Learn Hardcore German: In der Videokonferenz benutzen viele ihre Kamera nicht, aber alle schreiben aktiv im Chat. - In the video conference many people don’t use their camera, but everyone writes actively in the chat.

Dative for location (where?): in der Videokonferenz – in the videoconference (situation / setting)
Accusative for direction (where to?): in die Videokonferenz (gehen) – go into the videoconference

Here we are talking about the setting (where something happens), so we need dative: der.

im = in dem and can only be used with masculine or neuter nouns:

im Chat (masc.: der Chat → dem)
im Büro (neut.: das Büro → dem)

Because Videokonferenz is feminine, we cannot say im Videokonferenz; we must say in der Videokonferenz.

Why is the word order benutzen viele ihre Kamera nicht and not viele benutzen ihre Kamera nicht?

Both orders are grammatically correct, but they obey slightly different rules and nuances.

Verb-second rule
In a main clause, the finite verb must be in second position:
- In der Videokonferenz (position 1: a prepositional phrase)
- benutzen (position 2: the verb, as required)
- The rest (subject and other elements) come after: viele ihre Kamera nicht
Subject position is flexible
After the verb you can put the subject (viele) or other elements:
- In der Videokonferenz benutzen viele ihre Kamera nicht… (subject after the verb)
- In der Videokonferenz benutzen viele Leute ihre Kamera nicht… (same idea, with explicit noun)

If you move the prepositional phrase away from the first position, you could also say:

Viele benutzen in der Videokonferenz ihre Kamera nicht…

That version emphasizes viele a bit more. The original sentence slightly emphasizes the context (the videoconference) by putting it first.

What exactly is viele here? Is something “missing” after it?

Yes, viele here is used as a pronoun, and the noun it refers to is simply left out because it is clear from context.

You can think of it as standing for viele Leute (many people):

In der Videokonferenz benutzen viele (Leute) ihre Kamera nicht…

In German, quantity words like viele, einige, wenige, alle can often stand on their own as pronouns when the noun is obvious:

Viele kommen zu spät. – Many (people) arrive late.
Einige haben Fragen. – Some (people) have questions.

Why is it ihre Kamera and not seine Kamera or die Kamera?

ihre here is a possessive pronoun meaning their, referring back to viele (many people).

viele = they (a group of people)
ihre Kamera = their camera

Formally:

viele → 3rd person plural
Possessive stem for 3rd person plural: ihr-
The noun Kamera is feminine singular (die Kamera), in accusative case (direct object of benutzen)
Feminine accusative ending for possessives: -e

So: ihre + Kamera → ihre Kamera

seine Kamera would mean his camera (referring to a singular masculine subject like er).
die Kamera could work, but it would mean the camera without clearly showing whose camera it is. The sentence specifically stresses that people are not using their own cameras.

Why do we say ihre Kamera nicht and not kein(e) Kamera?

In German, you choose between nicht and kein depending on what you are negating.

kein(e) negates a noun (it works like “no” / “not any”):
- Ich habe keine Kamera. – I have no camera / I don’t have a camera.
nicht negates a verb, adjective, adverb, or a whole statement:
- Ich benutze die Kamera nicht. – I do not use the camera.

In this sentence, people do have a camera, but they do not use it. So we negate the verb usage, not the existence of the camera:

✅ benutzen … ihre Kamera nicht (they do not use their camera)
❌ benutzen … keine Kamera (would suggest: they use no camera at all / don’t have/choose any camera – different nuance)

Why is there a comma before aber?

aber is a coordinating conjunction (like und, oder, denn). It connects two main clauses:

In der Videokonferenz benutzen viele ihre Kamera nicht
aber alle schreiben aktiv im Chat

In German, when two main clauses are joined by aber, you must separate them with a comma:

…, aber …

So the comma is there because we are joining two full clauses with aber.

Why is it alle schreiben aktiv im Chat and not alle aktiv schreiben im Chat?

German word order for adverbs is more flexible than in English, but there are typical patterns.

In this sentence:

alle = subject
schreiben = verb
aktiv = adverb of manner (how?)
im Chat = prepositional phrase (where?)

The common, natural order is:

Subject
Verb
Manner (how?)
Place (where?)

→ Alle schreiben aktiv im Chat.

Other orders are possible, but sound less neutral or more marked:

Alle aktiv schreiben im Chat. – Unnatural; splits subject and verb and sounds wrong.
Alle schreiben im Chat aktiv. – Possible, but aktiv im Chat is the more usual flow.

Why is it aktiv and not aktive?

Here, aktiv is an adverb, modifying the verb schreiben (how they write: actively).

In German:

Adjectives before a noun are declined and take endings:
- ein aktiver Chat, eine aktive Teilnahme, aktive Nutzer
Adjectives used as adverbs (modifying verbs) do not take endings:
- Sie schreiben aktiv.
- Er arbeitet schnell.

Since aktiv modifies schreiben and not a noun, it remains aktiv, without an ending.

Why is it im Chat and not in den Chat?

Again, this is about dative vs accusative with in.

im Chat = in dem Chat (dative, masculine)
- describes a location: where they are writing → in the chat (area/channel)
in den Chat (accusative)
- would describe a direction / movement: into the chat
- e.g. Sie gehen in den Chat. – They go into the chat.

In alle schreiben aktiv im Chat, we are describing where they are writing, not where they are moving. So we use dative: im (in dem) Chat.

Why is Videokonferenz and Chat capitalized?

In German, all nouns are capitalized, regardless of whether they are common or proper nouns.

die Videokonferenz – noun → capitalized
der Chat – noun → capitalized

Even abstract nouns and gerund-like forms are capitalized:

die Freiheit (freedom)
das Schreiben (writing, as a noun)

Could we also say aber jeder schreibt aktiv im Chat instead of aber alle schreiben aktiv im Chat? What’s the difference?

Both are grammatical, but there is a nuance.

alle schreiben – focuses on the group as a whole:
- everyone (all people in that group) is writing.
jeder schreibt – focuses more on each individual:
- each individual person (one by one) writes.

In many contexts they are close in meaning, but:

alle is grammatically plural (alle schreiben).
jeder is grammatically singular (jeder schreibt).

In this sentence, alle schreiben aktiv im Chat nicely parallels viele benutzen ihre Kamera nicht (both use plural verb forms), so it feels stylistically balanced.

Is there a difference between benutzen, verwenden, and nutzen here?

All three can relate to “using” something, but there are tendencies:

benutzen – very common, neutral “to use” a concrete object:
- die Kamera benutzen – use the camera
verwenden – also “to use”, sometimes a bit more formal or technical:
- eine Methode verwenden, einen Ausdruck verwenden
nutzen – often “to make use of / to benefit from”:
- ein Angebot nutzen – take advantage of an offer
- die Gelegenheit nutzen – use the opportunity

In the context of a videoconference, die Kamera benutzen is the most natural everyday choice.
die Kamera verwenden is possible but sounds a bit more formal or technical.
die Kamera nutzen is also heard, especially in tech or marketing language, but benutzen is the default.