Unit 1: Lesson Two
What is Camtasia Studio?
Camtasia Studio is a screen capture program, published by TechSmith, a software developer for Microsoft Windows, founded back in 1987 by William Hamilton. The program asks for the user to define an area of the screen or window that is to be captured before recording begins. It’s possible to record the entire screen if multiple windows are being used as well. Camtasia Studio lets you easily create compelling training tutorials and/or presentations for Web and CD-ROM delivery. It is the only product versatile enough to record live PowerPoint presentations, personalized technical training sessions, and rich software demonstrations.
Camtasia Studio can also be used to capture screen activity with your narration which can then be saved as a video that the students can continuously play back as needed. A huge advantages of the software is that it offers the user the ability to edit the video and sound after it has been recorded. The recording can then be saved in a variety of formats depending on how you will make them available: network, CDROM, or streaming via the Internet (UAS, 2005).
Lesson Two Tasks
- Browse: The Camtasia Studio Website published by TechSmith. Take some time to explore a few of the tours that TechSmith offers.
- Watch: the "Overview Video" on the home page. This video will give you a great sense of the potential Camtasia has to offer.
- Read: At a Distance: Putting Camtasia Studio to Work, an article from LEHIGH UNIVERSITY which explains how Camtasia is put to use in various classrooms throughout the university.
- Reflect: Report to the Camtasia Class Discussion Page and share with one another one or two ways you think you might be able to use Camtasia in your classroom.
Proceed to Unit 1: Lesson Three