Software Update: Zoom 5.12.0

Version 5.12 of the video conferencing software Zoom has been released. This program makes it possible to attend online meetings, conferences and lectures, among other things. It is available for the most common operating systems and is available in a free and paid version with more features. The following changes and improvements have been made in this release:

Changes to existing features

• Zoom Chat changing to Zoom Team Chat
  The out-of-meeting, persistent chat experience has been renamed to Zoom Team Chat. This change is only to the various UI elements and has no effect on associated features and functionalities.

New and enhanced features

• General features
  • Profile Card Enhancements
    Profile cards have been visually enhanced to better convey information about users and contacts. Work location (Office or Remote), location, and local time are spaced properly, even when fewer of those items are provided by the user. The location field supports hyperlinks. The email address field on the Contact tab of the Profile Card now displays a copy to clipboard button on hover. A reminder that profile cards can be viewed in meetings. You can also see them in Zoom Team Chat by hovering over a user’s profile photo or @ mention name.
  • Additional MSI/PLIST/GPO/MDM options
    • Preset use of hide self view in meetings – HideSelfView
      Disabled by default, this option controls the use of the Hide Self View option. This option is currently available during meetings and webinars, but will include an additional out-of-meeting option in the client video settings.
    • User different proxy pre-detection method – PreproxyDetectPolicy
      This option controls the use of an admin-defined proxy pre-detection method, which can be faster for some PAC cases. If this option is not defined, the default Zoom proxy detection is used.
    • Allow older version to be installed – AllowDowngrade
      With this option enabled, a user or admin can bypass the default prevention of installing an older version of the desktop client. This is currently only supported on MSI deployments (with support for GPO coming soon)
• Meeting/webinar features
  • Sign language interpretation
    Meeting hosts can assign participants as sign language interpreters, interpreting one language into sign language in real-time. The host can assign interpreters when scheduling or during the meeting. These interpreters are displayed in a dedicated window, which can be repositioned and resized by the attendee choosing to view sign language interpretation. This requires version 5.11.3 or higher for desktop and 5.12.0 or higher for mobile.
  • Decline meeting invitation with message
    When the host of an active meeting invites a contact directly to join, the invitee can send a message when declining the invite, to provide context around the reason for declining. Some preset responses are provided by Zoom, but custom text can be used as well. The message will appear as a chat message in Zoom Team Chat for the person requesting you to join.
  • Enhanced in-meeting audio controls
    The desktop client settings for original sound, noise suppression, and other advanced audio controls have been updated to be clearer and easier to use. The in-meeting original sound toggle has been also enhanced to indicate the current status and effect when the toggle is clicked.
  • Enhanced Self-view and Non-video participants controls
    The Hide Self View option in client settings is persistent across meetings, reducing the need to be set each meeting. Additionally, the Hide Self View and Hide Non-Video Participants options are included in the in-meeting View controls, for easier access.
• Meeting features
  • Schedule recurring meetings
    Users can schedule a recurring meeting from the desktop client, setting a specific recurrence pattern, just as they can in the scheduler in the web portal. This feature will not be immediately available for all users, as it is rolling out over time.
• White board features
  • Rich text options for text and shapes
    Text objects, sticky notes, and shapes can be more finely formatted with additional rich-text options, including bold, italics, underline, font size, bulleted and numbered lists, and more.
• Chat features
  • Set reminders for messages
    Zoom Team Chat users can improve their efficiency and responsiveness by setting configurable reminders for any Zoom Team Chat message. All messages with a reminder are easily accessible in a dedicated Reminders section at the top of the left Zoom Team Chat panel, joining the Mentions, Missed Calls, Bookmarks, and other sections. This can also be configured to not be displayed with the other options through client settings. This requires version 5.12.0 or higher.
  • Share in-meeting chat to Zoom Team Chat
    Meeting hosts can share chat messages sent during a meeting to Zoom Team Chat. The host chooses this option and specifies an existing chat or channel, or to create a new private channel, to share the chat messages with. After the meeting ends, the transcript is automatically posted as a meeting card to the group chat or channel chosen by the host. Members of the group chat or channel can click the meeting card to view the meeting messages.
  • Virtual background and touch up appearance support for Video Messaging
    When sending a Video Message in Zoom Chat, the user’s previously selected virtual background and their touch up setting are applied to the video. An option to open virtual background and filter settings is provided for quick access. This feature must be enabled by Zoom and the device must support the virtual background type you want to utilize.
  • Restrict who can add channel members
    When updating or editing a chat channel, the channel admin can choose to allow anyone in the channel to add new members, or they can restrict this ability to only channel owners and admins. If external users are allowed in the channel, they can also select which user types are allowed to add external members to the channel.
  • Additional keyboard shortcuts for Zoom Team Chat
    To assist users with screen readers, several keyboard shortcuts are added to quickly bring the screen focus to commonly used areas of chat, including switching to the chat list, jumping to the most recent message, jumping to start of unread messages, and adding members to chat or channel.
  • Request private channel access from channel and message links
    When a link to a private channel or message in a private channel is shared with a user that is not currently a member of that private channel, they can request access to join. The channel admin receives the request in that channel, and if approved, the requestor is notified of the approval.
  • Enhanced link previews for chat message and channel links
    When a Zoom Team Chat message or channel is deeplinked in chat, the preview will provide additional information. Deep links to public channels provide channel type, name, and description info. Deep links to messages in public channels provide original sender name, date/time, and a short snippet of the message. Deeplinks to private channels and messages within are only provided if the user is already a member of that private channel.
  • Add chatbots and chat apps to folders
    Chatbots and Zoom Chat apps from the marketplace can be sorted into chat folders. Previously, only chat contacts, group chats, and chat channels could be assigned to a folder. This must be enabled by Zoom.
• Phone features
  • Create a personal contact from Zoom Phone
    Users can select an inbound/outbound number from their phone history, SMS or Voicemail and save it as a personal contact for future reference.
  • Ability to star personal contacts
    Users can go to their contacts tab, and star a contact in their personal contacts section for ease of access.
  • Video mail/video greeting virtual background
    If the feature is enabled by their admin, users can record a video greeting or video mail using a virtual background. The custom and Zoom-provided virtual backgrounds will be available for use, although custom backgrounds can only be uploaded via the web portal.
• Contact Center features
  • Make outbound calls in Not Ready status
    Supervisors or agents can make outbound voice calls while in the Ready or Not Ready status. As a result, they will receive inbound engagement notifications while in the outbound call. Previously, they could only make outbound calls while in the Not Ready status.
  • Upgrade voice or SMS to video
    Account owners and admins can allow agents to upgrade an active voice or SMS engagement to video engagement.
  • Launching a URL during inbound calls
    Supervisors or agents can set the desktop client to automatically launch a URL when they receive a voice call. They can also insert parameters to pass details about the consumer.
  • Enhanced filters for Closed engagements tab
    Supervisors and agents can filter the Closed engagements tab by channel (Voice, Video or Messaging). The Messaging channel filter consolidates web chat, in-app chat, and SMS engagements.
  • Specify skills when transferring
    When agents transfer an engagement to a queue that contains an agent routing profile, they can specify the inputs required by the agent routing profile.
  • Agent avatar in transfer window (voice)
    When transferring a voice engagement, agents can see other agents’ contact center avatars. Agents’ contact center avatars are separate from their Zoom profile pictures and can be customized by admins.
  • Enhancements to viewing recordings
    There are several enhancements to make it easier for admins, supervisors, and agents to view engagements that contain multiple recordings.
  • Enhancements to internal calling from Zoom Contact Center to Zoom Phone
    When supervisors or agents make outbound calls or transfer calls to Zoom Phone users, the search results will display users’ profile pictures and presence statuses.

Resolved issues

• Minor bug fixes
• Security enhancements
• Resolved an issue regarding Webinar Q&A not showing some answered questions
• Resolved an issue regarding failed chat autosaves due to ellipsis in the meeting title
• Resolved an issue regarding chat connectivity issues when switching from wired to wireless connections
• Resolved an issue for a subset of users regarding the Integrate Zoom with Outlook adding extra information to contact cards
• Resolved an issue for a subset of users regarding gray boxes over shared screen
• Resolved an issue regarding saved whiteboards being overwritten
• Resolved an issue regarding local recordings being stopped when host role is reassigned
• Resolved an issue regarding higher CPU usage when using Zoom Whiteboard
• Resolved an issue regarding losing call control between client and desk phone
• Resolved an issue regarding drop-down menus in shared applications not being visible for viewers
• Resolved an issue regarding drawing tools after double-clicking a location
• Resolved an issue regarding the desktop meeting list not listing a rescheduled meeting
• Resolved an issue regarding routing a blackmagic capture card through a virtual camera input
• Resolved an issue for a subset of users regarding contact numbers found in the Start menu not passing to Zoom Phone properly