Zoom Dysmorphia

 I'm still not back on Twitter, so even brief things I want to comment about end up here.  Honestly not sure if I'll go back; I've been off Facebook for a long time now, and I don't plan on returning, even though I'll never hear about the next High School Reunion.

Anyway, Daily Tech News Show just mentioned something called "Zoom Dysmorphia."  People seeing themselves on screen while doing video conferences are becoming uncomfortable about their perception of their appearance, and even seeking plastic surgery to correct perceived flaws.

Had a couple passing thoughts about that.

After more than a decade of (intermittent) podcasting, I'm pretty comfortable with the sound of my recorded voice.  I also DJ in Second Life, same deal, same comfort.  In fact, I think I sound pretty good, and people tell me I do.  

So I'm a bit frustrated with folk who won't be on the podcast because they're anxious about how they sound in recordings. You probably sound better than you think, and you at least don't sound as bad as you think.  That's true for most people, albeit not everybody.  

And I think it's the same sort of discomfort as this visual dysmorphia. It's a new context for your self-image, you haven't changed.

I'm also struck by the fact that if conferences were held in Second Life instead of Zoom, to quote an old saying, "nobody knows you're a dog." And as for voice, well, everyone sounds like crap on SL Voice.

Then again, I am likely not the only one who's known for a long time that Second Life is really a better option in most senses.  Some smart coder needs to create Zoom compatibility in Second Life, which you'll note would do what some of these Virtual Reality conference systems are attempting to offer.

I get that Ford "invented" the automobile, to a certain extent.  But let's not claim he invented the wagon, or the wheel, or the internal combustion engine. 

 Nobody's built the VR version of the Model T yet. 

So in the meantime, hitch up the mule you've got to the cart you've got, you'll still get there.  The Shiny New Thing isn't always the best choice.

"Zoom dysmorphia."  (sigh)

What I wish the Zoom H2 would do

I've had my Sampson Zoom H2 for a couple months now, and while I'm very happy to have it and have fun playing with it, there are a few things I'd like to see improved.

For one thing, the display screen is way too small for my aging eyes. I could see a screen of double the size, with no severe change in overall size of the device. The user interface is also a bit of a hassle. I dunno about more buttons, but a touch screen like the one on my Palm PDA would be helpful indeed -- better display that way, too.

I note that the earphone jack is on one side of the device, and the mike jack is on the other. This doesn't serve well if I want to use it with a computer-style headset. Another option would be a submini jack to work with one of those old-style cellphone headsets. You'd lose a bit of quality, but gain in convenience for some uses.

Speaking of convenience and quality, as it stands now, if I plug in an external mike, I lose all four of the internal mikes. For "on the street" interviews, it'd be nice to use a headset mike for myself and be able to point the Zoom at the interviewee(s). Perhaps a good compromise would be if plugging in the external would cut out only the Front mikes, the ones at 90 degrees, and leave the Back mikes available, the ones at 120 degrees. Those, after all, would be the ones pointed away from me most of the time, anyway.

I doubt if the Samson Zoom H2 folks are liable to change this for one blogger and podcaster, though. So jump in anywhere, if you agree.