How I Connected My Grandma to Zoom and Changed My Family’s Life
A few days ago I connected my grandmother to Zoom Video Conferencing — via her TV set. Since then, all the family can very easily video-chat with her. This way, she can talk with us through the only tech device she knows how to handle (turn on/off…) — the TV, where she can also see us big and hear us loud. The feedback since then is amazing, and Grandma is extremely happy :)
What did I do? Basically, I connected a laptop to the TV and configured it in a way that it connects to a Zoom meeting as soon as Windows starts, so that the only thing one needs to be familiar with, in order to run that, is the power button (the physical button — no need for mouse or keyboard). However, the configurations are not trivial, in order for it to work smoothly, and since I believe that more people would be interested to help their grandparents (or other less techie / people with disabilities or accessibility needs / etc.) to become connected — especially in these days of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) — I decided to write this guide.
How to Connect Grandma to Zoom — via the TV
So, the setup is going to take around 30–60 minutes and it includes 7 steps: (1) Clean the Computer; (2) Configure a Non-Admin Account and Skip Login Screen; (3) Connect the Laptop to the TV; (4) Install & Setup Zoom; (5) Configure Zoom to Run on Startup; (6) Extra Windows Configurations and optionally (7) Setup TeamViewer, for future support.
Note that this hasn’t been extensively tested yet. This is based just on my single experience with my computer. Proceed each step with caution, and on your responsibility.
The Ingredients
- Unused laptop with camera, microphone and speakers, Windows 10 (technically, it can work on any OS, but this guide is written for Windows 10) and Google Chrome (same, I just made this guide using Chrome)
- TV with HDMI input
- HDMI cable
Step 1: Clean the Computer
If the laptop is full of garbage, make sure that it is cleaned up before moving forward. Otherwise, popups and notifications may jump and confuse the user. Carefully consider to uninstall all the unnecessary programs or even reset it. This would be the cleanest option, but be careful and don’t accidentally delete stuff you need. Although, you better not leave anything important there — this laptop is probably going to be unattended for long times, so at least delete all the personal data and sign out all your personal accounts.
Step 2: Configure a Non-Admin Account and Skip Login Screen
Well, usually this is not the smartest thing to do, security-wise, but for this purpose, I see no other option. Since we want the computer to boot without any interruptions, we’ll have to disable Windows’ Login screen.
1. If we disable the login screen, let’s, at least, do this for a non-admin user. Create a local user account by following Microsoft’s instructions here: Create a local user account.
2. Disable the login screen by following the steps here (Option One) — follow the instructions “To Turn On Automatic Sign in for a Local Account or Microsoft Account”.
3. Restart the PC and make sure that it works. The next steps should be done while logged in as the new user.
Step 3: Connect the Laptop to the TV
Plug the laptop into the power and connect it to the TV with the HDMI cable. Make sure that you select the correct Source on the TV. If it doesn’t work, try to click on Winkey+P and change the setting there. If it still doesn’t work, there are many troubleshooters online.
Step 4: Install & Setup Zoom
Follow the instructions here to download and install Zoom Client for Meetings. After that, let’s set up the Zoom app to work better for our use case:
1. Start Zoom and sign up to create an account.
2. Go to Settings.
3. On the General tab, make sure the following are checked:
* Start Zoom when I start Windows
* Silently start Zoom when I start Windows
* Enter full screen automatically when starting or joining a meeting
4. On the Video tab, test and make sure that the camera is working, and that the following unchecked:
* Turn off my video when joining a meeting
* Always show video preview dialog when joining a video meeting
5. On the Audio tab, test and make sure that the microphone and speakers are working. Try to choose the TV in the Speaker dropdown — newer TVs support it. Also, make sure that the following are un/checked:
* Automatically join audio by computer when joining a meeting — checked
* Mute my microphone when joining a meeting — unchecked
6. Now, close the Settings — they should be saved — and go to the Meetings tab in the main Zoom window.
7. Under My Personal Meeting ID (PMI), click on the Edit button. The Personal Meeting ID Settings window will appear. Make sure that the following are checked:
* Video — Host: On
* Audio — Telephone and Computer Audio
Click on Advanced Options and also check:
* Enable join before host
Close this window.
8. Now, let’s get the link to the meeting. Still, in the Meetings tab, click on Show Meeting Invitation. An invitation text will appear. Copy the link that is in there (should look like “https://...zoom.us/j/1234567890”). Save it somewhere — we will refer to it later as <the meeting link>.
Step 5: Configure Zoom to Run on Startup
It is not as easy as it sounds, but we need, for grandma, not only that the Zoom app runs on startup, but also that it connects directly to the personal meeting room. After digging around for a few minutes, I’ve found two ways to achieving this. One is a bit complicated and risky, by editing the registry; the other one may be a bit more “hacky” but maybe a bit simpler and safer, by using AutoHotkey automation for Windows. We will create a short script that will run the Zoom meeting on Windows startup:
1. Download AutoHotkey’s current version from here and install it.
2. Open Windows File Explorer and browse to this directory:
%HOMEPATH%\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\Startup
Everything that is inside this directory should run on Windows startup. We will create the automation script in here.
3. Inside the folder, right-click on some empty space and select:
New > AutoHotkey Script
Give it a name (e.g. Run Zoom Meeting), then right-click on it and Edit Script.
A script window will open.
4. In the script, paste the “code” below. This script should enter the meeting link in Chrome and select the option to run Zoom when prompted:
Run, chrome.exe "<the meeting link>"
Sleep, 10000 ; wait for the page to load
IfWinNotActive, ahk_exe chrome.exe
WinActivate, ahk_exe chrome.exe
Send {Left} ; accept the prompt to launch Zoom
Send {Enter}
5. Save and exit the script window.
Step 6: Extra Windows Configurations
We are almost done. We’ve set up Zoom and also configured it to run on startup (hopefully, we’ll soon test it…). Now, let’s fix just a few more Windows configurations, for a smoother experience. I will not get into detail on every step since it can even vary from one version of Windows 10 to another, and there are many instructions online.
1. Disable screen turning off when plugged in.
2. Disable Sleep when plugged in.
3. Set When I press the power button to Shut down when plugged in.
4. Set When I close the lid to Do nothing when plugged in.
(Optional) Step 7: Setup TeamViewer
This step is optional, and only if you’re already familiar with TeamViewer. Luckily, I haven’t needed to use it yet, but it may be very helpful in case of a problem. TeamViewer allows you to control the computer remotely. In my Grandma’s setup, I’ve installed and connected it to my TeamViewer account. Note that there are some settings there that you should enable, in order to allow unattended access.
That’s All! Share and Invite People to the Meeting
I haven’t thoroughly tested it, only in a single setup, but it should work. Share <the meeting link> with everyone you wish to be able to join the meeting, and only the ones you wish for. This link is permanent — if you give it to unwanted people, they will also be able to see and hear the users — so keep it safe.
Pitfalls, Caveats and Alternatives
So far, I’ve found one pitfall in this solution — the free Zoom account has a limit of 40 minutes on group meetings. I’m not sure exactly how it works, right now (if 2 people join the meeting and then one left, does the limit reset?). This is solvable, though — you can upgrade to a Pro account (see Zoom’s Plans and Pricing). Anyway, for now, I instructed grandma to turn it off and on again if any error occurs, simply by only pressing the power button.
Another thing I’m ignoring right now is Windows Update and other interruptions that may happen. This setup needs some more time to be battle-tested, as I said. Kiosk mode may be considered. However, for now, that’s one of the reasons why I’ve set up TeamViewer.
One last thing that I wanted to share is the alternatives I’ve considered:
1. Facebook Portal TV — seems like a great product by Facebook. It is relatively new so it is not sold in my country yet, and also there might be some cons, like vendor locking with Facebook and privacy issues.
2. Raspberry Pi — for highly-skilled technical people who don’t want to “sacrifice” a laptop, or want a more lean and minimal setup. I’ve also considered it, but for the “MVP” (Minimum Viable Product) I find what I did as the fastest approach. If you’re going this way, note that Zoom is currently not natively supported (no Linux ARM version), and anyway — share it with us!
Important! Coronavirus Precautions
This post was written on the days of the Coronavirus. Notice that, especially now, the main target audience of this solution are extremely vulnerable. Visits to your grandparents, or everyone over the age of 60, are strongly ill-advised. Be sure to get familiar with the guidelines of your country’s Ministry of Health and obey them. I, for instance, have set up everything at home and asked my grandmother’s home care nurse to just plug the laptop to the TV, after disinfecting it. I will take this opportunity to emphasize it again — everything is on your responsibility.
Epilogue
Feedback and comments are much appreciated. Lastly, don’t forget the most important thing — technology by itself is not enough; support your grandparents and give them love ❤
