Request For (More) Streaming/Recording Options
For reasons that have very little to do with education, I am currently the owner of a computer running Windows 7.
Don’t get me wrong, I still love my MacBook Pro. OS X Snow Leopard is one of the best operating systems I’ve ever used. Still, there’s a benefit to having more than one OS available to me. (Not the least of which is the fact that as my school’s Tech Liaison I’m required to support Windows AND Mac.)
The problem I’m encountering is replacing software. There’s some apps that are cross-platform, but for everything else I need to find an equivalent in the Windows world for something that was only written for the Mac. I am very much aware of the irony of that statement.
So here’s what I want: I’m looking for ways to record audio/video, especially (but not limited to) recording things displayed on my screen. On a Mac I can simply use QuickTime to make a screencast, as that feature has been built in since Snow Leopard came out. If I need a more complex solution, there’s a mix of free and/or open source software that can give me the solution I want.
But what if I’m trying to demo software that doesn’t run on a Mac? Or hey, My Win7 desktop is more powerful (because it’s almost brand new, compared to my 2+ year old MacBook), maybe I want to take advantage of that?
Here’s the options I have so far:
Each of these is more or less free. (Jing & Screencast-o-Matic have you to pay to get more features, CamStudio is 100% free.) I’ve used each to make video tutorials for my students, and currently flip between CamStudio and Screencast-o-Matic for my current Windows recording needs.
What I’m lacking (and would like to try) is streaming. I’ve already done it successfully on my Mac with the aforementioned link, but have yet to find a free app (or apps) for Windows that will give me similar results. The three front runners are:
- Google+ (I can stream my desktop when running a Hangout, but my options are fairly limited compared to my other two choices. It’s free but I get what I pay for.)
- XSplit (I have friends who like this one, but you have to pay for it using a subscription model.)
- ManyCam (I really like the features for this one, though I’m not sure I’ll do enough streaming to justify the $50 price tag to get the huge ugly watermark off the screen.)
So what am I leaving out? What apps/websites will let me stream my desktop and/or mix audio/video feeds together? The price to beat is $50, because right now ManyCam’s the best thing I’ve seen for Windows that will do what I want, but I’m still not sure I’ll be streaming often enough to justify that price tag. (There was a time I broadcast on Ustream once a week, but that was years ago.)
Thoughts?
