As part of our preparation for ScreencastCamp, we’d like to familiarize our readers with the event, as well as connect attendees with other attendees prior to the event. To do so, we’ve interviewed some ScreencastCamp veterans along with a few newbies to get a better sense of commonalities and differences in the work that our fellow screencasters do… and to find out random facts about them that are just plain fun to know!
Aaron Gulyas
Aaron Gulyas is an instructor at Mott Community College in Flint, Michigan. He teaches courses such as U.S., World, East Asian, American military, and Medieval European history as well as doing some part-time educational tech consulting for Mott’s Professional Development office. This will be Aaron’s first time at ScreencastCamp!
An interview with Aaron:
What are some things you use screencasting for?
I mostly use screencasting in my online history courses to provide brief (around 10 minute) mini-lectures for my students. I also use [screencasting] to explain digital tools to faculty and staff at Mott Community College in my position as a faculty tech consultant for the Center for Teaching and Learning.
What’s your favorite thing about screencasting? Least favorite?
My favorite thing is the ability to easily and quickly provide audiovisual information to students and colleagues in a way that is useful and personal. Least favorite is the hassle of hosting screencasted video on various sites and making sure students are able to access them easily and consistently.
What do you hope to learn at ScreencastCamp?
Tips and tricks for better editing of videos (In Camtasia, for example). I’m a bit hamfisted when it comes to editing.
If you could have any guest in your screencast, who would you choose?
The authors of some of the books I assign would be very useful. Combining it with a Skype conversation with students could be very valuable.
What is your favorite campfire treat?
S’mores.
Connect with Aaron:
- Cathy Nagle-Ervin
Cathy Nagle-Ervin is a seasoned retail management professional with over 25 years of experience working for companies such as Barnes&Noble College Division as well as PetSmart. For the past 12 years she has been employed as the Great Lakes Regional Manager with Eastern National. She is responsible for all the hiring, training, product development, merchandising, and inventory control for retail stores in nine states. In the winter months she also takes on additional responsibilities in producing screencasts and other company wide training projects. This will be Cathy’s second time at ScreencastCamp!
An interview with Cathy:
What are some things you use screencasting for?
Primarily for business purposes. Our company operates retail gift stores in national parks. I create screencasts in order to better train our staff, park rangers and park volunteers on our computer systems as well as on customer service skills.
I also created a 45 minute screencast for my husband’s employer, a catholic hospital, last year. It took five days from start to finish and was in a news broadcast theme. It’s kind of hard in a hospital setting to have a company wide meeting with three different shifts and patients to care for. It was awesome to see the finished product showing on two large screens in a huge conference room filled with employees. I received a ton of compliments and a couple of extra projects to work on from just this one screencast. Most of my screencasts are created for viewing on regular computer display screens.
What are some tools you use to screencast?
Camtasia both for the Mac and Windows platforms. Snagit and Jing. Final Cut Pro. My video camera, a good microphone, etc.. Also, I love FlixPress, VidBlaster and my new cool tool is Swivl. It makes life so much easier being a one woman production company. [We'll have a Swivl and some other gear available for ScreencastCampers to play around with when they're here! —Ed.]
Since you’re a 2nd year ScreencastCamp veteran, do you have any tips for newcomers?
Don’t be a wallflower! You are going to learn so much. Also, the best new ideas that I learned came from not hanging out with other professionals in your own field or a similar industry. I had more take always from not focusing just on business screencasters but from ideas and projects created by educators using screencasts in their classrooms.
What surprised you the most about ScreencastCamp?
How many Dans actually work at Techsmith! But seriously, how cool this entire weekend was and how awesome all the employees are at Techsmith. Maybe someday I might be lucky enough to work there too! (hint, hint) Lastly, just how much my screencast skills exploded from one weekend. I look at screencasts that I did just prior to and after camp, and I’m amazed at the improvement in my deliverable.
How do you feel about sporks?
Love them! Just used one to eat my KFC coleslaw for lunch yesterday. I stilll have my souvenir Techsmith spork from last year’s screencast camp on my office’s “Happy Board”. >>>
Connect with Cathy:
