Tag: zoom

Brett Favre is charging how much for a Zoom chat?!

If you have an extra $5K around — in the bank, under your mattress or in a coffee can — and you’re a Brett Favre fan, you’re in luck.

Everyone is trying to make a buck these days during the time of quarantine, including athletes.

Pro Football Hall of Famer Brett Favre is no exception.

According to a report from CNN, the start-up site Cameo allows you to pay celebrities for 10-minute personal video messages.

If you have an extra five grand around — in the bank, under your mattress, in a coffee can, wherever — and you’re also a Brett Favre fan, well, you’re in luck.

Here’s the gist:

Cameo, a startup that lets you pay celebrities for personal video messages, now lets users book a 10-minute Zoom call with, let’s say, well-known people. The costliest ones are former football star Brett Favre for $5,000, ex-NSYNC singer Lance Bass for $1,250 and skateboarder Tony Hawk for $1,000.
Sorry to fans of “Entourage”: Jeremy Piven went viral Monday for allegedly charging $15,000 for a call, but the booking option no longer appears on his profile.
Some Cameo-ers are priced in the bargain bin, too. They’re mostly cast members from reality shows, including “90 Day Fiancé,” “Survivor” and “Real Housewives of Orange County.” Their Zoom calls cost several hundred dollars.

 

 

Will Ferrell, disguised as Greg Olsen, crashed Seahawks meeting

Seattle Seahawks coach Pete Carroll invited comedian Will Ferrell to crash the team’s zoom meeting, disguised as tight end Greg Olsen.

The Seattle Seahawks, like the rest of the NFL, are forced to hold their initial team meetings of the 2020 season virtually thanks to COVID-19.

While the team would surely prefer to be together in person, that doesn’t mean they can’t find ways to have a little fun on their virtual meetings.

Coach Pete Carroll began introducing veteran tight end Greg Olsen, who the team signed back in February, on a call with the team Thursday evening.

However – the team was instead introduced to comedian Will Ferrell, who was impersonating Olsen by wearing backward Seahawks hat and a number 12 jersey.

“Coach, thanks so much I’m so excited to be here,” Ferrell deadpanned, while the players who were unmuted laughed in the background.

Ferrell went on to praise Russell Wilson, told Luke Willson he needs to cut his hair, and told offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer he has designed some of his own plays – one that he called “90 Go Flywheel Kanye Starburst.”

Ferrell and Olsen do look similar, hence the video-bomb, and Ferrell is an alumni and super fan at USC where Carroll coached before joining the Seahawks – perhaps explaining the cameo.

Carroll tweeted the video, thanking Ferrell for “zoombombing our team meeting”.

Olsen and the rest of the Seahawks will continue to hold their team meetings virtually, at least for now, while the league continues to determine their next steps during this global pandemic.

At least they can find ways to laugh.

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Pete Carroll provides updates on Chris Carson, Rashaad Penny

Seattle Seahawks coach Pete Carroll said he has stayed in contact with RB’s Chris Carson and Rashaad Penny, and their rehab is going well.

Seattle Seahawks general manager John Schneider and coach Pete Carroll held a zoom press conference on Wednesday afternoon, addressing some of the trials of trying to prepare for an NFL draft and run a football team during this global pandemic.

Carroll was asked about keeping tabs on Seattle’s two running backs, Chris Carson and Rashaad Penny, who suffered season-ending injuries near the end of the 2019 campaign.

“You know, our staff has been staying in touch with those guys,” Carroll responded. “I’ve communicated with those guys throughout. Just checking in on them, the normal process. They are in their programs and working really hard and doing really well as far as we can monitor. So we are making the kind of progress that we need to make, really, across the board. Our staff is able to stay in touch with those guys and there are some guys here staying fit in our own facility; the league allows that to happen, but for the guys remote — we just keep track and seems like everything is going really well as far as we can tell and we’re pleased so far.”

Carson (hip) was injured against the Cardinals in Week 16, while Penny suffered an ACL tear in Week 14 against the Rams.

The pair of injuries forced the Seahawks to sign Marshawn Lynch and Robert Turbin off the street, and Lynch carried Seattle into the playoffs with four touchdowns in three games.

Carson is further along in his recovery than Penny, who Carroll anticipates might be placed on the PUP list during training camp.

Regardless, both are expected to be ready to play when the season kicks off in September, and Carroll’s words on Wednesday only further emphasize that timeline.

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John Harbaugh has security concerns with all-digital draft

With the 2020 NFL Draft going all digital this year due to the coronavirus, it’s raised questions about security.

The 2020 NFL Draft will hopefully be the only one done completely digitally. With the coronavirus pandemic having people social distance, the NFL has dictated every team must run their war rooms remotely from their own couches. That means an increase in video teleconferencing software like Zoom, which has taken the world by storm as more people work remotely.

For Baltimore Ravens coach John Harbaugh, he’s a little concerned about the security side of an all-online draft process.

“I’ve got some real concerns about that, and hopefully we’ll be okay,” Harbaugh said at the pre-draft press conference. He added that he’s been in regular contact with the Ravens’ IT staff every time he reads a story about video conferences being hacked.

With the increase in video conferencing software being used, it has meant a rise in stories of security flaws as well. Rae Hodge of CNET has compiled a list of Zoom’s biggest security problems to date, including recordings of calls being left unprotected and viewable online and live meetings being infiltrated by unauthorized users. It’s let to the FBI issuing a warning about Zoom’s security issues.

From Baltimore’s draft board to their playbook, a lot of information is being shared among the team right now and it’s all critically important to the Ravens’ 2020 season. With a growing list of security issues coming to light, it makes sense Harbaugh is concerned.

“I really wouldn’t want the opposing coaches to have our playbook or our draft meetings,” Harbaugh continued. “That would be preferable, if we can stay away from that.”

Though general manager Eric DeCosta said he’s more concerned with someone leaving their draft board in their car, Harbaugh’s concern is being echoed by others as well.

“How do you make sure your conversations are protected? Someone could hack into this Zoom, and you’re probably not going to learn a lot,” Los Angeles Rams COO Kevin Demoff said via Peter King. “Hacking into a team’s draft room on Zoom is probably a lot different. That would be my biggest concern just from an encryption standpoint of how do you have these conversations confidentially.”

With the NFL and all 32 teams in uncharted territory, no one really seems to have a definitive answer for how to keep themselves protected this offseason. It’s a disruptive and turbulent time for everyone right now and all the Ravens can do is march forward the best they can.

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Here’s how to make yourself look like a potato (or Joe Exotic) on Zoom video calls

Here’s how to do it.

It’s the photo that went mega-viral recently that hopefully you’ve all seen.

A picture of a Microsoft Teams call in which someone’s boss used a filter that turned her into a talking potato, but she can’t turn it off, “so she was just stuck like this the entire meeting.”

It’s hysterical, it’s amazing, and now a lot of people want to know how they can do it on Zoom or Google Hangouts, perhaps to pair with hilarious backgrounds.

Well now, you too can be a potato! It’s all thanks to a program called Snap Camera, which uses SnapChat filters and lenses on video chat programs.

Here’s a step-by-step on how to pull this off:

1. Download Snap Camera

2. Open whichever video platform you use

That can be Zoom, Teams, Skype, Google Hangouts and others. It can be used with YouTube, too.

3. Find your video input settings in your platform and set it to Snap Camera

4. Choose your filter

You can be a potato:

Or Joe Exotic:

Or some of these:

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9 fun games and activities to do with friends on Zoom or Google Hangouts

From Jackbox to yoga to charades.

In the constant search for social interaction and fun during isolation due to the coronavirus pandemic, people have taken to video conferencing to catch up and have fun.

They’re using services like Zoom and Google Hangouts, which we’ve reviewed to tell you which ones are best. But it turns out you can do a lot more than chat on camera.

There are fun games and activities you can do (besides putting a funny background on in Zoom) to have a laugh or two to pass the time. So here are a few ideas we’ve seen put into action over the last few weeks:

1. Jackbox Games

We’ve been over this one. If someone has purchased Jackbox, he or she can share their screen and allow others to remotely log in to play. As long as everyone can see the screen, they can use their phones to play along.

2. Charades

An easy one with people on camera.

3. Crossword puzzles

They should take no time at all!

4. Watching television together

I just got invited to my first Netflix party using, well, Netflix Party (which is a Google Chrome extension that allows people to watch a show/movie at the same time with a chat attached).

5. A talent show

Shout-out to my family for suggesting this one for our next big call.

6. Karaoke

Obviously!

7. Pictionary

H/T to Elite Daily for this idea. You can use a Zoom whiteboard for it:

To use Zoom’s whiteboard, you’ll want to click the share screen button located in your meeting toolbar, select the whiteboard, and click share. You should then see annotation tools that will let you use your mouse to draw as you would for Pictionary. You can take turns sharing the screen’s whiteboard depending on who’s turn it is, and you can put some in charge of keeping time for the person who is drawing.

8. Yoga

Have one person share screen on a YouTube class, and there you have it.

9. Trivia

There’ this Random Trivia Generator that will help.

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Report: Lakers and Clippers will use Zoom for team workouts

The Los Angeles Lakers will be having some virtual team workouts by using the app Zoom.

As the NBA’s hiatus continues, players remaining in shape is becoming increasingly more important.

Though physical distancing prevents people from working out alongside one another, the Los Angeles Lakers and Los Angeles Clippers will utilize technology to bring their teams together during the coronavirus pandemic.

According to the Stadium’s Shams Charania, the Lakers and Clippers are using Zoom, a video chat and conference call service, for team workouts. Charania said the Clippers have already been using Zoom, and the Lakers are expected to begin using it soon.

With Zoom, each person has their own mini window and can video chat with others; it’s essentially a virtual meeting. The Lakers can use it not only to stay in shape, but also to maintain team chemistry.

The timetable for the NBA’s return is uncertain. Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban recently said on ESPN’s “Get Up” that he has “no idea” when the league will resume play. Cuban had previously said he hoped the league could return by the middle of May.

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People have been using the funniest Zoom backgrounds during the coronavirus pandemic

This is what we needed.

The global coronavirus pandemic has forced businesses to change the way they communicate on a daily basis. What used to be done with face-to-face, in-person meetings has now switched over to video conferences with everyone working from home.

And when it comes to those video conferencing, Google Hangouts and Zoom seem to be among the most popular. Just last week, our Charles Curtis broke down the advantages of each service.

But Zoom, in particular, has an amazing feature that newly remote workers can’t get enough of: There’s a custom background setting.

All you need to do is be stationed in front of a blank background, and Zoom allows the user to upload their own image. The Miami Dolphins did that for Kyle Van Noy’s press conference last week.

But around the internet, the custom Zoom backgrounds have been comedic gold. It’s exactly what we need to get through this tough time.

So. Good.

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What is ‘Zoom bombing’ and how can you prevent it?

A new, not-so-great trend.

Welcome to FTW Explains: a guide to catching up on and better understanding stuff going on in the world.

While we’re all stuck at home during social distancing and isolation during the coronavirus pandemic, hopefully you’ve discovered the joys of having conversations — or playing online games — with loved ones, family and friends on video conferencing services like Zoom and Google Hangouts.

But there’s a trend that’s become a problem for Zoom users called “Zoom bombing.” If you’ve heard about it and are looking for ways to prevent it, you’ve come to the right place. Here’s a breakdown and explanation of the trend:

What is Zoom?

It’s a leading video conference service that allows many users to chat with each other at once.

What is Zoom bombing?

It turns out a complete stranger can actually come into your meeting or chat and wreck havoc.

Oh, like photobombing?

Well, it’s a lot worse than that.

… What do you mean by that?

Those strangers are sometimes sharing pornographic images, or using threatening or hate language. Imagine if your young kids were on, say, a school meeting and suddenly it was interrupted that way.

Yikes.

Yep. It’s gotten so bad that, as Newsweek reported, “the FBI has warned the public of the potential for ‘Zoom-bombing,’ after two schools saw their online classes get hijacked on the popular video conferencing app Zoom.

So how do you prevent this from happening?

I’ve seen a number of suggestions I’ll throw in here. The first is from The Verge, which gives you this instruction:

 If you schedule a meeting from the web interface, you won’t see the option to disable screen sharing. Instead:

  • Click on “Settings” in the left-hand menu
  • Scroll down to “Screen sharing” and under “Who can share?” click “Host Only”
  • Click on “Save”

From a mobile device, you can tap the “MORE (…)” button in the bottom right corner and turn off sharing in “Meeting settings.”

Business Insider suggested to go to “account management > account setting,” find the “waiting room” button and turn it on. That way, the host can allow in participants who are invited and weed out uninvited guests who will sit in the queue.

And then there’s a quote from a Zoom spokesperson given to Forbes:

“For those hosting private meetings, password protections are on by default and we recommend that users keep those protections on to prevent uninvited users from joining. We also encourage users to report any incidents of this kind directly so we can take appropriate action.”

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