Nebraska Learns 2.0: Thing #33: Screencasting

If a picture is worth a thousand words, then a moving picture with audio is...priceless! And that's what you get with a screencast!

Screencasting lets you create a video recording of exactly what is happening on your computer screen. It shows not only where you are clicking with your mouse, but also what happens when you click: Does a drop-down menu appear? Does a new window open? Is your cursor positioned in a text box so you can begin inputting text? If you have a microphone, most screencasting software also allows you to record audio along with your video so you can describe what you are doing on the computer screen as you do it.

So what do you do with the screencast once you've recorded it? You share it, of course, by embedding it in a blog or web page, or by sending out a link to it via email, Twitter, or IM. In some cases you can upload your finished product to YouTube or blipTV!

As I'm sure you can imagine, screencasting has many applications in libraries. First and foremost, it's a quick and easy way to create short online tutorials demonstrating how to search a database, navigate a web site, or perform a task using a particular piece of software. Your target audience could be patrons or staff!

Screencasts can also be used for on-the-fly technical support. How often have you found yourself on the phone with a patron (or your mother!) trying to describe the sequence of steps they need to take to accomplish a particular computer task -- which button to click on, where on the screen to look for it, what they should see after they click it, etc. Wouldn't it be nice to be able to create an on-the-fly screencast of yourself going through the steps so you can send it to them?

Or how about when you are on the receiving end of tech support? The guy on the other end of the phone insists that if you do A, B, and C, then D should happen, and you can tell he doesn't believe you when you tell him it doesn't. Again, wouldn't it be nice to be able to send him a screencast proving that you really are doing A, B, and C, but D isn't happening?

Here are a few examples of librarian-created screencasts to get your creative juices flowing:

Navigating the Library Website -- From the University of Oklahoma Library

Video Help with InfoSoup Screencasts -- Video demos on using OWLSnet's InfoSoup online catalog (OWLSnet is a consortium of public libraries in northeast Wisconsin)

Nashville Public Library Tutorial Screencasts -- Covering a range of topics, from using the online catalog to printing in the library.

Copying and pasting a blog post permalink -- Remember this screencast? Michael created it using Screencast-o-Matic during the first Nebraska Learns 2.0 program, when we realized people were having trouble understanding what we meant by "Whenever you finish a Thing, leave a comment on that Thing's post that includes the permalink of your blog post that was created for that Thing."

Fiction Connection: Finding books that are similar to books you've already read and liked -- I created this tutorial a couple years ago using Adobe Captivate. It pains me to listen to it now (it seems so slow and methodical) but it showcases some of the bells and whistles of a higher end commercial product.

If you cast about on the web it's not hard to reel in a long list of screencasting tools (e.g. Whopper List of Every Screencasting Tool on the Planet). Two of the most frequently mentioned commercial products are Camtasia Studio and Adobe Captivate. Both are feature rich but pricey.

Don't worry though. If you are new to screencasting and just want to test the waters, there are also plenty of free products from which to choose (see Free Screencasting Tools: Guide To The Best Tools To Record Your Screen for a sampling.)

Assignment

1. Rather than setting you loose with a long list of possibilities, your assignment for Thing #33 is to check out at least one of the following three free screencasting tools:

ScreenToaster (online) -- This screencasting tool requires no download, and it is compatible with Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux. ScreenToaster is free and you can try it without an account, but registration is required if you want to publish your video. Videos can be published to ScreenToaster.com or YouTube.com. They can also be embedded on a blog or web site or shared via email or a service like Twitter or Facebook. Audio is supported if you have a microphone.

View the ScreenToaster Demo for a quick overview of how the service works or refer to the FAQ for more detailed help. I tried out ScreenToaster by creating a short video demonstrating the Nebraska Library Commission's new Grant Recipient Database.

Screencast-o-Matic (online) -- Screencast-o-Matic is another free service that doesn't require a download. You can create a video of up to 15 minutes in length, which you can upload to Screencast-o-Matic (you'll be prompted to create a free account). Once it's uploaded to Screencast-o-Matic you will be presented with a URL you can use to refer people to your video, as well as coding that you can use to embed the video in a blog or web page. Other options include uploading your video to YouTube (maximum length of 10 minutes) or exporting it as a Quicktime (MP4), Windows Media Player (AVI), or Flash (FLV) file.

To learn how to use Screencast-o-Matic, view How to create a screencast v2.0 on Screencast-o-Matic's youTube channel. (It's also embedded on the Screencast-o-Matic home page.) I tried out Screencast-o-Matic by creating a short video demonstrating how to use the Wilson OmniFile Journal Directory.)

Jing (download required) -- A free account allows you to capture videos, with accompanying audio, in SWF format. Videos can be uploaded to Screencast.com, TechSmith's content hosting site, saved to your computer, or shared via Twitter. Videos can be up to 5 minutes in length. Jing can also be used to capture and annotate static images. Because they are all TechSmith products, Jing integrates easily with Snagit and Camtasia Studio if you want additional editing capabilities.

To learn how to use Jing go to the Jing Help Center where you can watch a video, or download the PDF Getting Started Guide. Or, if you like the irony of learning how to use one screencasting service via a video created using a different screencasting service, view a Jing tutorial created using ScreenToaster! I tried out Jing by creating a short video describing how to find juvenile fiction books on World War II through WorldCat.

2. After familiarizing yourself with one of the above tools, create a brief screencast and either embed it in your blog or point to it from your blog. It doesn't have to be long or formal -- just record yourself navigating a web site, performing a search, using a favorite tool, or something similar. If you can track down a microphone, try to include some audio.

3. Write about your experience in your blog. Which tool did you choose? Was it easy or hard to figure out? Can you see work applications for screencasting? Personal applications?

Sources of Additional Information on Screencasting: