Microsoft Teams is the hub of the workplace for many of us. It is a multi-faceted program that brings together Microsoft products and more.

There are ways to better organize your Teams space that you may not have harnessed yet.

Pinning Channels

If you have a lot of Teams on your dashboard, finding the one you are looking for can be a challenge. Instead of scrolling, use the Pin feature to make them appear front and center.

Click on the “more” menu next to the channel you would like to Pin. Then, click Pin. Your pinned channels appear at the top of your Teams workspace.

Pinned channels are visible when using the List layout.

Reordering Teams

You can manage the order in which your Teams appear by using drag and drop. Click and hold on a Team name, then drag it to where you would like to appear. This works in both the List layout and the Grid layout.

Using Tags

If you are the Team Owner, you can create custom Tags within a team. What this does is allow you to group people so that you can use the @mention feature within Teams.

For example, say you have a Team made up of the IT Team. You may want to create subgroups within the Team so that you can quickly call on the programmers or the trainers.

To get started, you will need to be the Owner of a Team. Click the “more” menu, and go to Manage Tags.
Then, click Create Tag on the next screen. You’ll name your Tag and add people from that Team.

When creating a Team Post, you’ll be able to @mention that tag to reach everyone designated.

These days, all of our meetings are held remotely. When you use Zoom, are you using the features in it to secure your meeting?

The Penn State Office of Information Security recommends one of three settings to limit who can enter your meeting room. They include the use of a passcode, a Waiting Room, or enabling the setting “Only authenticated users can join meetings.”

With a passcode, a would-be uninvited guest cannot simply guess the 11-digit meeting ID and then enter. They would also need a passcode, which is created by the meeting host. You can allow Zoom to randomly generate a passcode or set one that is more meaningful to your meeting attendees.

Using a Waiting Room allows hosts and co-hosts to admit attendees individually or in bulk. (The Waiting Room is a favorite of the training team. We utilize this to get things ready before admitting our participants.)

The waiting room can also be turned off when your meeting starts. Note though that this will immediately grant access to someone who clicks the link.

Turning the authenticated user setting on means that only meeting attendees who are logged into their Penn State Zoom account will be admitted to the meeting. If you use this setting, it is recommended that you remind participants to log into their Zoom desktop app or Zoom web portal before attempting to join the meeting. Any participant who is not logged in will be denied access.

For more information on Zoom meeting security, visit the Zoom Trust Center.

The College of Engineering individual Box accounts migrated to OneDrive in the first part of the year. Now, the task begins to make sense of what came over.

The first step is to locate where the files are in OneDrive. You will have a folder labeled “Box Migration Data” that contains the documents that you stored in your personal OneDrive.

Any documents shared with Penn State colleagues are still accessible to them.

However, you will need to re-establish any shared documents with collaborators who are outside of Penn State. Those permissions will need to be set within OneDrive’s structure.

OneDrive designations refer to the new permissions that will need to be set for previously shared files/folder and not specific OneDrive roles.

See the chart below:

Granting permissions in OneDrive

After you have re-established any shared file connections, communicate with your collaborators. Send links to those who are outside of Penn State. Notify any internal connections that files you shared with them are accessible in their OneDrive “Shared with Me” tab.

If you have used Zoom these past several months, there may be features you’re not aware of that can make for a better meeting experience.

You’re likely familiar with the basics in Zoom, but there are a ton of shortcuts to make better use of the program. Whether it is a one-on-one meeting with a student or a presentation to the college, these tips will allow you to show up in the very best way.

1. Change your background

You likely know that Zoom has the option to use a virtual background. There are some default ones pre-set, but step it up with a beautiful (royalty-free) photo from a website like UnSplash.

To change your background, Click on Settings > Virtual Background.

If your system won’t support virtual backgrounds, be sure to check for updates to the Zoom application. Get there by clicking on your image or initials in the upper right of the application window and then selecting Check for Updates.

2. Mute everyone at once

If you’ve been in a meeting with a mysterious sound in the background or a need to restore order quickly, you may have clicked on the Mute All button in the participants panel. There is a faster way!
Using Alt+M on a PC or ⌘Cmd+Ctrl+M on a Mac will mute everyone.

3. Come in quietly

If you’ve ever tried entered a Zoom meeting late, then you know the usefulness of being able to enter quietly. Doing so allows the meeting to continue without disruptions.

Set this up before the meeting.  

Open the Zoom app and click Settings. On the Audio tab, click the box to add a checkmark to mute the microphone when joining a meeting. To turn your microphone back on while in the call, use the button at the bottom of the screen.

Additionally, you can turn off your video when joining a meeting. This setting is found under Settings in the Video tab. This can help to make sure you are situated or when dealing with video quality issues or low bandwidth.

4. Mute and unmute with the spacebar 

Need to speak up in a meeting but don’t want to fiddle with accessing the mute button?
Press and hold the spacebar. This will temporarily unmute you as long as you are holding the spacebar.

There are also a lot of other Zoom keyboard shortcuts.

5. Show names

Zoom can show the names on participants’ windows for you, like virtual nametags. Go to Settings > Video and check the box for Always display participant’s name.

6. Use Zoom’s beauty filter to blur

Soften the edges — so to speak — with Zoom’s beauty filter.

Go to Settings > Video. From there, check the box for touch up my appearance. Zoom will soften the focus on your camera.

7. Use emojis

We can unmute, and we can chat … but did you know we also have Reactions?

Show thumbs up or down, celebration, or a heart (new reactions may be added with future updates) in the corner of your video. You can locate them at the bottom of the meeting screen. Look for the Reactions button on the right side of the Zoom window.

8. Quick invite

If you’ve ever been in a Zoom meeting and thought of someone who should be there, then this tip will come in handy.

Type Alt+I on a PC or ⌘Cmd+I on a Mac to open the Invite window.

From here, you can copy the URL to send via Teams or click on the Email tab to send it directly from Outlook.