Best Screencasting Tools
Published in
3 min readNov 26, 2021
I create software documentation, and in the majority of cases, I publish it online. In one of my projects, I used a lot of screencasts, and the results were very good. According to statistics, topics with screencasts we most enjoyable as they were clear.
If you still doubt whether to use screencasts or not, here is the list of benefits for you:
- Screencasts are more informative than text. Just think of how many people use how-to videos. Why? The answer is simple — video content is easy to perceive.
- They are unambiguous. A 5-second screencast can clearly demonstrate how to use this or that feature of a software product. Most probably, a user will have to read a text description several times to grasp what to click and where to find the described feature. It is not the case with screencasts.
- Screencasts are clear for all users not depending on their age, education, background, and even country. Short screencasts without sound do not require translation and localization. They are universal for all types of audiences.
- This type of content attracts the attention of users. You can be sure that users won’t miss out on the information.
So, here are the best tools for you to create screencasts:
- Loom. This is one of the leading tools for video communication. One of the options is to make screencasts. It is easy to use, fast, and functional. You don’t have to be tech-savvy to use loom. It has both a free and paid plan.
- Screencast-O-Matic. This piece of software is very user-friendly, especially for beginners. It has a great feature — creating scripted recordings. It means that you can import a script and even break it into parts. Besides, it offers a wide variety of options for editing videos.
- Camtasia. This tool is the most feature-reach, and it has a user-friendly interface. It offers a lot of video enhancement features: graphics, icons, music, etc. It suits both beginners and experts. It has no free plan but offers a free trial.
- Apowersoft. That’s a good free screen recording tool. It offers all essential features. You can export your videos to several formats. One of the biggest advantages is that the tool doesn’t limit the length of your videos.
- OBS Studio. This is a popular open-source tool. It is a great choice for advanced users. It can be configured to your needs. The only drawback is that it is not quite suitable for beginners. It requires a learning curve.
Creating screencasts is a great skill for technical writers. I hope you’ll find a tool that will meet all your needs.
