The Search for MAC’s Camtasia Equivalent

Using screen-recording software has been a godsend to me over the years. As an instructional designer, who spends a lot of time creating technology tutorials and other online learning materials, it’s great to be able to record my on-screen activities, my voice, and even webcam video to create dynamic web-based video presentations. (It sure beats explaining everything with text and screenshots.) Camtasia Studio has been my product of choice for creating screen-capture videos since 2003. My college may soon become a MAC institution, though, so I am currently attempting to find a Camtasia equivalent for the MAC. (Unfortunately, Camtasia Studio is only compatible with PCs.)

My discussion below will start with an overview of how I use Camtasia and what features have been most beneficial in my work. I’ll then provide some resources and commentary related to some applications that may serve as counterparts for the MAC.

Camtasia
Most of my Camtasia projects have been focused on teaching people how to use software tools like Moodle, WebCT, Elluminate, and (yes) even Camtasia itself. Here are a few examples of projects I’ve created in recent years using Camtasia 4.0:

Camtasia Fast-Track Training
Using Windows Movie Maker and a Webcam to Create a Video
E-Learning System: Grading

As evidenced by these examples, my own preference when using Camtasia is to capture a portion of my computer screen that is 640 x 480 pixels (or in some cases 720 x 480 pixels). I then make edits and changes to my video and use the Flash export option to create a web page with an embedded video presentation. I prefer the Flash (.swf) format because of the excellent visual quality, the small file size, and the fact that 99% of Internet-enabled desktops in mature markets already have Flash Player installed. (See “Flash Player Penetration” for more details.) In many cases, I’ll also use Camtasia Theater (a sister program included with Camtasia Studio) to combine a variety of screen-based recordings into a single project and include a left-hand navigation bar to give users easy access to portions of the presentation.

Another one of my typical uses of Camtasia is to convert a narrated PowerPoint presentation into a Flash-based video for online delivery. For example, our college often calls upon experts from around the world to be one-time presenters. Rather than have these presenters learn Camtasia, it’s usually easier to have them record narrated PowerPoint presentations and then deliver their work via FTP or CD. Once I receive a narrated PowerPoint file, I use Camtasia to record the presentation and convert it to the Flash format for online delivery. Here is one such example:

Medication Therapy in the Management of Hyperlipidemia

One of the most powerful features of Camtasia (especially when it comes to these types of lengthy presentations) is its ability to automatically break up a large video into a series of smaller files. Once you record a PowerPoint presentation, Camtasia dumps the recording onto a timeline and creates a “marker” where each slide transition takes place. Marker names are based on the slide titles from the PowerPoint presentation itself. When exporting the presentation to the Flash format, Camtasia gives you the option to add a table of contents by creating “multiple files based on my markers.” The beauty of this option is that it not only creates a navigation bar based on the markers, but it also makes the online playback of the presentation much more manageable. Rather than dealing with one extremely large file, the end user ends up watching several small files that play in succession. The other hurdle that this option helps to overcome is the fact that SWF files have a limit of 16,000 frames. For example, a Flash movie rendered at 10 frames per second would reach its limit at a little over 26 minutes. (This would be a problem if the presentation were 60 minutes.) Breaking up the project based on the markers within the presentation provides greater flexibility in terms of producing the final Flash-based video.

ScreenFlick
The first piece of software I investigated as a possible Camtasia equivalent for the MAC was ScreenFlick. While this software is very intuitive and produces nice-looking screen-capture videos, it falls short of my needs in a few areas.

When I first launched ScreenFlick, I was encouraged by how easy it was to set up my screen recording. I was able to establish a recording area of 640 x 480 pixels on the screen and adjust the frame rate of the capture to 15 frames per second (the software actually allows a maximum capture rate of 60 frames per second). ScreenFlick also immediately recognized my USB headset microphone. From there, I clicked the large record button and was off and running.

However, once I completed my test recording, I discovered the shortcomings of the software. First, ScreenFlick does not let you edit your videos. Therefore, if you make any mistakes, you will need to start from scratch (or use another program for editing purposes). Second, while ScreenFlick does provide a variety of compression formats for both audio and video, ultimately you are only permitted to export to the QuickTime Movie format. It does not include the Flash format (or other formats like .avi or .wmv).

Overall, this software is rather limiting in terms of the types of projects you can produce. It is basically a product for recording screen-based presentations and creating QuickTime Movies. I think this software would be most appropriate in cases when you just need a simple screen-recording program to make a quick “flick” to demonstrate (for example) the steps for how to complete a computer-related task.

However, if I ever needed to make this type of quick screen recording on the fly, I would most likely use TechSmith’s Jing instead. Unlike the full-blown version of Camtasia Studio (also made by TechSmith), Jing is cross-platform and free. With Jing, the recording process is very easy and the program automatically converts your movie to the Flash (.swf) format. The real benefit to Jing, however, is how easy it is to share your work. Jing provides integrated controls for uploading your work to your own server or Screencast.com (TechSmith’s free hosting service). Once you upload your work, the URL of your video is automatically placed on your clipboard. This makes it very easy to paste the URL into an email, a text chat, a web page, etc. My only complaint with Jing is that the quality of the audio is not quite as clean as I would like. However, the software’s ease of use and powerful sharing features trump this very minor issue.

ScreenFlow
Winner of two 2008 Apple Design Awards (Best Mac OS X Leopard Application and Best Mac OS X Leopard Graphics and Media Application), ScreenFlow is much more on par with Camtasia Studio. With ScreenFlow, you can capture your computer screen, your voice, and webcam video. You can also edit your media on a timeline before exporting to a sharable format. The following tutorials/reviews provide more detailed information related to the features of this software:

ScreenFlow: Screencasting on Steroids
ScreenFlow, creating great looking screen casts

While this software is head and shoulders above ScreenFlick, I was still a bit disappointed by the absence of a few features that I really appreciate in Camtasia.

First, with ScreenFlow, you cannot establish a specific capture area at the beginning of your recording process. For example, when creating videos in Camtasia, I specify a recording area of 640 (or 720) x 480 pixels and indicate exactly where I want that recording area to exist on my screen. These screen dimensions assure that when I create my final exported product, the presentation will be viewable on any computer screen (even those set to 800 x 600 pixels). Furthermore, because I created a video with the exact dimensions I wanted from the start, this prevents me from having to shrink down the video and risk degrading the visual quality. With ScreenFlow, you are forced to record your entire computer screen as step one of the process. After you have captured the whole screen, you can then crop the video display to certain pixel dimensions and drag this window to a new location on the screen. The problem with establishing your preferred display dimensions after the fact is that the on-screen content you captured may not fit within this new window.

ScreenFlow’s audio editing tools are also a far cry from what Camtasia offers. For example, with Camtasia, I can use an “Audio Enhancement” menu to even out volume levels, remove background noise, and even filter out pops and clicks. ScreenFlow, on the other hand, only lets you make adjustments to volume.

Like ScreenFlick, ScreenFlow only allows you to export your projects as QuickTime Movies (there is no Flash option). My hesitation with using the QuickTime Movie format is that it cannot compete with Flash in terms of creating very small files with excellent visual quality. QuickTime Player is also only present on 65.5% of Internet-enabled desktops in mature markets. (See “Flash Player Penetration” for more details.)

ScreenFlow also does not have the ability to “create multiple files based on markers” like Camtasia. ScreenFlow does allow you to place markers on the timeline of your video. However, these markers only create a dropdown menu of “chapters” in QuickTime Player. Therefore, a lengthy PowerPoint presentation recorded with ScreenFlow would ultimately end up as one large QuickTime Movie file. Using chapters would allow the user to jump to various places within the video, but the large file size of such a video would likely make it difficult to open on some networks.

Based on the reviews and rewards it has received, ScreenFlow appears to be my best bet for doing screen-recording on a MAC. I can foresee myself using this software to capture my footage on a MAC. From there, I will likely need to convert the QuickTime Movies to a format that will work in Camtasia, so that I can then export to the preferred Flash format and include a left-hand navigation bar. My hope is that ScreenFlow will eventually add to its feature set to be more like Camtasia (or better than Camtasia).

Audacity and GarageBand: Audio Production Made Easy

As part of my department’s growing interest in podcasting as a means for delivering educational content, my dean, Dr. Bill Riffee, recently asked me to investigate both Audacity and GarageBand, two popular pieces of audio production software. Both of these programs provide a relatively easy way to create audio files that can, in turn, be used for podcasting purposes. NOTE: This article does not provide instructions on how to "podcast" but gives an overview of each tool's feature set as it relates to audio production.

Audacity
As far as free audio production tools go, Audacity is the best I’ve seen on the market. I listen to a lot of educational technology podcasts, and it’s often the case that people use Audacity to create their programs. The fact that Audacity works on both PCs and MACs and is very intuitive makes it extremely popular. The record and play buttons are very large, the timeline is easy to navigate, and the audio is easy to edit.

Audacity also includes a variety of more advanced features for users wanting to go beyond simple recording and production strategies. Audacity allows you to work with a seemingly limitless number of tracks. You can record sound with a microphone or import audio files, such as music or sound effects. Audacity also includes a variety of audio effects to increase production value (noise removal, normalization, equalizer, click removal, echo, bass boost, etc.).

The one aspect of Audacity that is a bit bothersome is that you cannot export to the MP3 format without first installing the LAME MP3 Encoder (“LAME” is the name of an organization by the way, not an adjective). It would be nice if you could just download/install Audacity and not have to worry about an additional plug-in to create MP3 files, which is the one thing most people want to do with Audacity. To avoid confusion or frustration, training materials related to Audacity would just need to include the steps for downloading/installing the LAME MP3 Encoder.

In terms of using Audacity on a MAC, I found that it worked great. I did struggle with some aspects of the installation, however. The process of installing the software on a MAC was different (and a little more confusing) than the process for installing it on a PC. I found that I needed to refer back the instructions on the Audacity download site a couple times just to get the software loaded onto the machine properly. I also had some trouble at first with getting Audacity to recognize my audio input source. Once I overcame these minor hurdles, though, I was off and running. These “issues” could be easily addressed in training materials.

Once I became oriented to the software, I was able to quickly produce my audio and export a quality MP3 file. Here is what I created.

Download audio (Right click --> "Save Target As")

The above example is a three-track production. The first track is me reading the first couple of paragraphs of Phil Kegler’s (2008) article, “Gator’s offense puts up ridiculous number in wins.” The second track is the UF Marching Band playing “The Orange and the Blue” (retrieved from FightMusic.com). The third track includes football sound effects that I downloaded from SoundSnap, which is a great resource for free music loops and sound effects.

Ultimately, I created this short project with a few simple steps. First I recorded my narration using a Logitech USB headset microphone. Then I added the music and sound effects on separate tracks. Next, I arranged the items on the timeline. Then I mixed the volume levels for the three tracks. Finally, I exported the project as a high quality MP3 file (320 kbps, stereo, 44 kHz).

Given that it’s free, intuitive, and rich in features, I would recommend Audacity to anyone wanting to create audio productions on a PC or MAC.

GarageBand
As part of Apple’s iLife Suite, GarageBand is an audio production tool that comes standard on MAC computers. Think of GarageBand as being like Audacity on steroids. Like Audacity, GarageBand lets you record sound with an external microphone, work with multiple tracks, add music and sound effects, edit/mix audio, and export projects to shareable formats (such as MP3). However, GarageBand gives users much more flexibility and many more options overall.

For example, GarageBand gives you a huge number of audio effects for enhancing a track. Once you record a track or add a pre-existing audio file to a track, you can easily assign preset audio effects such as Male Radio, Female Radio, Megaphone, Gospel Choir, Ambient Vocals, and so on (the list is extremely exhaustive). Within each of these preset effects, you can also make manual adjustments to achieve the exact sound you want.

GarageBand also comes pre-loaded with a variety of jingles and sound effects to enhance your audio production. Simply navigate through the dozens of choices, click a file to preview it, and then drag the file onto the timeline.

Mixing audio is a breeze as well. You can either adjust the volume of the track overall, make fine-tune adjustments to volume within a track, or use the "ducking feature." If a track is set to "duck," its volume will automatically decrease when a non-ducked track begins to play. For example, maybe you record your voice on one track and put music on another track. You want the music to play first, but then you want the volume of the music to decrease when the speaking section begins. By setting the music track to "duck," this will cause its volume to decrease automatically when the speaking section starts. This is a quick and easy way to create a dynamic mix without having to manually make adjustments to the volume within tracks.

One of the other neat things about GarageBand is that producing media for a podcast, in particular, is made very easy. When you launch GarageBand, one of the choices you are given is “Create a Podcast.” This takes you to a timeline that is preconfigured to create this type of production. For example, by default you are given four tracks: Male Voice, Female Voice, Jingles, and Podcast. This last track is for adding pictures, URLs, and chapter markers which would appear in an “enhanced podcast.”

Once I became oriented to the interface, I was able to create an “enhanced podcast” file, which includes audio and pictures, with ease. The fact that GarageBand points new users to online video tutorials also makes the learning this software very easy. Here is what I created. NOTE: You will need QuickTime Player to view this short clip.

Download File (Right click --> "Save Target As")

This production is comprised of four tracks. The first track is me reading a couple of paragraphs I threw together about the Phillies winning the World Series. The second track is one of the jingles that comes with GarageBand. The third track is a “crowd cheering” sound effect I found at SoundSnap. The final track includes pictures of the Phillies, the city of Philadelphia, and other Philly sports teams.

Producing this short project was very straightforward. I recorded my voice using a headset microphone. I navigated through the various jingle choices and dragged my favorite one onto the timeline. I added the “crowd cheering” sound effect to its own track and dragged it to the end of the timeline. Then I used the overall volume controls to achieve a good mix. Next I added the Male Radio effect to my voice and made some fine-tune adjustments to the bass and reverb to create a more booming sound. Then I added a series of pictures to the Podcast track, and finally I exported using the AAC encoder, which is necessary for producing enhanced podcasts. This ultimately produced a high quality M4A file.

GarageBand is a great piece of software, and my above comments are really only scratching the surface of what this program can do. For those using MACs and looking to be a bit more adventurous with their audio productions, I would definitely recommend investing some time to learn this software (especially for creating media for podcasts).

References

Kegler, P. (2008, October 28). Gators' offense puts up ridiculous numbers in wins. The Independent Florida Alligator, pp. 14-15.