Creating training videos with recordMyDesktop
Learning Curve
A training video of a new application can really reduce the learning curve. The recordMyDesktop program is at an early stage of development but already stable enough for everyday use. We'll show you how to use the program to capture custom procedures in a desktop video.
IT trainers understand that the best way to teach a desktop procedure is to help the user visualize each step. Overhead projectors were long regarded as the best approach; in recent years, computer-based slideshows and video projectors have extended this philosophy. But even these "modern" teaching aids suffer from the fact that they are static: In the best case, all you can show your students is a short text segment and a couple of screenshots.
Educational videos, typically implemented as Flash animations, are a relatively recent innovation. To play the video, all the student needs is a web browser with a suitable Flash plugin. Because a native Linux application for Macromedia's proprietary Flash format did not exist at first, trainers and teachers had no alternative but to create their own tools for building training videos.
A number of Linux developers rose to this challenge and programmed recordMyDesktop [1] and Istanbul [2]. Both programs are currently at an early stage of development, but lab tests reveal that recordMyDesktop is certainly mature and stable enough for everyday use.
Installation
To run recordMyDesktop, all you need is a working Linux PC with one of the major video players (Totem, Xine, MPlayer). If you want the recording to be professional, the system also must have a sound card, and you will need a microphone for sound recording. If you intend to use the GUI to control the software, you need both the free Theora codec and a complete Python environment, including matching Qt and Gtk modifications.
RecordMyDesktop is available in binary format for almost any Linux distribution, which considerably simplifies the installation. Users with Fedora and Mandriva, or their derivatives, will find pre-built packages at Rpmfind [3]; packages for Slackware and its derivatives are available from Linuxpackages [4]. Debian and Ubuntu offer the package in their own repositories, and fans of openSUSE can turn to Rpmseek [5]. If you use any other distribution or prefer to build the program yourself, Sourceforge [6] has a tarball with the current source code package.
Although recordMyDesktop is a command-line program, the developers have programmed two almost identical front ends for Gnome/XFCE and KDE: Gtk-recordmydesktop and Qt-recordmydesktop. Both are available as pre-built binary packages for most distributions.
Synaptic, Rpmdrake, and YaST will also set up the required menu entries when they install the programs, allowing users to launch the software in next to no time.
Sound and Vision
Modern computers typically have a sound card. To avoid reinventing the silent movie with recordMyDesktop, just attach a microphone to your sound card's microphone input jack.
In our lab, I achieved the best results with a simple clip microphone clipped onto the collar of my shirt or attached to a buttonhole (Figure 1).
The microphone needs a stereo jack; if you use a mono jack, a modern sound card will only record on one channel. On top of this, PC sound cards are not designed to support just any input impedance.
Microphones with just a couple of hundred ohms impedance are not suitable: You will achieve the best results with a device that offers about 2.5 to a maximum of 10kohms.
Feedback
To avoid feedback through your PC's loudspeakers, most distributions disable the microphone input by default; you might need to enable it in the ALSA Mixer. To do so, check the Rec. checkbox in the Mic slider window.
Buy this article as PDF
(incl. VAT)
Buy Linux Magazine
Subscribe to our Linux Newsletters
Find Linux and Open Source Jobs
Subscribe to our ADMIN Newsletters
Support Our Work
Linux Magazine content is made possible with support from readers like you. Please consider contributing when you’ve found an article to be beneficial.
News
-
Canonical Bumps LTS Support to 12 years
If you're worried that your Ubuntu LTS release won't be supported long enough to last, Canonical has a surprise for you in the form of 12 years of security coverage.
-
Fedora 40 Beta Released Soon
With the official release of Fedora 40 coming in April, it's almost time to download the beta and see what's new.
-
New Pentesting Distribution to Compete with Kali Linux
SnoopGod is now available for your testing needs
-
Juno Computers Launches Another Linux Laptop
If you're looking for a powerhouse laptop that runs Ubuntu, the Juno Computers Neptune 17 v6 should be on your radar.
-
ZorinOS 17.1 Released, Includes Improved Windows App Support
If you need or desire to run Windows applications on Linux, there's one distribution intent on making that easier for you and its new release further improves that feature.
-
Linux Market Share Surpasses 4% for the First Time
Look out Windows and macOS, Linux is on the rise and has even topped ChromeOS to become the fourth most widely used OS around the globe.
-
KDE’s Plasma 6 Officially Available
KDE’s Plasma 6.0 "Megarelease" has happened, and it's brimming with new features, polish, and performance.
-
Latest Version of Tails Unleashed
Tails 6.0 is based on Debian 12 and includes GNOME 43.
-
KDE Announces New Slimbook V with Plenty of Power and KDE’s Plasma 6
If you're a fan of KDE Plasma, you'll be thrilled to hear they've announced a new Slimbook with an AMD CPU and the latest version of KDE Plasma desktop.
-
Monthly Sponsorship Includes Early Access to elementary OS 8
If you want to get a glimpse of what's in the pipeline for elementary OS 8, just set up a monthly sponsorship to help fund its continued existence.