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Recording needs fine tuning?

edited September 2011 in General Discussion

Hello I have just joined today and downloaded ;
CamStudio_Setup_v2.6b_r294_(build_24Oct2010)
I am on Windows 7 Home Premium Version 6.1 (Service Pack1) 64bit Operating System and using Firefox 6.
I have also downloaded Vcredist_x86.exe and Vcredist_64.exe 2008 and 2010.
When I start to use CamStudio I have got it so that eachtime I record it records the same a small area of the screen.
When recording is stopped it comes up in topleft Converting then a new tab opens and the rec. playbacks. The playback is a slightly larger square than the area I am recording and the borders on each side are black. The actual picture is black and white with a slope from top right to bottom left. there is also a diagonal line running through the middle of screen. It looks like a tv just needing a little more tuning :)
I record webcam chats with Frontcam then go to where file is saved and use WinAVI to convert file to MPEG-2 which reduces file size massively with little reduction in sound or picture quality.
Can anyone tell me how to fine tune my rec. and where my files are stored? I dont get an option to name my file once I stop either, it converts and opens in a tab, I cant right click on tab either.
Will I also be able to convert this AVI to MPeg-2 like I have been doing, did see this other thing SWF but didnt really know if I would be better off with WinAVI as the mpeg emails to WMP.
Sorry for going on, not really pc savvy so wanted to give as much info as I could.
Thanks again
Rod.

Comments

  • edited September 2011
    Good morning, Rod, and welcome!

    You've made an excellent start on getting your CamStudio recordings just the way you want them.

    1. Re the slanted picture: that is most likely caused by the dimensions on your selected area's not being even numbers. Just change any number that's not divisible by 2 to one that is.

    2. Program Options: you'll find the "Program Options" selection on the Options menu invaluable in setting CamStudio the way you want it. You can set up a separate folder for your CS recordings and tell the program to put them there. The ones you've already done are most likely in the Windows temporary folder or possibly in the program folder. I keep a shortcut to my CS data on my desktop.

    3. In Program Options you can also tell CS to either ask you for a file name or to use the autonaming capacity, which includes the date and time. That's the option I use since I do screen captures of an often action-filled webcam with puppies racing around and need to start when they do without name a file beforehand, but I suspect for your purposes having the program ask you would work well.

    continued in next post . . .
  • edited September 2011
    ...continued

    4. In Program Options you can also tell CS not to play the recording after it finishes, as well as several other options there that you might want to look at.

    5. Regarding file size, our resident expert, Terry Britton, recommends Xvid as the codec as the best combination of quality and small file size. He recommends the version by Jawor (pls see Terry's post here: http://screencasttutorial.org/53/jawors-xvid-my-newest-codec-of-choice-for-games-webinars-or-tutorials-453).

    Terry and another member here did a series of experiments by which they arrived at the determination that xvid worked well and provided specific settings that work well. Here's a link to the thread about their experiments and preferred settings: http://camstudio.org/forum/discussion/658/req-recommended-settings-for-recording-for-90-min.#Item_49

    You may or may not be aware that AVI has a file size limit of 2GB. That's the primary reason that the recording settings above help so much.

    6. Converting AVI files. Terry also recommends as a converter AnyVideoConverter (free). I had been using another converter but now use AVC almost exclusively, but it sounds as if the converter you've been using works well. Terry says that YouTube is now using MP4 as their default format.

    There are some "how to" videos prepared by Terry at the top of this thread which you might find helpful.

    It sounds as if with a few tweaks you've got CamStudio working just the way you want it.

    Jo
  • edited September 2011
    Jo,

    I've bookmarked this post of yours to share down the road, for sure! Thanks!

    I've also had good luck with MediaCoder FLV edition, which has an MP4 option.
    http://www.mediacoderhq.com/flv-converter/
    Download:
    http://www.mediacoderhq.com/mirrors.htm?file=MediaCoder-FLV-VP8-Edition-5185.zip

    Terry
  • Hi sorry abou delay replyn been unwell. Now Ive got loads of work to catch up on but will try all of the above soon, sorry for being so rude :)
  • Not a problem. Glad you're feeling better.
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