Screencast

I’ve often had experiences where I have tried to give directions to another person on how to do something on the computer, or search for something online without being face to face. Sometimes it can be very difficult to direct a person by only using words and not being physically able to show them. A screencast can now help you with this process. A screencast is a digital recording of a computer screen while allowing you to narrate.  It is often used to create tutorials or to show work. Take a look at the two screencasts I experienced with below: Screencast-o-Matic and Screenr. 

Screencast-o-Matic

http://www.screencast-o-matic.com/

For you visual learners, Screencast-o-Matic offers an online video tutorial explaining how to create a screencast and the features it has to offer. The great thing about Screencast-o-Matic is that you can instantly record a video without having to create an account. All you have to do is press the start recording button. I had trouble at the beginning because I didn't have Java installed on my computer. It will not work without it. This screencast was fairly easy to use. You can adjust your microphone and screen size to your liking. It gives you a countdown before recording. Once you have finished it allows you to save your video through your Screencast-o-Matic account if you created one, YouTube and your computer. 

Screenr

http://www.screenr.com/

Screenr is another screencast very similar to Screencast-o-Matic. Using Screenr was easy to use once I got over some technical difficulties. Just as Screencast-o-Matic, use must have Java software downloaded on your computer. Considering I already had downloaded Java using the previous Screencast, it was saying it could not be found and that Java needed to be downloaded. I downloaded Java a second time and then I was told that my security system was blocking it from being used. I had to search on the site for help. Many users have had the same problem. My problem was solved by setting the security system to medium instead of high on my Java setting. Next, I was ready to use Screenr. It has all the same features as Screencast-o-Matic. The major difference is, you must set up an account to share your videos. You can sign in using your Twitter, Facebook, Yahoo and Google account. Creating an account is absolutely free. 

Both websites serve the purpose of creating a Screencast but I personally like Screen-o-Matic better. First, I spent less time recording a video using Screen-o-Matic. Screenr gave me a headache by the time I was done going through security issues. Second, you don’t have to set up an account. You can start recording right away. Last, Screen-o-Matic allows you to record longer footage.