SkillCasting

I really do believe screencasting is so much more than just software tutorials. This entry into TechSmith’s ScreenChamp contest is targeted for the “Industry” category and specifically the screencasting industry!

I don’t expect to win because it’s not a “traditional” screencast of my monitor. However, I hope to inspire other screencasters to think beyond software tutorials. I also hope developers like TechSmith and Telestream think bigger too. Screencasting tools can do so much more because they empower all of us to communicate more effectively. Now it’s up to us to apply it.

Transcript follows:

Screencasting is a new form of communications. It’s not just for software tutorials. It’s about crafting our physical & digital worlds into clear, succinct, visual messages.

As much as the Gutenberg Press helped spread religion across the world, screencasting empowers each of us to reach, teach, and inspire. It enables us to share our knowledge, anytime, anywhere, to anyone. Subject matter experts are everywhere. Today, we’re all knowledge workers. Screencasting is about sharing today’s tribal knowledge in a digital world.

We’re all familiar with how traditional screencasting tools allow us to record our computer monitors. Now tools like Coach’s Eye enables us to provide real-time performance critiques, along with mark-ups, on our smartphone video. ScreenChomp turns our tablets into narrated, shareable, whiteboards. Mobile devices are ubiquitous and the norm for communicating but they’re truly the future for learning and performance support.

Developers, I’m begging you, give us even more. Help us turn our mobile devices into real-time, on location authoring tools so we can create rapid, relevant solutions!

We’ve seen how Google can tell an emotional story with a screencast. Kahn Academy is teaching children worldwide with simple, yet effective, screencasts. As Sir Ken Robinson talks about it in his landmark TED Talk, I’m asking, in what other creative ways can we apply screencasting?

How can we retrain our workforce and put America back to work? How can we provide more healthcare education? How can we teach remote villages to be self-sustainable and grow more food? Or drill for fresh water? Or even overthrow oppressive governments? How can we reach, teach, and inspire our future generations?

Screencasting is a new form of communications not because it creates a software tutorial but because it empowers each one of us to create a message that can make a difference.

Note: This post originally appeared on MacScreencasting at http://www.macscreencasting.com/camtasia-table-of-contents on 10.20.2010. Due to recent hacking activity, I’m consolidating my sites and moving the MacScreencasting posts into SkillCasting. I’ll then be shutting down MacScreencasting.

TechSmith has introduced a great new feature to Camtasia:Mac version 1.2. It’s a table of contents feature that makes it super easy to navigate to various points in your video. If you create longer screencasts, this tool is invaluable.

[View iPhone version]

This feature is great for longer tutorials or e-learning. You could also record Skype or Google Talk interviews and add markers for each question. This way your listeners can jump right to the question. And I really like the way the table of contents appears when you mouse over the video and disappears when you mouse off of it. Oh, and did I mention the search feature?

The only downside I see to the tool is that the output has to be Flash. In other words, it won’t work with iPhone or iPad video playback. Now I know for some, that’s not a big deal, but for those of us who create content primarily for a mobile audience, it really doesn’t help us that much. I’m playing with a few different options for that though. Look for a new post on that soon.

In the meantime, Camtasia:Mac has upped it’s game with this release.

Note: This post originally appeared on MacScreencasting at http://www.macscreencasting.com/using-multiple-cameras-in-your-screencasts on 8.27.2010. Due to recent hacking activity, I’m consolidating my sites and moving the MacScreencasting posts into SkillCasting. I’ll then be shutting down MacScreencasting.

Earlier this week I did a video over at SkillCasting.com about using video for your job search. It was about creating videos to share your knowledge and to position yourself as an expert while you’re looking for a job. It was part video and part screencast. What’s key is that I used 2 cameras to shoot it and only ScreenFlow to edit it.

When I saw Lynn Elliot’s post over at the ScreenFlow blog, I thought this might make a good tutorial. And if nothing else, perhaps it’ll plant some ideas as we take screencasting to the next level.

[View iPhone version]

I think incorporating two (or more) cameras into a single screencast keeps it interesting. What do you think? Let me know in the comments.

Note: This post originally appeared at http://www.macscreencasting.com/screencasting-a-new-form-of-communications on 6.21.2010. Due to recent WordPress hacks, I’m consolidating my sites and I’ll be moving the MacScreencasting posts over to SkillCasting. Then I’ll shut down MacScreencasting.

When most people thinking of screencasting, they think of computer tutorials. They think of all the software how-to’s out there. And let’s face it, screencasting is a perfect application for these tutorials. However, screencasting can be used for so much more. In this two part series, I’ll share ideas on how individuals and businesses can get the most from this new communication tool.

Part 1: Screencasting for Individuals

Let’s explore the personal uses of screencasting including:

•    Concept Workers
•    Personal Branding
•    Reinventing Ourselves
•    Productizing Your Knowledge

[View iPhone version for Individuals]

Part 2: Screencasting for Businesses

Let’s explore the business uses of screencasting:

•    External communications for Care
•    Branded e-Learning
•    Internal executive presentations
•    Tribal knowledge
•    Training

[View iPhone version for Businesses]

Note: This post originally appeared at http://www.macscreencasting.com/audio-and-microphone-comparison-for-screencasting on 6.21.2010. Due to recent WordPress hacks, I’m consolidating my sites and I’ll be moving the MacScreencasting posts over to SkillCasting. Then I’ll shut down MacScreencasting.

The quality of your audio is an important consideration for your screencasts. In fact, poor audio can ruin an otherwise great screencast. But which microphone is best?

This tutorial compares 5 different microphones so you can hear the difference between them. Now these preferences may be subjective. The different microphones compared are:
•    The built-in Mac microphone
•    Andrea NC-61 USB headset microphone
•    Audio-Technica lapel microphone
•    Samson CO3U desktop USB microphone
•    Griffin SmartTalk iPhone microphone

These range from free to about $120. Which one do you prefer?

[View iPhone version]

The new version of  ScreenFlow was just released this week. It’s a great update to an already great product. There are several new things being introduced with this version and I’ve made a couple of quick videos to show them to you.

I’m also starting ScreenFlow Training as a new online training service. I’ll be offering GoToTraining classes to teach the basics of screencasting, ScreenFlow, and online video. Definitely check out the upcoming classes. And don’t forget, I’m putting the finishing touches on a new online ScreenFlow video tutorial series. If there are specific classes you’d like to see, contact me or leave a comment below to let me know what you’re looking for.

Working with Tracks

ScreenFlow 3.0 makes working with tracks easier. A lot of you know that I use ScreenFlow quite a bit for editing videos. It’s now easier to work with tracks in ScreenFlow 3.0. In this video, I’ll show you 2 new ways you can work with tracks.

Splitting Tracks

ScreenFlow has introduced a new way to split tracks and even remove gaps between tracks. I’ve always liked using the “w” and “e” keys to trim track ends but sometimes find the need to split a clip. Here’s how it’s done in ScreenFlow 3.0.

Privacy Blur

This one is huge for corporate work or anytime you need to obscure part of the screen. In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s not the most requested feature. ScreenFlow 3.0 now allows you to “blur” part of the screen so you can hide password information or client data. It’s a huge addition!

Annotations

If you’ve ever needed to callout information on the screen, you’ll love Annotations. Now you can draw arrows, circles, and boxes over your screencast.

Okay, there’s 4 quick tips but there’s one more. I’m going to redo the video for it though because it’s hard to notice the effect in my original screencast. The additional feature is the ability to remove background noise from a recording. If you work in a noisy area, like around fans or ventilation, you’ll love this new feature. Look for this one soon.

And don’t forget about the upcoming ScreenFlow classes. Or, let me know what you’re looking for below!

Note: This post originally appeared at http://www.macscreencasting.com/greenscreen-video-in-screencasts on 6.21.2010. Due to recent WordPress hacks, I’m consolidating my sites and I’ll be moving the MacScreencasting posts over to SkillCasting. Then I’ll shut down MacScreencasting.

A lot of people incorporate picture-in-picture video into the screencasts. But did you know you can incorporate even more dynamic green screen (chromakey) video into your screencasts? And did you know you could use iMovie ’09 to do it?

This video shows you a 5-step process utilizing iMovie ’09. But while it’s easy, don’t kid yourself. It takes planning to get everything working together. Watch how.

[View iPhone version]

Note: This post originally appeared at http://www.macscreencasting.com/using-transparent-png-files-in-screencasts on 6.21.2010. Due to recent WordPress hacks, I’m consolidating my sites and I’ll be moving the MacScreencasting posts over to SkillCasting. Then I’ll shut down MacScreencasting.

Using transparent PNG files is a great way to make call outs or watermarks for your screencast videos. It’s a pretty common question that comes up all the times on screencasting boards and Twitter.

Use this technique if you want to add creativity to your screencasts. It’s perfect for call out’s and visual reminders. It’s also a great solution for adding a watermark for protection or branding.

This screencast shows how easy it is to add a transparent png file to your project.

[View iPhone version]

I’ve had several people ask me which tools I use to create my transparent .pngs. I use Pixelmator and you can find it in Apple’s App Store.

Note: This post originally appeared at http://www.macscreencasting.com/jing-introduction-with-screencast-com on 6.21.2010. Due to recent WordPress hacks, I’m consolidating my sites and I’ll be moving the MacScreencasting posts over to SkillCasting. Then I’ll shut down MacScreencasting.

There are just a handful of tools in my tool bag that I swear by. Jing is one of them.

Jing allows you to capture screen images and quick, down & dirty, screencasts on your computer. Jing is from TechSmith, the makers of SnagIt and Camtasia. There is a free version and a Pro version that enables MP4 video capture, YouTube uploads, and Webcam capture. What really sets Jing apart though is it’s tight integration with Screencast.com for hosting. This makes sharing your screen captures and screencasts, super easy.

This video introduces you to Jing. I share 5 simple ideas for using Jing, show you how to use it, and provide 5 best practices for recording a screencast with Jing.

I think you’ll find Jing to be a worthy addition to your tool bag.

[View iPhone version]

As an update, even a year later, I swear by Jing. It’s just one of those utilities that works. If you need to create a quick screencast without all the production values, Jing works great. I definitely recommend the Pro upgrade for $14.95 so you can create a MP4 version.

Note: This post originally appeared at http://www.macscreencasting.com/screencast-development-process-for-localization on 6.21.2010. Due to recent WordPress hacks, I’m consolidating my sites and I’ll be moving the MacScreencasting posts over to SkillCasting. Then I’ll shut down MacScreencasting.

Creating a few one-off screencasts is no big deal. But what happens when you have a hundred to create? At that point, you better have a process.

Here is a 5-step screencast development process. This will enable you to consistently produce screencasts in an efficient manner. An added benefit is the ability to localize, or customize your screencast for different markets. When you follow a consistent methodology, it’s easier to re-purpose and re-use your content. It’s also easier to swap out elements.

For example, if you need to create English and Spanish versions of your screencasts, it’s easy to swap out the title slides and audio track if developed in a modular fashion.

The video below shows you one process I’ve employed.

[View iPhone version]

If you have questions on how to mass produce screencasts, even remote creation of screencasts, contact me. I maybe able to help.