Earlier quoted context omitted.
I am out of the loop as to why Zoom is suddenly "blowing up". Even my workplace is using it now. Previously, we were using either Skype, Webex, or Jitsi. What does Zoom offer that the other three doesn't?
There is one huge difference, if I'm not mistaken. In our tests neither Skype nor Google Hangouts allowed the speaker of a talk to view the audience while screen sharing. It's annoying and feels very odd to give a two-hour lecture to your laptop with zero feedback from the audience. Maybe we did something wrong, though, and missed features in Hangouts and Skype. If that is the case I'd be very happy if someone could…
jitsi meet should allow it.
free. open source.
university could self host it too...