There are several things to consider when adding
video to your site: method of capture, file size, hosting,
bandwidth requirements, loading time, viewer's internet
connection and viewer's video player.
Let me first address video capture. I am going
to limit this discussion to just screen capture. There are
different products that will allow you to capture your computer
screen along with audio. (If you aren't sure of what I am
talking about, take a look at
www.WebTechTutorials.com.)
FREE
Believe it or not, there is FREE software that will produce
a video of your computer screen. It is called CamStudio. It is
a nice piece of software, easy to use. I was able to make
several videos fairly quickly. You can produce either avi or swf
files. There are two problems. First, you can't edit the
videos. What you recorded is what you get. The second problem
is getting this video to your web site. I spent a couple of
months looking for codecs and compression software to put these
videos on my web site. I tried some of the video hosting
services. I was never satisfied with the result.
NOTE: There is a new
version out now that has taken
care of the problems. This is a great way to get started
at an extremely affordable price!
To learn more about
CamStudioPro.
To watch some videos that show you how to monetize screen video
capture,
click
here.
BETTER
James Maduk has produced over 800 Internet marketing video
tutorials. These videos cover everything you would want to
learn about Internet marketing, building websites, making
digital products, building a niche business, how to drive
traffic and much more. One of the video series is Screen
Capture Secrets. He shows you how to do this without spending
money on expensive software. You have two options with James'
videos. You can pay $97 for the five hours of Screen Capture
Secrets or you can pay $97 for access to his entire video
collection for a full 30 days.
I used to recommend watching
his videos, but Dave
Guidon's are great and a better deal.
Go
watch
these videos!
The next option is a nice piece of software from Armand
Morin. This software is very easy to use. The recording piece
provides the avi file. There next piece will convert to an
optimized swf file. The software allows you to pick the
compression of the audio and video, add affiliate links and
redirects. You can chose from six different players. (These
are new and unique.) The Media Menu allows you to combine
several videos together like a video jukebox. All the
videos will be in one location where users can just click on the
picture of the video and it start playing. (There are some other
options, like adding an image.) When you are done, you can
publish for the web or make a CD. The software generates all
the code you need to easily add the video to your web site.
The CD Menu creates autorun CD files of your
videos which allows a customer to use a DVD like menu to view
everything on your CD. (This feature is easier to use than
Camtasia's.)
Another cool feature is the Screen Shot
Generator. I know you can capture your screen with the push of
a button, but this software allows you to do much more. You can
capture your screen or partial screen to a clipboard, a printer,
or a file. You can write time and date on the capture, add a
comment/text, and make slideshows.d
This is a very easy to use piece of software to
produce your videos. The one drawback is the inability to edit
the videos before production. But at $197, it is a very good
investment! You can see the sales page at:
www.screencamgenerator.webtechjo.com.
BEST
Camtasia is by far the best software out there for screen
capture video. It's video capture looks the same as CamStudio
and ScreenCamGen. Both ScreenCamGen and Camtasia provide the
code to add the video to your site. (Very critical piece!) Both
allow a menu if you have multiple videos. However, when it
comes to editing and production, Camtasia stands above the
rest. Clip files, import audio or video, add another sound
track, fade audio in and out, and much more. You also have
several options on the output. You can create avi, swf,
optimize for Windows Media Player or Quicktime, and set
compressions, watermark, redirects, etc. Camtasia runs around
$300 which is an investment. Take a look at all the features:
Camtasia
NOTE: Latest version create
IPOD videos!!!
Decide how you are going to use video on your
site and then decide which package is best for you needs. I had
decided to buy ScreenCamGen until I found a used copy of
Camtasia for the same price. After playing around with all the
features, I am very happy with my investment and love all
benefits!
