Digital meetings, classes, events - which tool should I use?

All digital meetings, classes, and events have a shared need to talk to/with people who can't be physcially present. To accomplish this we use microphones, webcameras, screen sharing, and more.

UiT has multiple tools that can be used for digital meetings, etc. Below is an overview of the tools available and what they are best at.

Summarized overview

All of the tools below have sound (microphone), video (webcamera), and screen sharing (e.g. PowerPoint).

Zoom is best at interactive classes/events. This is because Zoom lets you see many participants' webcamera-video at one and has a tool for breakout rooms, polls, and more. Generally recommended for educational purposes.
Microsoft Teams is part of Office 365. Online meetings in Teams are best when combined with the other co-authoring and collaboration tools that Teams has to offer. Generally recommended for meetings.
Microsoft Teams is the only digital meeting tool UiT offers that can be used when discussing sensitive information.
Panopto is used for one-way video. For example, Panopto is used when streaming lectures from an auditorium on campus. See the available Panopto knowledge items.
Adobe Connect is quite similar to Zoom. Adobe Connect is not included in the detailed overview below because it will not be offered as a UiT service in the future. More information about the deactivation of Adobe Connect.

Both Zoom and Teams have separate versions for meetings/classes and webinar.

Meetings in Zoom and Teams are best when interaction, discussion, and social contact are important. In general we recommend meetings in Zoom and Teams rather than using the webinar variant. UiT employees and students can make meetings in Zoom and Teams.
Webinar, in this case, is a special variant of Zoom and Teams that is designed for one-way communication and a large number of participants. Webinars are only recommended in special cases. Zoom-webinar and Teams Live Event are created by agreement with the IT department.

Detailed overview

Property	Zoom meeting	Teams meeting	Panopto	Comments
Generally recommended for	Education	Meetings	Streaming
Can be used to discuss sensitive information				Teams: Documents that are stored in Teams can include sensitive information if they are marked as such.
Number of participants	300	250	Unlimited	Zoom: To create a meeting with 301-500 participants, contact Orakelet.
Chat				Zoom: Chat for all participants in addition to 1:1 chat with the host or other participants (depends on your settings). Teams: The chat is saved in Teams and can continue to be used after the meeting is over. Can use links and emojis.
Number of videos visible	25+	9	1-2	Zoom and Teams: Video of the participants. Panopto: The video is normally of the person giving the lecture/presentation. In certain auditoriums at UiT there is a camera that is pointed at the audience that can be used with Mediasite.
Screen sharing				Zoom: Depending on your settings can anyone share their screen or just the hosts. Also possible for multiple people to share their screen at once, depending on your settings.
Participants can use their microphones				Zoom and Teams: You can mute all partipants at once or one by one. Panopto: If the participants are in the same room they can use e.g. a handheld microphone. People watching the video online cannot use their microphone to talk to the person giving the lecture.
Who creates the session?	You	You	You, Administration for room reservation or IT department
The link can be published on an open webpage	Yes, with certain precautions	Yes, with certain precautions		Zoom and Teams: Certain settings are required to increase security. Panopto: Streaming and recordings can be available for UiT or anyone in the world who has the link.
External participants				Zoom: External participants can join as a guest or log in with Zoom account from their wordplace or a private account. Teams: Participants who are not logged in as UiT users are admitted to a virtual lobby. Panopto: Streaming and recordings can be available for UiT or anyone in the world who has the link.
Virtual lobby				Zoom: You can set it up so that everyone has to wait in the virtual lobby. You can let everyone in at once or one by one. Teams: Participants who are not logged in as UiT users are admitted to a virtual lobby.
Recording				Zoom: Only hosts can start recordings. The recordings are saved locally on your computer (use a UiT computer!). The video file includes shared screens, sound and 5 participants who have turned on their webcameras. Separate file for audio. Separate text file for chat. Teams: Recording includes sound, video, and screen share. Chat is not recorded. The recording is linked to in the chat and automatically uploaded to Microsoft Stream. Panopto: Many sources at the same time, and the viewer decides which source they want to focus on. The sources can be, for example, screen share, webcamera, and document camera.
Breakout rooms for group work				Zoom: Participants can be divided into groups automatically or manually. Alternatively, participants can choose a breakout room themselves. Maximum 50 groups. Automatic groups can be manually adjusted (e.g. when each group has a pre-defined leader). Groups can be created before the meeting starts but this requires that all participants log in with a UiT account. Teams: Participants can be divided into groups automatically or manually.
Polls				Zoom: Multiple choice questions. It's best to create the polls before the meeting starts. You can have multiple rounds of polls during your meeting.
Raise hand				Zoom: Open the participant list to find the Raise hand button.
Nonverbal feedback				Zoom: Nonverbal feedback consists of icons that participants can place next to their name in the list of participants. Can be used e.g. for yes/no questions or to raise your hand. Teams: Use emojis in the chat.
Reactions				Zoom: A temporary icon (applause or thumbs up) that participants can place on top of their webacam video. Teams: Use emojis in the chat.
Registration				Zoom and Teams: Registeration can be done via a meeting invitation in Outlook. Zoom: If the meeting is created on UiT's Zoom webpage you can create a registration form.
Can be used in a web browser				Zoom and Teams: Limited functionality when used in a web browser.
Can be used in an app installed on your computer				Zoom and Teams: Full functionality. Recommended.
Can be used in an app on your smart phone				Zoom and Teams: Limited functionality when used in an app on your smart phone.
Can be used in your office				Panopto: See the Panopto knowledge items.
Can be used in meeting rooms and classrooms				Zoom and Teams: Search the room reservation system. Can be used in meeting rooms that are PC-based. Zoom: Cannot be used in meeting rooms with Lenovo ThinkSmart Hub (not PC-based). Panopto: See the Panopto knowledge items.
Subtitles	Manually	Automatic	Automatic or turned off.	Zoom: Someone has to manually type in the subtitles during the meeting. Teams: Automatically generated. Norwegian does not work as well as English. Panopto: Automatic subtitles are generated, but they can be turned off.
Meeting notes				Teams: Teams has a special tool for meeting notes that can adds a tab in the relevant Team. Alternatively, use OneNote and connect the page to the meeting invitation in Outlook.