NOTE FOR EDITOR: Screencasts

Abstract

Well-known for some years to advanced technology users, Screen Capture Software (SCS) offers the promise of recording action on the computer desktop (right down to the mouse movement and mouse clicks) together with voiceover narration, all combined into a single movie file that can be shared, emailed, or uploaded. Educause (2006) defines screencasts as the “screen capture of the actions on a user’s computer screen, typically (http://net.educause.edu/ir/library/pdf/ELI7012.pdf) with accompanying audio, distributed through RSS. SCS burst forth on the scene in the mid 2000s with prominent names like TechSmith’s Camtasia ($299) and Adobe’s Captivate ($799). These full-featured programs include every editing, mixing, and re-mastering function imaginable, and are very user-friendly. The more recent years have seen much lower-cost alternatives such as SnagIt ($49), FullShot ($49), and !Quick Screen Recorder ($29), as well as a dozen others, all of which bundle fewer services in exchange for the lower price. While maintaining the user-friendly functionality, they often restrict file output to only one or two file types, and offer minimal editing tools, or sometimes none at all.