I have coveted Camtasia ever since I downloaded it as a 30-day trial several years ago, but couldn’t justify the cost. Last week, I discovered Jing. My goal was to find screencasting software for demos on how to access databases from a portal site. First I tried using my trusty copy of SnagIt, which gave me nice looking, but uneditable, output. Next, I looked at Windows Movie Maker, but it has only basic editing tools.
Then, I discovered that TechSmith’s Jing screen capture and screencast software is available for the PC and is free. Not only that, TechSmith provides access to Screencast.com, where Jing and other types of media files can be selectively shared, organized, or just plunked. I decided to give it a whirl.
Jing is awesome! With some practice, I think it would be possible to make excellent Jing screencasts. It’s simple to use and output looks great. I was happy with my practice video except that there’s no way to edit videos after they are recorded. That’s fine for casual use, for special purposes, and for people who can do something almost perfectly in one go. Unfortunately, I cannot.
The saga continues
For comparison, I downloaded the free Windows Media Encoder, but at my level of non-experience, it was not intuitive enough, and seems more suited to live presentations than screencasts. WME would be a good choice for someone with prior media experience.
TechSmith makes both Jing and Camtasia, and promotes Camtasia as an editing tool for Jing videos. It would be nice if Jing contained even a few basic editing tools, but it doesn’t, so I decided to take the plunge and get Camtasia. Jing will still be useful for quickie screencasts or testing approaches to a complex project. Yes, there is a "Pro" version of Jing for about $15 per year, which allows one to remove the logo and save files as MPEG-4. Going "Pro" does not add editing features, so it’s not a complete solution for people who want to edit their videos.
Another free alternative for those who are not ready to buy software is CamStudio, a highly-regarded open source program that can produce SWF files. I was spoiled by my previous trial of Camtasia, with its zoom capability and robust editing tools, so there was no going back.
Now that I’ve played with Camtasia for several days, it’s getting easier to work with the timeline and other features. I have no regrets, and plan to spend some quality time with the software. So far, I’ve made two decent screencasts with Camtasia and shared them with a couple of people on Screencast.com. As an experiment, I uploaded one to YouTube for private viewing, but the quality of the video was noticeably degraded by the process. YouTube sends out an e-mail to first-time uploaders with helpful information and support links, including one about optimizing video uploads. Camtasia has built-in settings for producing a YouTube file, so the result could have been even worse. I finally understand why most of the videos on YouTube look blurry.
Get your own copy of Jing
Download the free Jing software for Windows or Mac from TechSmith’s Jing project site. It’s simple to install and use. You can capture a screen or make a video up to 5 minutes long and save it as a SWF (Flash) file. If you like it, there is a Pro version, which has the following features:
- SWF or MPEG-4 Video
- Unbranded videos
- Share instantly on YouTube
- Record from webcam
There are several excellent tutorials on the Jing site, and an introductory video included with the program download. Jing installs a small expandable "Sun" menu at the top of your screen. It’s handy, but if you want to get rid of it, click the "More" button (on the right), then the "Exit" button, which looks like a standard "power" button, or right-click the Jing icon in the Windows desktop "tray" and select "Exit".
Choosing screencasting software was a failed quest for desired features at low cost. The tools I most wanted were found together only in Camtasia. Nevertheless, there are some excellent free programs that do fewer things very well, and are definitely worth consideration
If you have a PC, you may want to try Pixetell, the emerging product made by Ontier in Portland OR. There’s a free 21-day trial you can download from the web site. Costs less than Camtasia and very easy to use. Plenty of editing options for most needs. We would appreciate your feedback if you decide to try it.
As noted, I went with Camtasia, and like it very much. Nevertheless, it’s good that people learn about their options and try things out. Pixetell might be just what someone is looking for.