Hi -
I seek a 'for-dummies' process to record my pc desktop activity for a few minutes. Sort of like a real-time 'live' screen capture. Not sure how to word this correctly. If my standard W7 s/w lacks this function, I will gladly try a proven and tested freeware.
-thx
Hi,
W7 lacks this as a standard function. What you get with windows is the problem steps recorder (psr). The psr doesn't record in real time, but records screenshots like every mouse click.
For freeware alternatives, I was going to suggest the trial version of Camtasia by TechSmith, as I have used this before. But then I noticed that Techsmith have already released a 'free' program, called Jing. Jing records the screen for free for up to 5 minutes. After that, you have to upgrade the Pro version.
I haven't tested Jing myself, but if Camtasia is anything to go by, then Jing should be good.
Free Screen Recorder - Bandicam is a good one it depends what you want to do with it like a video or other
My three go-to utilities are VirtualDub, Screen2Avi, and Camstudio. All are free, and all are portable, "no-install" utilities.
The reason I use three is because none is perfect, so it depends on the project.
VirtualDub records in the best quality--mainly because it records in uncompressed AVI that gobbles up disk space, but it's also the least user-friendly. It's primarily an editor/dubber, which is part of the problem because it has too many features for simple screen recording.
Camstudio and Screen2Avi are both easier to use, but the video quality isn't quite as good, though that's usually only an issue if you're trying to record fast moving content, such as a video playing in a window. They work fine for capturing simple mouse movement and windows opening and closing. If you want to record the full screen, either should work fine. If you want to record a window or section of the screen, Screen2Avi's user interface is much easier to use.
All three claim to be able to record audio along with the video, but I've never been able to get that to work on any of them. Maybe it's something odd about my audio hardware ... I don't know, but it's not something I would use anyway, so I've never investigated.
You'll be offered a range of video codecs to use; I've had the best luck with "Microsoft Video 1".
thank you all!
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