Video screen capture @ the MIT Libraries
Presented by Angie Locknar locknar@mit.edu and Darcy Duke darcy@mit.edu of the MIT Libraries
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Angie
Camtasia Studio 5.1:
- Produced by TechSmith, just like SnagIt
- Plug-in for PowerPoint, easy to convert to video
- Records screen as is, seamless
- Easy to add layers, pop-ups
- More control over how it looks when produced, type of output files
- Version for Mac being investigated
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- Navigating the MIT Libraries System (4:40) - Capturing a PowerPoint presentation
- Knovel (2:49) - Capturing web pages
Captivate 3:
- Produced by Adobe
- Records snapshots of screens, not as seamless. There is a seamless option, but this makes it hard to add pop-ups or other layers
- Good for in-depth editing of audio
- Able to insert flash files in the video
- Supported on campus, IS&T offers classes - June 2008
- Hard to sync voice and pop-ups
Example of a video using Captivate:
- Using and Creating Citations (4:15)
- The Publication Cycle (5:00)
Other tools:
Free Tools:
What are we using it for?
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- MIT Libraries Video Tutorials
- Quick how tos (Off-Campus: Quick access to Articles) (1:28)
- Also targeted for classes
- 3.091:Introduction to Solid State Chemistry - short videos of resources needed to complete homework assignments
- 2.75: Precision Machine Design - captured a session while it was taught
Darcy
Staffing/Training
- technology was implemented and has been supported almost completely by non-IT staff
- using the software does not require extensive technical expertise, but some degree of savvy is helpful (otherwise more central support is necessary)
- limited number of staff have been given the software and trained to use it
- all involved staff received 1.5 hours of group training in the software; we also have monthly drop-in sessions where people can ask for help or ask questions
- a part-time person was hired - it was very helpful to have someone dedicated to this project to create a seed the project with initial videos to seed the project.
- to ensure a consistent look and feel we created the MIT Libraries Video Tutorials Guidelines
- ongoing coordination of technical support resides with me (as a part-time assistant to our web manager); a separate group is responsible for content
Statistics
We use Google Analytics to gather statistics on the use of our videos:
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- Who are they? MIT or not, grads or undergrads, etc. Also, are they library staff? There is a way to exclude internal traffic.
- Qualitative data? Do they like short videos or long ones? Our stats imply both. To get qualitative data we linked at the end of our videos to a survey.
Managing the files
- Camtasia can produce videos in many formats, including Flash and QuickTime. We were advised to produce Flash videos as the most ubiquitous platform.
- Flash files are fairly large: 1.5 minute video = 2.5MB, 10 minute video = 10MB
- We store all the files in a central location, which helps manage the special issues these files can have and to help gather use statistics.
- We also centrally store all the production files so they are available if we need to edit the videos.
TechTV
We are also putting our videos into MIT's TechTV
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- getting our videos in MIT space (rather than libraries space), integrated with other videos of interest to the MIT community
- automatic stats collection
- ability for users to comment
- easy to create Creative Commons licenses
- can add metadata to the files that helps with Google indexing
- simple user interface to upload videos
- can upload multiple formats of the video to the same page
- provides code for embedding videos on other web sites (both inline and pop-ups)
- very helpful and eager support from TechTV staff
Costs
Camtasia licenses:
We purchased Camtasia Camtasia4 licenses though GovConnection in a bulk purchase for ~$150/each. Our latest upgrade to v.5 cost ~$85/each. Captivate was just slightly more when we purchased it over a year agoCaptivate3 licenses are now ~$105.
Headsets:
We bought low-end headsets with built in mics for $10-20 which were sufficient. Some staff had intermittent problems with USB headsets, we ended up recommending those with direct audio/headset plugs.
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