Countdown to Your Next Virtual Meeting or Video Call With a Simple Countdown
Virtual hangout etiquette always keeps me on my toes. For example, if I am the organizer Zoom Assembly, I believe that it is better to sign up in advance, in case someone – else wants to sign up before. But then I have to pay attention to my screen so that this is not just a photograph of my empty room. In other words, I don’t want to sound rude , which means I have to cut my packing time – pre-meeting ritual, pouring a drink, snacking, and maybe even a biological break (in the wrong order).
Although the hack is tiny , I recently stumbled across the Live Curtain website and loved it. Its premise is simple: you enter a message, a time, and choose a color theme. A countdown timer will appear on the screen. That’s all. At the end, there is no beep or any other indicator to alert everyone that time is up and the show / hangout / meeting will begin. It’s a simple timer on a simple website.
So, if you want to join a virtual video meeting or meeting 10 minutes early, but don’t want to entertain those who came earlier, just share the screen with this website. People will know that the meeting will take place ; they’re just early. Better yet, if you want to give them some kind of reminders before the meeting with the message that you show on the general screen.
The only thing that bothers me is that your message is on one line; you can’t give friends or colleagues a difficult plan of action. But it normal. I suppose if you need that much help, you can always just split the entire screen with Google Doc in one corner and a countdown timer in the other. The simple possibilities are endless.
(That said, I wouldn’t mind the annoying air horn version either.)