A screencast is a digital recording of computer screen output, also known as a video screen capture, often containing audio narration. The term screencast compares with the related term screenshot; where screenshot is a picture of a computer screen, a screencast is essentially a movie of the changes over time that a user sees on a computer screen, enhanced with audio narration. Bloggers and tech freaks use them to create videos to share on their blogs or YouTube using screencasting tools. Today I have collected 12 best Screencasting tools for you to choose from. If you personal favorite is missing then let me know using comment section.
1. ScreenFlow
- Free to try
- $99 to buy
- Requires Mac
Screencast is one of the most popular recordings, editing and sharing software available for Mac. Using this software you can capture the contents of your entire monitor at the same time as you capture your video camera, microphone and computer’s audio. You can create splendid screencasts within few minutes using the powerful editing tool included. You will get a QuickTime or WMV output.
2. Camtasia
- 30 Day free trail
- $299 to buy
- For Windows and Mac
With Camtasia you can choose to capture full screen, window or region; add in music tracks, microphone, your computer’s audio, plus picture-in-picture with your video camera and you’ve got a world-class screencast. The toolbar inside of PowerPoint makes it one-click-easy to record your presentations, either live or from your desk. SmartFocus technology keeps track of where the action happens during your recording. Then it produces a video that zooms in on the parts you need to show. You can get variety of formats as output and share them on YouTube or Screencast.com.
3. Screenium
- Free to try
- $29 to buy
- For Mac OS X
Screenium records exactly what you see on your screen and make it a screen casts. Whether you’re tech support looking for a smart way of visually documenting the solution to a recurring problem, if you long to capture and distribute your university lectures or plain simply want to show the world your browser game high score; Screenium will get out of your way and simply capture the video for you. You can use video editors like iMovie or Final Cut to edit your videos recorded by screenium and share them online via YouTube.
4. Snapz Pro X
- Free to try
- $69 to buy
- Requires Mac OS 10.4 or later
Snapz Pro X allows you to effortlessly record anything on your screen, saving it as a QuickTime movie or screenshot that can be e-mailed, put up on the web, or passed around however you want.
5. Jing
- Free version available.
- Pro version for 14.95/year
- For Mac and Windows
Using Jing you can take a picture or make a short video of what you see on your monitor and share it instantly via web, email, IM, twitter or your blog. Free and simple user interface helps you to enhance your fast-paced online conversations.
6. Snagit
- Free to try.
- Costs $49.95
- For Windows and Mac
Snagit is screen capture software to create interesting training documents, collaborative design work, IT bug reports, and more. It captures image from your computer screen of your choice, then it pulls that screenshot into the image editors where you can add text, arrows and effects to turn it into a professional image that tells a story. Now you just have to copy and paste you completed Snagit image into emails, documents and presentations.
7. CamStudio
CamStudio is free streaming video software which will capture all screen and audio activity on your computer and create industry-standard AVI video files and using its built-in SWF Producer can turn those AVIs into lean, mean, bandwidth-friendly Streaming Flash videos (SWF)
8. Screenr
- Free to use
- No installation required
- Works both on Mac and Windows-based PC
Screenr is a web-based screen recorder which makes it a breeze to create and share your screen casts around the web. Just click the record button, capture your screen and voice and share the link with people.
9. Screen Mimic
- Free to try
- $65 to buy
- For Mac OS
Screen Mimic allows you to create screen casts that can be saved as Adobe Flash (SWF), Flash Video (FLV) or QuickTime (MOV) files, including H.264 for HTML5. You can record your full desktop or a window or any other specific area. It has very easy to use interface; mucking around with half-baked video editors to just record your screen; can export the raw uncompressed video for those of you who want to use a real video editor.
10. GoView™ Beta
- Free to use
- Requires Windows and Flash Player
Using Goview you can capture your computer screen and audio then instantly share your recording online. This application is still in beta.
11. Screencast-O-Matic
- Free as well as pro versions available.
- Works on Mac and PC
Screencast-O-Matic is the original online screen recorder for one-click recording from your browser on Windows, Mac, or Linux with no install for free. Free version has recording limit of 15 minutes only. But using Pro version you can record video as long as 60 minutes. Pro version costs $9 per year.
12. Copernicus
- Free to use
- Requires Mac OS X
Copernicus doesn’t just take screenshots; it’s a virtual photo gallery too. Take as many pictures as you like, then save them one at a time or all at once. Copernicus is perfect for taking many screenshots. One drawback is Copernicus only captures pictures and video. There is no support for recording audio.
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