The Zoom update process sucks. Here’s how to fix it.
Are Zoom updates chafing your hide? Now that almost all of us tech types are spending hours in Zoom every week, optimizing the Zoom experience is a big part of tuning our survival. And the default Zoom update hokey-pokey is galling in the extreme.
As you probably know, Zoom likes to force a software update on you when you launch, which of course is usually when a meeting is starting. Then you’re forced to stare and curse while you wait for the Zoom update and all your teammates sit around staring and cursing at you.
Well, here’s the solution. Zoom has an option to turn off updates completely. It’s called “Automatically keep Zoom desktop client up to date”:
- Open Settings from the HOME screen. It’s the gear icon at top right.
- On the GENERAL tab, find Automatically keep Zoom desktop client up to date and turn that crap off.
- You’ll need to check for updates manually every few months. You don’t want to miss out on any updates that fix bugs or improve video quality.
Obviously, Zoom could make this much easier if they’d only try to apply updates when you’re trying to QUIT the application, exit a meeting, or shut down. I don’t mind if I get an update AFTER my meeting. Update away! But applying an update before a meeting? What kind of idiot makes that their design?
Someone who’s not thinking of the user, that’s who.
My other Zoom gripes: Why do they make it so hard to quit? And why is the UX so terrible?
Does it annoy you that Zoom wants to be running ALL DAY on your computer? They make it a royal pain to shut the thing down entirely. Why do they care? Are they watching us through some nasty backdoor? Who knows.
The only way I know to quit Zoom is to right-click on it in the task bar or the “system tray” and choose “Quit Zoom.” Why is this option not available anywhere in the app itself?
Here’s where normal, user-friendly apps put the Quit option: at the bottom of the user menu (see red arrow). But Zoom only gives you a Sign Out option.
And of course the Zoom UX is a hot mess. I feel it eschews most desktop app design conventions (like the X button in the top right of the home screen to quit, for example!) and confuses with multiple floating panes. I admit Zoom does have a tough row to hoe because it has so many facets to display (what you’re sharing, video content, Zoom controls) but I feel a few tweaks could improve the app mightily. I’m not going to go into too much detail here because others have already done so.
Anyhow, hope this has been useful to some of you Zoom update sufferers. Be well and Zoom well!
