pajama bottoms saving more than enough in your clothing maintenance and upkeep to buy a better mic/cam to make the whole thing easier.

 

[airtime143]

Been doing webcalls for a long time. If I had to dig and look for some kind of hard to forgive annoyance.....

And the amount of businesses that issue out the most cost effective laptops for their work-from-home employees, which always include some form of VGA webcam that only software enhances on spec to a higher resolution. Combine that with the worst piezo-based design microphone..... So then when you try to use noise canceling software, the accuracy is shit.

If you find yourself on cam a lot, think about upgrading certain things, dummy proof your setup. Come on now, be honest, you know you're not spending as much money on business apparel of late, buy a better headset or microphone, be done with it. It's worth while because once you hit a certain minimum standard, that is acceptable for 10-20 years, depending on the input used and quality of the construction. Come again, what did you say? Did you say do or don't? LMAO... sometimes those things don't come through as clean as you think, especially if someone has bad speakers or headphones that are possible bass designed but shit for a large range of compressed voices.

TL;DR
Don't lie, you're barefoot and in pajama bottoms saving more than enough in your clothing maintenance and upkeep to buy a better mic/cam to make the whole thing easier.

Personally, If my company bought shit laptops and wanted me to zoom on them, they would get the stock setup, period.

We fought this battle years ago... they were buying us these shitty dell inspirons that crapped out in 6 months tops.
So frequently that all data I needed for day to day reference was on an external hard drive.

Computer dies, I waste a day going south to pick up a new one, re-install everything, download credentials and links and whatnot..wasting thousands of dollars in man hours to save a little bank on a purchase order that costs a mint in related and repeat costs.

Finally, someone heard our complaints and they went nuts- bought us the Getacs that were 10x the price...far beyond what we asked for. Total overkill and I love it.

Been using the same laptop in sub zero and hundred plus temps, rain and shine, bouncing around in my truck like a rag doll for almost 4 years without a hitch.

TLDR- The company wants to cheap out on gear, I will not sympathize and spend money to make the technology they gave me tolerable to them.
If they buy garbage, they have no leg to stand on if they complain about the performance.