How to record your computer screen for Free – Video Screen Capture
Video screen capture also commonly known as “screencast” is the process of recording computer screen movements, operations and changes into a video, and it’s commonly used for making video tutorials for presentation or educational reasons.
The “Screencast” is used often in situations to demonstrate computer operations which are difficult to be explained or includes complex steps. You can find a lot of free screen recorder software on the computer but many of them put watermarks in the final video.
In this tutorial I will guide on how to record your entire screen actions without any limitations.
How to record your computer screen (for Free) – Video Screen Capture
Step 1. Download and install CamStudio – FREE recording software:
1. Download CamStudio from here:
Notice*: Scroll page down until you find the download link.
2. After download is completed double click to “CamStudio2.7r316.exe” to start CamStudio installation.
3. Press “Next” at CamStudio Setup Wizard. *
Caution: CamStudio's installer program provides third-party software (toolbar) during installation. The software is safe for the computer but might be collecting personal data.
Remember to uncheck any boxes that provides additional software at installation time.
4. Press “Next” again.
5. In the next screen “UNCHECK” the “dealply” agreement (DON’T install it) and press “Next”.
6. Press “Next” when installation is finished.
7. Press “Finish” to launch CamStudio application
8. Press ‘OK” to “CamStudio.cfg” file missing error.
Step 2. Specify CamStudio record settings.
1. Region: From CamStudio main menu click on “Region”
In Region menu you can specify the screen region to be captured. The available settings are:
a. Region: Manually assign the recorder region after you press the Record button.
b. Fixed Region: Assign a fixed size region to capture (e.g. 320×240) and then press Record.
c. Window: Capture a specific program window. (You can choose the window to be captured as soon as you press the Record button)
d. Full Screen: Capture the entire computer screen.
2. Options: From CamStudio main menu click on “Options”
In CamStudio Options menu you can change:
a. Video Options: Adjust the quality of the captured video.
b. Cursor options: Here you can specify the visibility and the appearance of your cursor.
c: Audio Options: Specify audio source settings (e.g.volume) and audio and Video sync settings.
d. Record: You can specify if you wish to record audio or not and the audio source (e.g. speakers or microphone)
e. Autopan: If you enable Autopan then the CamStudio focuses on your mouse movements while recording.
f. Automatically stop recording: Stops recording after a specific time (e.g. after 60sec)
g. Program options: From inside this menu you can adjust all the other CamStudio options like: Minimize program on start recording, Directory for recorded file, name of AVI file, etc.
Also you can specify Keyboard Shortcuts*
Notice:* Keyboard Shortcuts are required when you want to capture full screen regions.
In Keyboard Shortcuts, the most significant settings are the “Record/Pause” and the “Stop” recording keys.
By default if you press “F8” you Start (Pause) the video screen capture process and if you press “F9” while capturing, then you completely end the recording process. You can modify these keys according to your preferred choices.
3. Tools: From CamStudio main menu click on “Tools”.
Inside Tools menu the most important option is the “SWF Producer”. When pressing SWF producer you can convert your AVI video to Flash.
4. Effects: From CamStudio main menu click on “Effects”.
Inside effects menu you can specify the Annotations to be include inside your video (e.g. Time, Caption, Watermark)
You can adjust Time Stamp, Caption and Watermark settings at Effects > Options menu:
At this point we have finished with the basic CamStudio settings and we are ready to proceed to record our presentation in video format .
Step 3. Start your screen capture.
After you have specified CamStudio settings,
1. Press the corresponding – CamStudio – “Record/Pause” shortcut key (e.g. “F8”by default) to start recording.
2. Whenever you want to stop capturing your screen simply press the corresponding shortcut key to "Stop” recording (e.g. “F9” by default).
Notice: You can press “F8” at anytime you want to pause recording
Step 4. Save your screen capture to video (AVI).
After the termination of screen recording it's time to save your video:
1. In “Save Avi File” window, type a name for your newly created video and “Save” it in your preferred location (e.g. Desktop).
That’s it! After that you ‘ll able to convert your video (using other utilities) in your preferred video format (.mov, video CD or DVD, etc.) or to publish your video on the web (e.g. YouTube, etc).
Tip: You can always record straight to Flash video (SWF) by pressing the toggle (AVI/FLASH) button before recording.
Enjoy!
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jeffcard
September 14, 2016 @ 11:05 am
My Eset's NOD32 thinks that the CamStudio download links are installing malware/viruses, is Camstudio safe? I used to record my computer screen with acethinker screen grabber, it's an online app, no need to download or install any software, free as well, share it here as an alterantive to Camstudio.
lakonst
September 14, 2016 @ 2:21 pm
@jeffcard: CamStudio is safe if you don't install the additional software that comes with it! Anyway thank you for your suggestion.