Screencast
Jing: TechSmith Screencast
I went to the link provided for us on blackboard. I
took a look at the preview and I thought… Wow, amazing. The site provided did ask if I wanted a free
trial or purchase now. It didn't seem quite like the description on blackboard. I then decided to
look for Jing through a web search. I
found Jing and downloaded the software.
It is in fact free. Below are the
pros and the cons based on my observation:
Pros:
- Very basic, no-nonsense added tools.
- Clean and straight forward.
- It gets the job done.
- Captures excellent image quality.
- Allows you to pause and start again.
- Once you are done recording, it takes you straight to the preview of the video.
- It allows you to access the video the camera.
- Allows screenshots.
Cons:
- Sound is not the best quality.
- Minimal options
- You need to go back to download.
- Toolbar is fixed and can not be moved. (Problem if you have pop-ups).
- Limits the amount of screencasts.
Screencast-o-matic
Screencast-o-matic is another screencast software to capture screen videos. I have used this software in the past and I feel fairly comfortable with using this software. Below are the pros and the cons based on use and observation.
Pros:
- Tools are visible on the screen
- Tools are very user friendly
- Great quality, both video and voice.
- Automatic download option.
- There is a truncate feature, which is great if you want to record over a section.
- It allows you to pause and continue.
- Allows screenshots.
Cons:
- Computer sound can be purchased at a premium.
- Works only while online.
- Does not allow for full screen recording, although the size is sufficient.
- Free version limits the time on recordings.
Verdict:
Both software programs can be used to visually show students how to access materials, how to create a blog, how to embed videos or even create Padlets. Teachers can use the software to teach students learning strategies and have them available for use at their leisure.
I have been using Screencast-O-Matic for a while, so I think I've developed a bias. But... I think that if this was the first time using both software, I think I would still select Screencast-O-Matic. I feel that everything you need is right on the screen. I had a challenging time downloading Jing, or figuring out how to download the video from Jing. However, once I got the hang of it and looking back, maybe I made it harder than what it was.
I liked the way that you structured your blog so that I could very clearly find the pros and cons of using both tools. For teachers who need a minimum amount of clicks to complete a lesson, screencast-o-matic would be a great basic tool for them to use! Sometimes adding extensions or downloading programs can get complicated, especially during distance learning when support is not closeby!
ReplyDeleteI have not used Screencast O Matic. I tried it out this past spring, but had difficulty getting started, so I got turned off by it. I would be interested in the Jing, it appears to be a sister product to Camcastia, which I really liked.
ReplyDeleteYou did a great job of listing out the pros and cons of each app. It made it easy to read. I have used Screencast-O-Matic several times and it is my favorite tool for creating screencasts. I enjoyed your Padlet tutorial. That is a great way to have students share their summer reading. I will add this to my list of screencast ideas. Thank you for your post.
ReplyDeleteI have been using Screencast-O-Matic for a while and enjoy using it. I tried using Jing, and even though it was easy to use, I had a hard time uploading the video.
ReplyDeleteHello Conception, I really appreciated how you really talked about the pros and cons about each app. It is very insightful and informing. I have tried other screen casts out there but I have never used Jing as a screen cast before. It is something that I will try!
ReplyDeleteYou did a great job of simply providing the pros and cons for Jing and Screencast-o-matic and leaving it up to the reader to decide which one they might want to try. I too am pretty biased towards Screencast-o-matic but I just recently started using it. Thanks for sharing great ideas to create screencasts about!
ReplyDelete