I should have done screencasts like the above long ago. It’s not that they’re great, but they are a wonderful excuse to use the canned lounge music I’ve got. Those videos are now on the front page of the official Scriblio site, and I did five more to demo the installation and configuration. Big thanks go to Collingswood NJ Public Library Director Brett Bonfield who let me use his library like this.

DataPortability – Connect, Control, Share, Remix from Smashcut on Vimeo.

From DataPortability.org:

The DataPortability Project is a group created to promote the idea that individuals have control over their data by determing how they can use it and who can use it. This includes access to data that is under the control of another entity.

• You should be able to decide what you do with that data and how it gets used by others
• Open Source solutions are preferred to closed source proprietary solutions
• Bottom-up distributed solutions are preferred to top down centralized solutions

DataPortability – Join The Conversation from Smashcut on Vimeo.

Professional screencast producer Michael Pick has joined Automattic and shuttered Smashcut, his production company.

It’s not all bad, though. He’s been busy making instructional videos for WordPress.com (many of which are useful for WordPress.org users), explaining things like how to manage tags or use the Press This! feature, and answering the question “What should I do first?”

What does this suggest about the pro screencasting marketplace? Pick says “this is a huge underdeveloped niche, [with fewer] screencasters with chops than there are jobs.” For my part, I both glad to see him producing those WordPress how-tos, while sad I can’t tap his skills for my own projects. Who else is out there?

Extra: a few nominations from ReadWriteWeb, and an interview with Pick.

I’m as annoyed as the next guy about how hard it is to find a decent screencast app for Mac. The forthcoming Mac OS 10.5’s new iChat Theater (and the built-in screen sharing/control features) should create some new opportunities for developers, but right now it’s hard to know what works or is worth trying.

Further, I narrowed the field with the following requirement: I need an app that records to QuickTime-compatible files, not Flash. Here’s what I’ve found so far:

• Snapz Pro X, the $70 oft-cited front runner is now native.
• iShowU, $20.
• ScreenRecord, $20.
• Copernicus, $free.

Extra: this how-to pointed out OmniDazzle and Mouseposé as tools to help draw users’ focus during both live or recorded demos.

screencast, mac, mac os x, apple, demo, screen sharing, screen copy