Friday, June 26, 2015

Screencasts

 
 
 
Let's just say that making screencasts is my new favorite thing.  I thought it would be hard to do.  But, news flash, it was easy!  I like easy.  I used Screencast-O-Matic to show my patrons how to log into their library account to see what books they had checked out and how to place a book on hold.  After I made the screencast, I saved it as a video.  Then I uploaded it to my YouTube and added it to my library home page.   This is one technology thing I know I will share with teachers in the fall.
 





 
 
 
The second screencast I made showed my patrons how to put books on shelves in Destiny Quest and how to recommend a book to a friend.  There are more features of Destiny Quest to share, but I thought I would just present them in smaller chunks. 
 
 
 



 
 
So, I mentioned that making a screencast is easy and it is.  But getting some screencast programs to work is not so easy for me.  I tried using Screenr but was having issues with Java.  Evidently I have to change something in the security settings of Java.  I thought I did what the help box told me to do, but I was still unable to launch Screenr.  I thought I was getting so smart and learning all of the techy things.  It looks like I still have more to learn. 
 
 
I downloaded Jing, but I kept getting a message error about it having compatibility issues, and the program would not run.  Did I mention that I am not that techy??  I really have no idea where to begin to get help on that one. 
 
 
I did try both Screencast-O-Matic and Screenr websites at my school.  For some reason, the Screencast-O-Matic site was blocked.  I also tried to use Screenr on the school computer but had the same Java issue.  I put a tech request in for HELP and the tech guy said it's an easy fix.  I must not be high on the priority list because he has not been by to fix it yet.  I am sure he will have it fixed by August and I will be rocking and rolling with the screencasts!
 
 
So, with all that being said, I guess it looks like Screencast-O-Matic is the hands down favorite screencast creator for me.  


3 comments:

  1. I also liked screencast-o-matic. I've used it before and I'm very familiar with it. You have to try Jing. I loved the experienced. I also couldn't upload Java when I tried to use Screenr and that's when I experienced using Jing. I think you uploaded the same Jig app I used the first time and it didn't work so I kept searching on line until I found the correct Jing program. I like the way you explained to shelve books on Destiny.

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    Replies
    1. Thanks for the info. The Jing program I tried to download was by TechSmith. I'll keep looking!

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  2. Your screencast was vey good and informative! I hope you share it with your students and colleagues! You are correct: Jing is distributed through TechSmith. https://www.techsmith.com/jing.html Try it!

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