Don't tell me SHOW ME!

Transcription

1 Don't tell me SHOW ME! Charles Cave Summary of a presentation made at the ATSC Conference th October 2014 This article is about videos and how they can be used for effective technical communication. I make videos as part of my job and I will show you how to make videos part of your technical communications. I think watching someone doing a task is the best way to learn. So that is why this article is titled Don't tell me SHOW ME. I will introduce the tools I use and show some different styles of videos. A video doesn't just mean a scripted fifteen minute production with professional actors. A video could be a 20 second screen cast or an informal video made with a smart Phone. A story of the home handyman Let me tell you about a recent plumbing experience. Our toilet cistern was leaking water into the pan so I decided to fix it myself. I didn't think the task would be too difficult as everything should be easily accessible. I removed the lid and was confronted with a complex plastic structure. I jiggled the mechanism but it seemed fixed and I couldn't work out how to remove it. I Google searched for instruction manuals but found nothing. I got quite frustrated and thought of giving up and calling a plumber. Then I decided to search YouTube for a solution. It turns out there are dozens of videos showing how to fix toilets and change tap washers. The first video I found was only 47 seconds but explained how to remove the assembly. The video obviously fills a gap in service documentation for Caroma plumbing products as this clip has had 61,426 views. Another video showed how to remove the rubber seal. How would you have documented these procedures in writing what diagrams or photographs would you use? What words would you use? Making the video was certainly a lot easier and quicker.

2 Lessons learnt from YouTube As a technical communicator, what did I learn from the experience of using YouTube for guidance? I could have called a plumber to do the work, but watching these videos meant I had someone show me how to do the task. For something as tactile as plumbing, a video of an experienced person showing how to do the task was the most effective form of instruction. The same principle applies to software a video of someone interacting with the computer to perform a task, with a voiceover and a means of highlighting or pointing at things on the screen. Example of using a web site I work in North Sydney and I am a regular user of the Stanton library. I wanted to explain to a friend how to use the web based catalogue to see what new DVDs are available. There are several ways to document this task. I created each of these artefacts so let's have a look at each, starting with the videos so you can understand the web site. A textual list of steps A series of screenshots with notes A video with a voiceover explaining the tasks A video with voiceover, callouts and annotations Tools Video and Audio I recorded the video using the Camtasia software which I use as part of my job. Camtasia costs about $300 and is made by the TechSmith company who also make Snagit and Jing. Both Snagit and Jing can record video but are unable to edit. A product must have editing capabilities to be of any use for making screencasts. I recorded my voice using a good quality microphone. It looks fancy but it cost about $100 with the shock mount. I bought a solid metal microphone stand and pop filter to complete the setup.

3 I use the free Audacity software for recording the voice and editing the recording. Editing means snipping out bad pieces of audio, adjusting levels, removing background noise and boosting the bass frequencies. It is possible to record directly into Camtasia, but I prefer the control of creating a standalone soundtrack which can be imported into the video project. As for the narration I made some brief notes of what I was going to do on the computer with a list of steps to follow. Next, I made the recording in one take as I used the library web site. For instructional videos like this, a clear conversational voice is more important than having a voice like a radio announcer. Using callouts The challenge of this kind of video is directing the viewer s attention to what you are doing. The viewers will tend to follow the mouse but the effectiveness of the video can be improved by using callouts to draw attention to a particular area on the screen. 1.Video and narration only. First, watch the screencast without callouts. 2. Video with narration and callouts. Now watch the video again with added callouts you will see a blue arrow, drawing rectangles and spotlight. Adding callouts is easy. This is what the Camtasia edit window looks like with the callout options highlighted. There are many styles of callouts arrows, spotlights, sketch motion, and text. These effects can be faded in and out, and you can choose a color that works well with the background image. You can learn more about callouts by watching the tutorial videos on the Camtasia web site, 3. Video with narration and callouts. As well as directing the viewer s attention, you can add text. Camtasia has a facility for adding captions. I prefer to use the Text callout. Here is the video again with these text captions. You probably noticed the white background at the bottom of the screen. The text was hard to read against the library web page so I created a white rectangle using the GIMP image editing program then added to the video. In Camtasia you can build up layers so the image was on top of the screen recording, then the text callout on top of the white rectangle

4 4. Screenshots with text. A useful feature of Camtasia is the ability to export a frame from a screen recording. I watched the video and exported appropriate frames as PNG files. This is a very efficient method of taking screen captures as you can watch the video carefully to make sure you take a screen capture at just the right moment. You can also check that you are documenting all the required steps. Follow this link to view a document with screen shots and text. How much information is missing from this text. Do I need to add more descriptions and explanations? Remember how I said a lot more in my impromptu narration. Should I add callouts to the images in this document to give extra clarity? Do you think reading this document alone explains the steps? 5. Text only. The minimalist documentation is plain text. 1. Access 2. Click Newly Added Tab 3. Select Added in the Last drop down list choose Last 7 days or other option 4. In In a specific format drop down list select the DVD options 5. Select Must Have Items on Shelf if you only want available items 6. Click Go These instructions make sense after you have seen the videos or used the web site. Now we have looked at some of the many ways the task can be explained. Which was the most useful method for you? For the first time users Probably the video. And what about a quick reference for later? Most likely it is the text for a quick reference. Choosing video instructions or text There are several things to consider when choosing video over text: 1. How effective are the instructions as a video? 2. How much time and effort is required to create the video? 3. Is the video usable without sound? My video with the captions could be watched without the sound. 4. Where will the video be watched? On a PC, Laptop, ipad, iphone, Android?

5 Video File Formats and quality settings Videos can be produced in several formats. The choice of format depends on where the video will be displayed. But I will give you my recommendation now MP4. Camtasia can produce several file formats MP4 gives Good quality, small file size and plays on most desktop browsers, newer smartphones and tablets. It is the best format for sharing. WMV Only plays in Windows Media Player or a Silverlight player. They do not play on Macs and there is only limited mobile support. MOV QuickTime native format for Macs but needs QuickTime player or itunes on Windows. Also has Limited mobile support AVI Not intended for distribution and requires specific audio and video codecs for playback on other machines As well as choosing a Video format, you can choose settings for a tradeoff between quality and file size. I use MP4 format and 90% video quality as I want clear screen images. Camtasia offers a choice of audio bitrates and I use 128 kbps. Filming with a smart phone (iphone/ipad/android) So far I have been talking about screen captures but I want to spend a few moments talking about live action video. We saw the plumbing videos and thesee were most likely filmed with a phone. Your smart phone is a high definition digital video camera! You don't need to hire a film crew you can now make your own movies by yourself. There are many accessories you can get to improve the quality of your filming. I bought a mini tripod on ebay for $ 5. TechSmith has a product called Fuse for transferring videos and photos from your Android or iphone directly into Camtasia over a Wi Fi network. Fuse is free of charge, and very easy to use. On Camtasia you choose the option to connect a mobile device. A QR code is displayed. Next you run Fuse on your phone, scan the code and make the connection. Making videos with still images Videos don t have to be made with video recorders or screen casts. You can use a series of still images and apply animations, callouts and voice. I use PowerPoint to make title slides and backgrounds then export the slides as PNG files.

6 Capturing activity on iphone or ipad What if you want to record a screencast of what is happening on your iphone or ipad? I had this challenge to show the functionality of an app my company had built. The solution was to use the Reflector software from a company called Airsquirrels. I was able to display the iphone and ipad on my Windows machine using Airplay, then capture the activity in Reflector using Camtasia. Su mary I hope you are now convinced that videos can be useful for instruction and are not particularly difficult to make. Think like a film maker. Producer Director. What message do you want to convey in your film? Script. You are the script writer you need to know the purpose of your video and have a plan even if it is just a list of things to do. Camera. The camera is the screen capture software or smart phone. Sound. Sound recording with a good microphone and Audacity. Voice. The Voice talent can be You Actors could be you or your colleagues. And most importantly the Audience is your users appreciating your clear instructions and explanations. Are you ready to make movies? Further links and resources can be found in this blog article Don t tell me Show me!