Day 19: Let’s Zoom?

Dear Readers,

How many of you have played with the Zoom platform during the past couple of weeks?  I know that I have more than one meeting via Zoom, and never thought much about it’s security until last night when I experienced a Zoom Bomb.

Heliosphere, an awesome Con that was supposed to take place this weekend in Tarrytown, NY, had done something extraordinary.  The organizers chose to provide the public access to the remote panels via Zoom.  And I was thrilled!

So last night I logged into Zoom to listen to panelists discuss the Horror genre and its impact.  A few times throughout the hour, you could hear voices interrupt the panelists with vulgar words and comments.  At one point they took over the screen and inserted a lewd image. To the panelists’ credit, they maintained their professional demeanor and ignored the infantile behavior.

The intruders sounded like bored college kids.  And I couldn’t help but wonder why they would choose to interrupt someone else’s virtual chat in such a crude manner.  Didn’t they have anything better to do?  Come on! Here is a group of people trying to connect to discuss their passion for writing, and some jerks have to interfere and try to wreck it?  Don’t we have enough crap going on right now?

The interlopers reminded me just how awful we can be to one another. I couldn’t help but picture the Spring Break Brat who bragged “If I get Cor

ona, I’ll get Corona.”

We are all in this together.  And if Zoom can provide people an opportunity to connect when they can’t leave their homes, or can’t travel, let them be.

Thanks to Heliosphere for providing such a wonderful opportunity.  Hope to see you all next year.

Namaste