Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Depending on the subject you teach and the course ideas we’re discussing, we may
ask you to record two sample movies. Or you may simply want to in order to give
us a better look at your teaching approach. Your Content Manager will talk with you
about how many sample movies you should record.
In the following pages you will find step-by-step instructions for setting up your
Mac (go to page 12) or Windows (go to page 4) machine for sample movie
recording. Please see the end of the document for example sample movies.
Choose a specific task that you can teach effectively within about five min-
utes. It’s important to pick a task rather than a concept. For example, “Con-
verting a color photo to black and white” makes a better sample movie than
“Understanding JPEG compression.”
Choose a topic in which you are proficient and that you are passionate about.
If you enjoy the topic you’re talking about, it will come through in the video.
Teach viewers how to do something that they may not know how to do.
Avoid samples based on simple subjects, such as how to save a file.
Your Content Manager is happy to discuss the topic with you before you re-
cord. If you don’t have a specific course under consideration, we can work
with you to determine a proper topic based on your experience.
1
Editorial
guidelines
• Tell us what you are going to teach, then teach us, and finally tell us what
you taught. Briefly introduce the task the tutorial covers and explain the
real-world relevance of the task you’re teaching. Then teach the task.
Then give a short conclusion. This gives context to viewers and then rein-
forces the context at the end.
For example: “Chances are you always shoot your photos in color. But
some subjects look better in black and white. PhotoWhiz gives you two
different ways to perform the conversion, and each method has its advan-
tages. (Here’s where you show us the methods.) So, when you want to
give your photos a retro look, use the Add Retro Look command. And
when you want to give a photo a rich, black-and-white tonal range, use
the Ansel Adams Effect.”
• Teach with a specific goal in mind. Define what you want someone to be
able to do after watching this movie, then design the movie to achieve
that goal.
• When possible, show us the final product at the beginning. A great way to
make a task-oriented movie more engaging is to show us the end result
before showing us how to perform the task. For example, “I’m going to
show you some retouching techniques, and when we’re done, we’ll have a
photo that looks like this instead of like this.” Or, “We’re going to add
some motion and lighting effects to text to create this animated 3D title.”
This approach is a bit like a cookbook that contains a beautiful photo of
the finished dish: it gives viewers the incentive to want to try the recipe.
• When possible, address the larger concepts surrounding the specific task.
For example, if you’re teaching viewers how to crop in Photoshop, it isn’t
enough to teach them about Crop tool—be sure to tell them why they
should crop and to what end. When you make an assertion of any kind in
your movie – when you tell someone to use a certain tool or to do some-
thing in a certain way -- imagine your viewer asking “why?” and narrate
your movie in a way that briefly answers that question. This will help the
viewer apply the techniques learned to their project instead of only learn-
lynda.com confidential Recording Sample Videos for lynda.com
2
ing how to follow along with your project.
• Outline your video before you start recording. Many authors find it helpful
to script the first and last sentences, and then outline the rest of the
video. Practice delivering your video before you record to find any pitfalls.
• Try to be good, but don’t worry about being perfect. We’re looking for a
practiced but unedited video. Every title in the lynda.com Online Training
library has been edited and tested before publication. Every author says
“um” and “uh” and stumbles over words sometimes. If you stumble once
or twice in your sample video and recover smoothly, it’s sometimes better
than if you never stumbled at all—it lets us assess how quickly you re-
cover when the tape is rolling, as it were. If you feel you can do better,
just record a second take.
• Have fun and show your personality! Our viewers like the human element
our authors bring—they like to know who you are. Letting your passion
come through in the video helps to engage the viewer. At the same time,
endeavor to stay focused on the task at hand. We frequently get viewer
feedback exhorting us to be sure to use their time well and stay on topic.
3
Recording
on
Windows
This
document
walks
you
through
the
process
of
setting
up
for
and
recording
sample
videos
for
lynda.com,
including:
• Recording a test video and submitting it to lynda.com for review
Alternatively,
you
may
view
Windows
recording
set
up
and
instructions
in
video
format
by
going
here:
http://milton.lynda.com:8020/SuperContainer/RawData/PAuth/1598/SampleVid/507
Setting
up
an
external
Microphone
(if
you
do
not
have
a
built
in
mic
in
your
computer)
In
order
to
record
a
sample
video,
you
must
have
a
microphone.
However,
during
the
sample
video
recording
process,
we
are
assessing
the
teaching
quality,
not
the
audio
quality.
Any
microphone
will
do
(including
the
built-‐in
mic
on
your
computer
if
you
have
one).
If
you
want
to
purchase
a
microphone,
we
recommend
a
Plantronics
USB
headset
(http://accessories.us.dell.com/sna/productdetail.aspx?sku=A1375275&cs=04&c=us&l=en&dgc=SS&cid=27722&lid=628335#Ov
erview).
If
you
have
questions
or
problems
setting
up
your
mic,
please
contact
the
Content
Manager
who
is
working
with
you
on
your
proposal
for
assistance.
1) Plug in the USB mic into one of the USB ports on your computer.
2) Put your headset on and position the microphone slightly below your mouth.
Make
sure
you
position
the
mic
so
it’s
not
in
your
direct
airway.
This
will
help
decrease
the
“plosive”
sound
on
hard
consonants
(particularly
those
poppy
P’s).
You’ll
also
need
QuickTime
version
7.2
or
higher
in
order
to
properly
compress
your
sample
video
for
submission
to
lynda.com.
If
you
have
a
version
prior
to
7.2,
visit
http://www.apple.com/quicktime/download
to
download
and
install
the
latest
version.
1)
Choose
Start
>
All
Programs
>
Camtasia
Studio
7
>
Applications
>
Camtasia
Recorder
to
open
the
Camtasia
Recorder
appli-‐
cation
window.
4
The Camtasia Recorder window should look as it appears here. Choose Full screen, Webcam off, and Audio on.
2) Choose Tools > Options to open the Tools Options dialog box.
3)
In
the
Tools
Options
dialog
box,
click
the
General
tab.
In
the
Saving
area,
choose
Record
to
.avi.
In
the
Capture
area,
make
sure
the
following
options
are
checked:
4) Click the File options button to open the File Options dialog box. Check Ask for file name and click OK.
5
5) Click the Inputs tab. In the Video area, choose 15 for the Screen capture frame rate.
Select
the
audio
input
source
you
want
from
the
Audio
device
dropdown
menu.
(If
it
does
not
appear,
make
sure
the
device
is
plugged
in
and
you
followed
the
instructions
in
the
“Setting
Up
Camtasia
for
Recording
Sound”
section
above.)
6)
Click
the
Video
settings
button
to
open
the
Video
Compression
Setup
dialog
box.
Make
sure
TechSmith
Screen
Capture
Codec
is
selected
from
the
Compressor
pop-‐up
menu.
Make
sure
the
Key
frame
every
option
is
deselected
and
click
OK.
7)
Still
on
the
Inputs
tab,
click
the
Audio
settings
button
to
open
the
Audio
Format
dialog
box.
Choose
PCM
from
the
Format
dropdown
menu.
Choose
48.000
kHz,
16-‐Bit,
Stereo,
187
kb/sec
from
the
Attributes
dropdown
menu.
Click
OK.
6
8) In the Tool Options dialog box, choose the Hotkeys tab.
• Click Record/Pause and make sure CTRL, SHIFT, and ALT are unchecked. Choose F9 from the dropdown menu.
• Click Stop make sure CTRL, SHIFT, and ALT are unchecked. Choose F10 from the dropdown menu.
If these hotkeys are reserved for the software you are using in the course, choose any other hotkey of your choosing.
9)
Choose
the
Program
tab.
Make
sure
the
options
are
set
as
shown
in
the
illustration
above.
Make
sure
to
choose
Produce
from
the
Do
this
with
my
recording
dropdown
menu
and
Minimize
recorder:
If
recorder
will
be
recorded.
10)
Click
OK
to
close
the
Tool
Options
dialog
box
and
to
return
to
the
main
Camtasia
Recorder
window.
lynda.com confidential Recording Sample Videos for lynda.com
7
With
Camtasia
successfully
setup,
you’re
ready
to
record.
You’ll
learn
how
to
record
in
the
next
section.
1)
Press
F9
to
begin
recording.
A
countdown
will
begin
letting
you
know
you’re
about
to
record.
Before
you
begin
speaking
or
performing
any
actions
on
screen,
pause
for
a
minimum
of
3
seconds
after
the
countdown.
Leaving a minimum of 3 seconds ensures nothing gets cut off and sounds are not clipped at the beginning of the video.
2)
Speak
into
the
microphone
using
your
normal
speaking
voice
and
perform
a
few
test
actions
on
screen.
We
recommend
re-‐
cording
a
test
movie
to
review
sound
levels,
making
sure
to
interact
with
the
program
and
play
any
media
you
will
use
in
the
training.
3)
When
you
are
finished
recording
the
video,
pause
for
3
seconds
and
press
F10
to
stop
recording.
Camtasia
will
automatically
prompt
you
to
save
the
file.
lynda.com confidential Recording Sample Videos for lynda.com
8
4)
Camtasia
will
automatically
open
up
the
Production
Wizard.
Choose
Custom
Production
Settings
from
the
initial
dropdown
menu
and
click
Next.
6)
Click
the
QuickTime
options
button
on
the
next
screen
to
open
the
Movie
Settings
dialog
box.
First,
go
to
the
bottom
and
check
Prepare
for
Internet
Streaming
and
choose
Fast
Start.
9
7)
Next,
click
the
Settings
button
under
Video
to
open
the
Standard
Video
Compression
Settings
dialog.
Make
sure
the
settings
make
the
ones
shown
in
the
illustration
above.
Click
OK.
8)
Click
the
Settings
button
under
Sound
to
open
the
Sound
Settings
dialog.
Make
sure
the
settings
make
the
ones
shown
in
the
illustration
above.
(You
should
Stereo
if
your
training
requires
it.)
Click
OK.
Click
OK
again
to
close
the
Movie
Settings
dialog
box.
Click
Next
to
move
to
the
next
step
in
the
Production
Wizard.
lynda.com confidential Recording Sample Videos for lynda.com
10
9)
Check
Custom
Size
for
the
video
size
and
enter
the
dimensions
of
your
monitor
to
make
sure
Camtasia
compresses
the
video
at
full-‐screen.
If
the
width
is
greater
than
1280
pixels,
enter
1280
and
the
height
should
automatically
adjust.
Click
Next.
10) Uncheck all the boxes on the Video Options screen. Click Next and click Next again, skipping the Marker Options screen.
11)
Name
your
video,
select
a
place
to
save
it,
check
Play
video
after
production,
and
click
Finish.
Camtasia
will
automatically
open
the
movie
in
QuickTime.
Review
your
work
and
then
send
it
to
lynda.com
using
the
FTP
instruction
below.
11
Uploading
Sample
Videos
for
Review
If you do not already have a browser based upload URL, please contact your Content Manager to get one.
Auriga
Martin
Content
Team
Coordinator
auriga@lynda.com
805.624.5781
Max
Smith
Manager
of
Training
Production
max@lynda.com
805.477.3900
x106
12
Recording on a Mac
This
document
walks
you
through
the
process
of
setting
up
for
and
recording
sample
videos
for
lynda.com,
including:
• Recording a test video and submitting it to lynda.com for review
Alternatively,
you
may
view
Macintosh
recording
set
up
and
instructions
in
video
format
by
going
here:
http://milton.lynda.com:8020/SuperContainer/RawData/PAuth/1598/SampleVid/508
T h i s
s ec t i o n
a p p l i es
t o
Ma c
us e r s
only .
If
yo u
a re
reco rd i n g
o n
a
M a c,
p l ea s e
ref er
t o
t h e
“Record i ng
o n
Wi n d o ws”
s ecti o n .
Setting
up
an
external
Microphone
(if
you
do
not
have
a
built
in
mic
in
your
computer)
In
order
to
record
a
sample
video,
you
must
have
a
microphone.
However,
during
the
sample
video
recording
process,
we
are
assessing
the
teaching
quality,
not
the
audio
quality.
Any
microphone
will
do
(including
the
built-‐in
mic
on
your
computer
if
you
have
one).
If
you
want
to
purchase
a
microphone,
we
recommend
a
Plantronics
USB
headset
(http://accessories.us.dell.com/sna/productdetail.aspx?sku=A1375275&cs=04&c=us&l=en&dgc=SS&cid=27722&lid=628335#Ov
erview).
If
you
have
questions
or
problems
setting
up
your
mic,
please
contact
the
Content
Manager
who
is
working
with
you
on
your
proposal
for
assistance.
1) Plug in the USB mic into one of the USB ports on your computer.
2) Put your headset on and position the microphone slightly below your mouth.
Make
sure
you
position
the
mic
so
it’s
not
in
your
direct
airway.
This
will
help
decrease
the
“plosive”
sound
on
hard
consonants
(particularly
those
poppy
P’s).
3) Open the Mac OS X System Preferences dialog box. Click Sound.
13
4) In the Sound dialog box, click Output. In the Choose a device for sound output section, choose Plantronics Headset.
5) Play a music file and adjust the Output volume slider so the sound from your computer is at a comfortable volume.
Setting
the
Output
volume
does
not
affect
the
recording
but
ensures
it
won’t
be
too
loud
or
too
soft
for
your
comfort
during
the
recording.
6)
In
the
Sound
dialog
box,
click
Input.
In
the
Choose
a
device
for
sound
input,
choose
Plantronics
Headset.
Adjust
the
Input
volume
slider
to
about
midway
and
talk
into
the
microphone.
Watch
the
Input
level
bars
as
you
speak.
When
you
speak
in
your
normal
speaking
voice,
make
sure
the
Input
level
bars
are
about
3/4
of
the
way.
If
the
Input
level
bars
are
going
beyond
3/4,
try
adjusting
the
microphone
further
away
from
your
mouth.
If
the
Input
level
bars
are
too
low,
position
the
microphone
closer
to
your
mouth.
If
repositioning
the
microphone
does
not
increase
the
levels,
increase
the
Input
volume
slider
one
notch
to
the
right
and
speak
again.
Make
sure
the
bars
do
not
reach
the
right
side
of
the
Input
level
bars.
Otherwise
the
audio
will
clip
and
your
voice
will
sound
distorted,
which
may
require
re-‐recording.
Now that you have your microphone setup for recording, next you’ll download and install the recording software-‐-‐Snapz Pro.
14
Downloading
and
Installing
Snapz
Pro
At
lynda.com,
we
use
Snapz
Pro
for
the
Mac
to
record
the
video,
audio,
and
microphone
tracks
for
our
video
training
courses.
Download
and
install
Snapz
Pro
X
from
http://www.ambrosiasw.com/utilities/snapzprox/.
Now that you’ve successfully installed Snapz Pro, you’ll need to spend a few minutes setting up Snapz Pro.
1)
Navigate
to
the
Applications
>
Snapz
Pro
X
folder
on
your
hard
drive.
Open
the
Snapz
Pro
X
folder
and
double-‐click
the
Snapz
Pro
X
application
icon
to
launch
Snapz
Pro.
You’ll know Snapz Pro X has opened successfully when you see the dialog box shown in the illustration here.
2)
In
the
Capture
Options
section
of
the
Snapz
Pro
window,
select
where
you’d
like
to
save
your
movies
from
the
Send
to
pop-‐
up
menu.
Check
the
Open
after
saving,
Choose
filename
and
Stick
around
options.
The
Choose
file
name
option
allows
you
to
manually
provide
a
filename
for
the
video
you
capture,
rather
than
having
Snapz
Pro
automatically
name
the
file
for
you.
The
Stick
around
option
means
Snapz
Pro
will
always
be
running
in
the
background,
even
though
you
don’t
always
see
it.
This
ensures
you
can
begin
capturing
video
at
anytime,
without
having
to
relaunch
Snapz
Pro.
3) Click Preferences at the top of the Snapz Pro window.
15
4)
In
the
Snapz
Pro
hot
key
field,
press
F13.
In
the
Modifiers
pop-‐up
menu,
uncheck
Command
and
Shift
and
make
sure
the
rest
of
the
settings
match
the
illustration
shown
here.
Note: If you’re using a Mac laptop, you may need to press fn+F13, depending on how your keyboard is setup.
F13
is
a
good
hot
key
to
use
because
it’s
not
assigned
to
other
commonly
used
functions
in
most
software
programs.
If
you
use
commonly
used
shortcuts,
such
as
CMD+P,
which
conflicts
with
the
hot
key
used
for
printing
in
most
programs,
you’ll
con-‐
stantly
run
into
problems
when
starting
and
stopping
Snapz
Pro
during
the
recording
process.
1) Open Snapz Pro X and click the Movie button. The Movie Settings window will appear automatically.
2)
In
the
Movie
Settings
window,
match
the
settings
to
the
ones
shown
in
the
illustration
here.
Pay
careful
attention
to
the
following:
• Make
sure
the
Width
and
Height
fields
match
your
screen
size
(usually
1024x768
or
1280x720).
Make
sure
you
see
the
marching
ants
around
the
entire
screen.
• Check
all
the
check
box
options.
Auto
mic
input
gain
can
be
turned
on
or
off,
depending
on
your
preference
and
the
re-‐
sulting
audio
quality.
16
3) Press Return. You’ll automatically be prompted to choose a file name for the video.
4)
When
you
are
ready
to
begin
recording,
click
Save.
Before
you
begin
speaking
or
performing
any
actions
on
screen,
pause
for
a
minimum
of
3
seconds.
We
recommend
recording
a
test
movie
to
review
sound
levels,
making
sure
to
interact
with
the
program
and
play
any
media
you
will
use
in
the
training.
Speak
into
the
microphone
using
your
normal
speaking
voice
and
perform
a
few
test
actions
on
screen.
Changing
Movie
saving
settings
is
usually
only
required
the
first
time
you
use
Snapz
Pro.
However,
we
recommend
you
double-‐
check
these
settings
that
each
time
you
reboot
your
computer,
since
when
you
reboot
your
computer
or
restart
Snapz
Pro
these
settings
can
revert
to
the
default
settings.
6)
Click
the
Settings
buttons
and
adjust
the
settings
for
the
video,
audio,
and
microphone
tracks
so
they
match
the
settings
shown
here.
Click
Save
Now
or
press
Return
to
save
the
video.
17
W A R NING
|
D on’ t
C lic k
D e le te !
D o
NO T
c l i c k
D el et e.
Pres s i n g
D el et e
w i l l
d el et e
t h e
vi d eo
yo u
j u s t
rec o rd ed
a n d
t h ere
i s
n o
w a y
t o
g et
i t
b ack.
Al s o ,
a ft er
s a vi n g,
yo u ’l l
s ee
a
d i a l o g
b o x
wi t h
a
p ro gres s
meter.
D o
NO T
cl i ck
C a n cel.
If
yo u
cl i ck
Can cel ,
th e
vi d eo
wi l l
n o t
save
p ro p erl y
an d
yo u
wi l l
n eed
to
re-‐ reco rd
th e
vi d eo .
7)
Navigate
to
the
folder
where
you
saved
the
video.
Listen
to
a
few
seconds
at
the
beginning
and
end
of
the
video
to
ensure
the
audio,
video,
and
microphone
tracks
looks/sounds
as
they
should.
8) If you’d like to record another video, press F13 to open the Snapz Pro window and repeat the steps.
If you do not already have a browser based upload URL, please contact your Content Manager for one.
Auriga
Martin
Content
Team
Coordinator
auriga@lynda.com
805.624.5781
Max
Smith
Manager
of
Training
Production
max@lynda.com
805.477.3900
x106
18
Example sample movies
19