Downloading the Camtasia Relay Recorder | Request a Camtasia Relay Profile |
Recording Your Screencast
Downloading the Camtasia Relay Recorder
- Go to http://camtasia.spu.edu/relay
- Enter your SPU username and password.
- Click Download Camtasia Relay Recorders.
- Click Download for the appropriate platform, and follow the installation prompts that appear on your screen.
Request a Camtasia Relay Profile
Once you have downloaded the recorder on your computer, please email onlinelearning@spu.edu or call 206.281.2212 to request a Camtasia Relay Profile. Your profile will determine how your recording will be finalized (i.e. a screencast to be posted in your Blackboard course site, an iTunes U audio and/or video file, a YouTube video). Camtasia will record whatever is on your screen plus your audio (a screencast). Based on your final product needs, ITS will then assign you a profile that you’ll use when recordings your screencasts.
- Open the documents or programs you want to appear on your screen as you are recording (i.e. PowerPoint presentation).
- Open Camtasia Relay.
- Enter your SPU username and password. Click Log In.
- Select a Profile.
Type a Title for your screencast.
Type a Description for your screencast, if desired.
- Check your audio input by clicking the microphone icon.
If you have more than one audio input on your computer, be sure to select the one that you will be using for your screencast. Use the slider to adjust the volume of your microphone if the audio is too quiet or loud.
Note: If you are having difficulty selecting your microphone or adjusting your volume, you may also need to select and adjust the appropriate audio input via your computer’s sound manager. If you have questions about that process, please contact us.
Note: We recommend using a USB wired or wireless microphone for recording. This type of microphone will produce better quality audio than your computer’s built-in microphone or an external mic that plugs into the mic jack on your computer.
- Click Test to check that your audio levels and video are indeed recording as desired.
- Once you’re ready to record, click the REC (record) button. A 3 second timer will appear, counting down the time before the recording will actually begin. The timer will then minimize so that it does not distract from your presentation.
Note: If you are using a headset to record your screencast, you will not hear the audio through your headset during the actual recording process.
- Once you have finished recording your screencast, select the Camtasia Relay Recorder and click the Stop button. It may take a few moments for Relay to finalize your recording.
- Once your screencast has finalized but before submitting it for final processing, you have the option to trim the beginning and end of your presentation.
Click the Trimming button.
Click and drag the marker along the timeline to where you’d like the presentation to start. Click Set presentation start.
Click and drag the marker along the timeline to where you’d like the presentation to end. Click Set presentation end.
- Click the Submit button when ready to publish your screencast and leave your computer running for a few minutes so that the screencast may upload to the Relay server.
- Once your screencast has finished processing, you should receive an email confirmation. You can also check the status of your screencast by clicking the Server icon.
The length of time needed for processing is dependent on how long your presentation is and how many other users are requesting processing at the same time.
Tip: For quickest processing results, break your recordings into shorter segments (20 minutes or less). Most recordings are available within several hours after being submitted.
Note: If you would like your presentation posted to SPU iTunes U or the University’s YouTube account, please forward your screencast confirmation email to itunes@spu.edu. Doing so will require a special profile so this will need to be discussed prior to recording your screencast.
