kristin stanley assignment3
DESCRIPTION
EDIT 5395: Software EvaluationTRANSCRIPT
Evaluating Software: Screencast programs
Kristin StanleyEDIT 5395
General Informationand Type of License
Name: Kristin Stanley Institution: Angelo State University Department: Communication, Mass Media, and Theatre Software Programs Evaluated/Vendor:
Adobe CS4 Captivate/Adobe Camtasia Studio 6/TechSmith
Content Area: Communication Media Design and Development Education Level: Higher Education (sophomore)
Type of License: Site License for 20 faculty members of the department
Screencast Software
This presentation will review two Screencast programs: TechSmith Camtasia Studio
6Adobe Captivate 4
Adobe Captivate CS4 Features
Runs on both Windows and Mac platforms Captures high-quality video from the computer screen Record, Edit, Produce, and Share video Most common uses:
Creating demos for training Tutorials Quizzes and Testing and Presentations
Captivate System Requirements
Intel Pentium 4, Intel Centrino, or Intel Core Duo processor
Microsoft Windows XP with Service Pack 2 or Windows Vista Home Premium, Business, Ultimate, or Enterprise with Service Pack 1
512MB of RAM (1GB is recommended) 1.5GB hard-disk space and additional free space is
required during installation 800x600 screen resolution (1,024x768
recommended)
Adobe Captivate CS4
Pros ConsCompression: for smaller file sizes
Does not capture every move of the cursor or mouse - only captures the screen as your screen changes
Preset templates for presentations, tutorials, and quizzes and testing
Software taxes system resources
Functionality allowing user to create quizzes and testing
Not intuitive
Integrates seamlessly with other Adobe products
Expensive
Text to speech: script can be typed out – saving editing time (“ums”)
TechSmith Camtasia Studio 6 Features
Created for Microsoft Windows and TechSmith just released a version of Camtasia for Mac Captures high-quality video from the computer screen Record, Edit, Produce, and Share video Become your own producer! Most common uses:
Creating demos for training Tutorials and Presentations
Camtasia System Requirements
Microsoft Windows XP, Windows Vista, or Windows 7
Microsoft DirectX 9 or later version 1.0 GHz processor minimum (2.0GHz
recommended) 500 MB RAM minimum (2.0GB recommended) 115 MB of hard-disk space for program installation
Camtasia Studio 6
Pros ConsCompression: for smaller file sizes
Software taxes system resources during Production phase
Records all movement of mouse and cursor
Does not include some of the features/bells and whistles that Captivate does
Files can easily be exported to other formats - .swf, .flv, .avi, mpg3
Comprehensive user guide sent to your email upon loading trial version
Includes a Power Point Toolbar Add-On for easy recording and production
Evaluation of Captivate from a Colleague (pg. 38 question) The biggest thing with captivate which I really
like is the ability to create demos and trainers. So you can go through a software package or a procedure, say how you would compute mean, average, mode, standard deviation (basic stats) in excel and you can “walk” the student through via the demo and then you can turn the exact same demo into a trainer so the student has to “click” just like they were in the actual software program so they see how to do something, and then they are able to do it to facilitate learning.
Evaluation of Captivate from a Colleague continued on next slide
Evaluation of Captivate from a Colleague Cont. (pg. 38 question) Depending on the length of your movie (SWF) ,
they are sometimes very large and hard for students on slower connections to use. You really need a streaming server or something similar to adobe connect to stream your vides for students unless you know the student is on a high speed connection.
Justin Louder, MA (EDIT Doctoral Student)
Recommendation – Camtasia(recommendation to the CMMT department committee members)
Even though Adobe CS4 Captivate comes highly recommended from a colleague (former colleague from the nursing dept. – Justin is highly technically adept), I recommend Camtasia Studio 6.
I had difficulty downloading the free trial version of Captivate. The Captivate options were overwhelming and not intuitive. As many of you have stated in surveys, you are not comfortable with technology. I surmise that Captivate would be perceived as too complex; therefore, having a greater learning curve that with Camtasia.
I predict Captivate would not be utilized by our department or utilized well.
Recommendation continued on next slide
Recommendation – Camtasia Cont.(recommendation to the CMMT department committee members)
CMMT is Camtasia is
on a tight budget less expensive
uncomfortable using technology
easy to use and very intuitive
in need of a program primarily to create tutorials and presentations
software that easily allows the user to record and produce tutorials and presentations
in search of an alternative to Adobe Captivate
the less expensive, comparable alternative to captivate
Software Recommendation TechSmith’s Camtasia Studio 6
Sources Referenced Adobe Product Website. Retrieved Feb. 11th,
2010 http://www.adobe.com/products/captivate/?promoid=DJDVX
Is there any alternative to Captivate? Retrieved Feb 10th, 2010. http://www.flashvideorecorder.com/captivate.html
Louder, J. (2010, February 11th). Email interview.
TechSmith Product Website. Data Retrieved Feb. 11th, 2010. http://www.techsmith.com/camtasia.asp