During the last couple of days, we have been using Zoom to communicate with Oslo in lectures. The (very interesting) WoNoMute session on Monday required an experimental Portal setup, which was too much to handle for two Portal newbies like ourselves the following day. For some reason, we didn’t get it to work even after class, and it wasn’t until Thursday that Eigil randomly came by and solved the issue. On the positive side, it made us reflect on the importance of maintaining a high quality communication channel in order for this programme to work.

One of the main problems with Zoom communication is the reduced interactivity. Since we didn’t understand how the mixer was set up, we had to use the Logitech V-U0034 speaker and microphone as our means to communicate with Oslo. The difference in audio quality between the two setups (Zoom vs. full immersive Lola) is remarkable. We had to concentrate more to understand what the lecturer said, and to speak to Oslo required us to move closer to the microphone. Consequently, it felt more interrupting to pause the lecturer in Oslo to ask a quick question, which resulted in a much less interactive session. It felt more as we were participants in a video lecture then part of a shared collaborative space.

Logitech V-U0034
Logitech V-U0034

This would probably not be a problem if we had more experience with setting up the Portal. It is likely that these issues eventually will solve themselves as we develop our console skills. However, there should perhaps be an internal requirement about reverting back to the original settings after such a session. Even though cleaning up after a long day can be very tiresome, it’s often a lot more difficult to do for someone who are not aware of what’s been done.