In our last installment, I talked about the prep I use for recording screen videos. I diverged into Adult learning theory and discussed how my learning styles are not visual and not so strongly auditory.

And yet, because my audience might be strong visual and auditory learners – and my boss certainly is – I’m doing screen videos.

I’m using Camtasia to do the actual recordings, but there are many tools that will do this. We just happen to own Camtasia.

I’m not going over any of the ways to get good audio or what good equipment might be, as Tom Johnson has covered every possible way to do this in great detail.

Next steps

I left us with the first 3 steps done and we’re ready to record the screen.

Step 4: Open the application and get everything ready

Now I open Camtasia and the Author-it application I’m going to work with. I have a rough screen size I want to work with – about 800 by 600 – to get the size of the application I want. Because I work with 2 monitors, I put Camtasia on one screen and the application on the other. It just gives me more real estate to work with.

I also print out the script. Being a kinesthetic learner, I like having the paper in my hand. I’ve also discovered It’s easier for me than looking from one screen to another. Your mileage may vary.

Once everything is set, I’m ready to go.

Step 5: Start recording the screen

With my headset/microphone on, I start recording both video and audio. I’m not going to use this audio but I need to get the timing of the actions correct.

Originally, I tried recording audio and video at the same time, with the intent of using the audio, but it’s too complicated for me to manage both well. Knowing that I’m recording just the screen while I talk helps me focus on getting the actions on the screen just right.

Tip: If I’m recording something that is complicated or is a long process, I’ll break the recording into parts, stopping at the end of each part and saving. That helps me in post production.

Step 6: Start video post-production

After I have the screen recorded, I start working with the first part, if I recorded in parts. I select the entire clip and silence the audio.

Then I start walking the recording, looking for places where I bobbled the cursor, for example. I clip out the bobbles in the video. If the process being show on screen is taking too long, I split and make the process look faster. Generally, I look to make the video smooth and simple, with my total time estimate in mind.

When the video is smooth, I’m ready to record the final audio.

Step 7: Record the audio

I record the audio on a second track in Camtasia because I know I’m going to be editing.

Recording the audio is harder than the screen video. I want my voice to be pleasant and excited without sounding like a late night television advertising spot. I want to emphasize the right words and sentences in the right places. And I want my voice to sound the same across videos.

This can take several tries. And I rarely get through a take without the dogs next door barking or a plane flying over. It can be very frustrating.

Tip: If I stumble on the words or a plane flies over, I pause and then start again from the last logical place I was. I forge ahead, knowing that I’ll edit the audio bobbles out. The trick is to keep your voice the same as it was before the bobble happened. This can take practice.

I’m fortunate that my father was a professional broadcaster and I was taught a little about using your voice from the time I was a small child. I also teach and speak publically so I know a little about using my voice well. It helps.

Step 8: Start audio post-production

Now it’s time to start editing out the audio bobbles and strange noises. I also edit out places where I take a deep breath, as I think it sounds odd. I either cut or silence, depending on what and why I’m editing.

After I get the audio bobbles out, now I start synching the audio to the screen video. Since I originally recorded the screen while I was reading the script, it usually synchs up pretty well and only a little editing is needed.

Step 9: Final touches

After I have the audio and the video synch-ed up, it’s time to start looking for places where I need special effects, like zooming. This is really easy in Camtasia.

If I want to draw attention to something on the screen, for example, I zoom in. I also try to have the same zoom area and percentage so things are not moving all over the place, which I find visually distracting. I want the focus to be on what’s on the screen, not on all the flying around.

Tip: Don’t slowly zoom in. It can look like the item on the screen is coming at you out of the screen. One second is more than slowly enough to ground your viewer into what’s happening and let’s them track what you’re doing.

Step 10: Publish!

Now I can create the output I need. I’m going to the highest resolution I can and then one at about 600×400.

I send the videos to a co-worker for a last sanity check. He tells me if everything looks and sounds good on a different computer than the one I recorded on.

If they pass his sanity check, he uploads them where they need to go.

That’s it!

I hope this overview has been helpful and encourage you to make your own screen videos to support your users. Once you’ve done a few, it’s actually fun!

I’ve spent the last 2 weeks very focused on creating screen videos for our YouTube channel. While this isn’t hard, I thought I’d share how I do it, in case it’s useful information to you.

But first, a related tangent.

Learning styles

Adult learning theory says that adults learn in four modes:

• Visual
• Auditory
• Read/write
• Kinesthetic

Because humans are wonderful, individuals typically prefer one of more of these modes to consume information. This is called a mixed strategy.

People tend to be stronger in some of these modes and weaker in others. Personally, I’m very weak in Visual. I really struggle to consume information when it’s presented in only a visual mode.

For example, when I was in Graduate school, getting my degree in Cultural Anthropology, I struggled with archeological site maps. These line drawings that showed the monumental architecture and distribution of artifacts seemed flat and uninteresting to me. I just couldn’t “see” why the other students were so excited about them.

I’m not a visual learner.

But other people are.

Good user assistance

Good user assistance supports all four learning modes. And because we have the web, it’s easier today to support all four.

Screen videos are a great way to support visual and auditory learners. And they are not my best ways of learning, because they are so visual.

Delivering information in a visual way means this is hard for me. And yet, my customers need this support.

Worse, my boss is a visual learner. I know this because he prefers to video conference when we have our weekly meeting. He says he feels better when he can see who he’s talking to, that it feels flat otherwise.

So, my users need this support and my boss prefers to consume information this way.

Looks like I’ll be making screen videos!

How to make a visual process less visual

Now that we’ve established that we’re not pitching to my strengths and I need to do it anyway, I thought I’d share some ways I’ve found to make this easier for me. It may help you as well.

Step 1: Decide the small thing I’m going to show

This may sound obvious but it’s an important step. The videos must be no longer than five to seven minutes or it’s going to seem complicated, even if it’s not. So, short is good.

I look for a small thing I can show in less than seven minutes, understanding that eventually, I’ll have lots of small things which will be a large thing.

Step 2: Write the script

Because I’m a word oriented, kinesthetic learner, I want a written script that includes what I need to be doing on the screen. Think of it as the plan.

So I write out what I’m going to be saying and what’s generally happening on the screen. I don’t need to include what to click, for example, because I’m fairly confident of the product.

As a rough guide, my scripts work out to about 3 minutes per page, single spaced. I use that as my first measurement of Step 1. If I’m at the middle of the second page and I’m no where near the end, I’ve got issues and I need to edit what I’m doing.

Step 3: Walk the application with the script

When I’m done with the script, I walk the application, doing what I think I’m going to be doing to check issues:

• Do dialog boxes appear where I think they’ll appear on the screen? I need to adjust and relocate these to appear where I want them.
• Is there anywhere where things are going to take too long? This may be a spot I can cut frames or speed up the video in post processing.
• Is this the easiest way to do this? I may discover an easier way as I walk the application.
• Is there a place where things are happening on the screen and I can talk about a best practice while we wait? If it’s short, I’ll add that to the script.

Then I edit the script, making notes and changing things until I have a better feel for this.

When I’m done, it’s time to start recording.

Next week

Next week, I’ll take you thru the actual recording and post processing steps I’m using to get good videos.

One of the many things I love about our field is that we are always learning new things. I would hate a job where you just did the exact thing every day and nothing new ever got learned. That sounds like employment hell.

I also like teaching very much. It makes me feel good to help people get ideas that help them in their life. I don’t care if it’s teaching tech comm or teaching crochet, it’s all good for me. Students go do stuff I never imagined with the bits of information I give them. I find that amazing and wonderful.

Bits and pieces and webinars

I like giving webinars and, from the sign ups, you all like them too! In the first few days we listed the webinars, we’ve had over 400 people signed up. As of this writing, we’re heading towards the 800 total mark. Thank you – that’s amazing.

The webinars are a mix of topics – some Author-it specific and some not. The ones that are not specific about our products will be, in fact, tools-neutral. I’m hoping to give you useful information and then you can do what is best for you with that information.

What do we have going

For details about each of the upcoming webinars, go to this link and see what looks interesting. If nothing looks interesting but you have a topic you’d like to learn more about, send me an email at sharon.burton(at)author-it(dot)com and I’ll see what I can do. I don’t know everything so I might have to find a speaker, which is fine. I know some very smart people!

Can’t make it? No problems!

If the topic interests you but the time is bad, sign up anyway. We will be recording these and you will get a link to the recording the next day. With the world as small as it is, we’re trying to make these available to as many people as we can, but some timezone is going to hurt. It’s just the nature of the world now.

Looking forward to seeing you!

We’re starting a new Webinar series. Often, these will be about our products, but not always.

If you want to learn more about what Author-it does or how to use it in your environment, we’ve got you covered. But we’re also going to have webinars to just keep you educated in topics that you may be interested in around the content development space. And because these are live, you can ask questions.

We’re trying to schedule these so that they are available to as many people internationally as possible, given that the presenter – Sharon! – is based in the Pacific time zone and occasionally does sleep. If you can’t make the time or date listed, sign up anyway. We’re recording the webinars and you can get the link automatically the next day.

To see the current listings, click here.

What we do for a living – we being the field of people who develop information for others to consume – is educate people. We may teach them about the proper way to use our products, complete their vacation form, use that machine correctly, why they should buy our products, or many other things. But at the core, we educate people by giving them information they didn’t have before.

Driving on the left

I was thinking about this as I was driving to the Author-it office in Auckland the other day. I’m visiting New Zealand from the US and driving is a constantly attentive activity for me here. As with any attentive process, I can’t do anything but focus on driving because I’m on the wrong side of the car driving on the wrong side of the road. All my instincts, if you will, are completely wrong.

For most of us, by the time we’re 4 or 5, we’ve learned the proper side of the car and the road at such a level that we don’t think about it any more. We know what side of the car to get in, it’s instinct. This is called preattentive. It’s like muscle memory – you don’t think about it, it just happens.

This is very useful to us because it lets us (humans) function in the world. If we had to think about everything – walking, reaching for a cup, etc – then we couldn’t cope. When we’re learning something new, it’s attentive until we’ve mastered it and then it slips into the preattentive areas.

It’s all wrong

So what happens when you move a preattentive activity back to an attentive activity? You put your user under a lot of stress. Our brains want to function at that preattentive level for this activity and we’re forcing it to work at an attentive level.

We’re under a cognitive load. The entire activity has to be thought out at all times while our brain fights us, trying to drop back to the easier preattentive level. Our entire attention is taken with it. Cognitively, it’s really hard. Really hard.

This is where those we educate get cranky. They complain that it’s too hard, they don’t like it, and they don’t want to do it. It’s true for them: it is hard and their brains do hurt.

So how do we help?

Part of our job is to reduce the cognitive load for our users as we educate. We are more successful if our users don’t have the extra effort of trying to find what they’re looking for or if the information they need is right in front of them as they need it. Think of us as carrying the load for our users.

One of the ways we can carry that load is to not make our users stop their task and go find the information they want. I’ve read studies that show up to 30% of the day for knowledge workers is spent just trying to find the right information.

Where’s the metadata?

Metadata is lovely but it means you’re probably putting the burden on your overloaded user to go find what s/he needs. They are already unhappy because they don’t know something–why are you now forcing them to play Guess Our Metadata? There have to be better ways to reduce cognitive loads.

What are you doing to help? What have you tried that made a difference? Where are you not helping and the users are complaining?

This videos will guide you through the installation and set up of Author-it Aspect for the first time.  This guide can be used for the evaluation or full license version. http://author-it.com/j1oyf6

Visit our YouTube Channel for more videos.

“You know the problem with enterprise software,” he said, “It never works out the way they (the vendor) promised!” “It’s because no one knows how to use the software properly.”

He was a principal at an East Coast Private Equity firm and we were at the SIIA “All About the Cloud” Conference in San Francisco a couple of months ago.  He was obviously very experienced and was trying to be benevolently provocative but truth be told, I couldn’t have agreed more. I have long held the view that some enterprise software implementations fail; not because of any fundamental issue with the software but rather, because enterprises fail to adopt the solution. Here, I define adoption as gaining the benefits that you thought you would get when you decided to purchase.

So why does this happen? Why do enterprises fail to adopt a solution that they paid for and spent months evaluating to ensure that it met their needs? There are many reasons but at the risk of oversimplification; if I could change one thing, it would be to convince you to invest more time in planning and training for software implementations. Yes I know that’s two .

So what can we do about this in terms of Author-it implementations?

I think we understand the challenge. You’re busy. Often too busy to give an implementation project the effort it needs. Also in many cases, our clients are more familiar working with desktop tools. Most have never implemented an enterprise standard solution before.

Recognizing this, our Global Services team have created a “Discovery & Analysis” (D&A) service that we offer at the very beginning of an implementation project. Yes this costs money and at times I think it raises the question, “why are we paying to find out how to implement this?” The answer lies in the fact that every company is different. Every company has their own workflow, legacy content, project resources, project deadlines, and objectives from the implementation. By performing a D&A we are able to effectively scope/plan the project with our clients, assist them to ensure that all of the necessary bases are covered, and objectives achieved.

Years training in martial arts has taught me a bunch of lessons, some of them more than a little painful . One key lesson is; repetition of skill execution creates expertise. I heard it said once that if you spend 10,000 hours doing anything you will become world class in that activity. Now this is far from the requirement to effectively use Author-it; you can be up and running after a few days of training however, I think the point is clear. Following implementation and initial training, it is very important that you build on your base skills and start to create real expertise in the use of Author-it. Now not everyone needs to be a guru but I think at least a sub-set of users do need an advanced skill level. The rest should have a good understanding of the product to realize its benefits. So, how do we best achieve this goal? I don’t think the answer is necessarily more classroom training per see. You need access to on-going training and a program to support this. Enter the Author-it Certified Practitioner and Consultant program.

The program will set a series of levels for both Practitioners (users) and Consultants (those with implementation/training expertise). The levels will be achieved by acquiring expertise through training and/or experience and then completing online examinations to achieve “certified” status. We’re still finalizing the details and structure of the program and we expect to have it live later in the year.

Our team is very positive about the potential of this program to lift the standard of Author-it skills across our client base. We expect better skills to flow onto higher levels of adoption of Author-it. Adoption means real benefits, ROI and even higher levels of product satisfaction. It’s also a great way to up-skill and gain additional employment qualifications.

Comments or questions? Love to hear them.

Cheers
Steve

It’s a new year, and we have launched our new online training schedule for 2010.
This year we have a number of exciting courses ranging from 1 hour through to multi-sessions spread over 4 days.

We are also introducing something new for this year and will be holding YouChoose training sessions. We think it’s important to understand the training requirements of our Author-it users, so now you have the opportunity to tell us what type of training you would like. Dates haven’t been confirmed yet, but we’ll contact you well in advance to gain your input.

Also feel free to email us anytime if there is specific training you are wanting to attend. All types of feedback is appreciated.

Below is the online training schedule for January, February and March 2010. We will also be sending reminders throughout the year. Our courses were very popular last year so book your spot now to avoid disappointment by contacting your Account Manager, or visit our contact us directly.

Reuse Management – Jan 27
This course introduces you to the features of Author-it that allow your content to be created once and reused in many different places. More…
2 hours
13:00 PST
16:00 EST

Author-it Core – Feb 23-26
This course is essential to learning the major features of Author-it, and shows you how to maximize use of the product. More…
4 days
4 x 3 hour
10:00 PST
13:00 EST

Localization – Mar 30
Using Author-it Localization Manager. This course introduces the concepts of Localization. More…
2 hours
10:00 PST
13:00 EST

Customizing Print – Mar 30
This course introduces you to ways of customizing your printed output. More…
1 hour
13:00 PST
16:00 EST

Customizing HTML – Mar 31
This course introduces you to ways of customizing your HTML outputs. More…
1 hour
10:00 PST
13:00 EST

Structured Authoring – Mar 31
This course introduces you to how your organization can utilize structured authoring to create valid content using these rules. More…
2 hours
13:00 PST
16:00 EST

So whether you’re a beginner and wanting to learn more about the Author-it suite of products or you are an experienced user wanting a refresher course, register your training requirements now to avoid disappointment.

For further details on any of these courses, or for pricing, contact your Account Manager or contact us directly.

Places are strictly first-in, first-served, so register now.

Prerequisites
- An intermediate/expert knowledge of Author-it.
- Access to a copy of Author-it 5.3 and a machine that meets the minimum recommended system requirements.

Want more information?
Click here for full course details and training schedule.

Posted by Michael Lai, Marketing Executive, Author-it Software Corporation