Hate ctrl-c/v screenshots? make beautiful tutorials with this app
iorad.com
iorad.com
On the tutorial, don't make me type "google" to click the start button. If I click "Start", that's enough. I'm generally a thorough reader and I still didn't really see that you were asking me to type "google" vs. just anything and the button gives no indication if you click it.
On the tutorial, on step 5, you say "Click RECORD" - there are two record buttons, and neither is highlighted. This is just as frustrating as the "Start" button not working in step 1.
On the tutorial, on step 7, your "Publish" button is way outside the general area all of the other interactions have been - it's not obvious what to click to continue.
I agree with all of kaolinite's comments regarding general polish of the website.
Once I actually launch the app I get two loading screens, one after the other - not a big deal, but I'd try to consolidate that if possible.
I have no Java plugin installed, so I just get "Pick which window to record" with nothing in the drop-down and no indication of what's wrong. I have to bail right here. If I were a normal user, you'd have no indication of why I abandoned.
The actual app UI looks good and looks like it could have high potential, but I can't use it.
A few comments about the product itself: - Customization and branding is critical in companies, so make sure you quickly add a way to customize the bubbles, color scheme, and add a watermark logo on the recordings (or the "View" page). - Exporting would be an awesome way to turn this into something trainers could use in a class environment, especially if it could be used "offline" (not for editing, just actually viewing the tutorial). Flash would be great, or even just HTML5. Make sure it can integrate into existing HTML though (embedding). - An "Automatic" mode where things would run by themselves (non-interactive), along with mouse paths and clicks, would go a long way to compete with professional tools that do this already. In this case, exporting could be static videos. - Voiceovers (either directly recorded or uploading audio) would be awesome. If combining voice overs and automatic mouse controls, make sure you have some timing adjustments tools there :)
You're already a good ways through to becoming a competitor to software like Adobe Captivate. I see a bright future for you and, as soon as the above features are implemented, I'm convinced that you'll get a lot of clients like my current employer lining up and saying "Shut up and take my money!".
* Edit *: little feedback on useability: After grabbing a share link, I visited the URL and was very confused on which ones of the "Tutorial" or "Quick Guide" option was selected. You're going against the grain with these buttons, the "pressed" version should be the active one, and not vice versa.
e.g. font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;
My computer doesn't have Tahoma by default so it looked awful for me. Great idea though, will try it out now.
Ok, after a few minutes of playing around - I dislike your app. It feels very rough around the edges and I also dislike the reliance on Java (though I appreciate there may be little you can do in regard to this - however perhaps Flash would be possible?).
I would heavily recommend you spend a week or two refining the UI and making it smoother and nicer to use. The screenshots on your homepage instantly put me off - they are distorted, pixelated, highlighted poorly and taken in Firefox on what looks like Windows XP. Whilst I'm no mac-lover, I'd heavily recommend doing screenshots in Safari on OS X or - at the very least - Chrome on Windows. Take time on them. They are quite possibly going to be the first interaction that a customer has with your product.
Finally, I couldn't actually run your application. I'm running this on Ubuntu 10.10 with IceTea, so that'll be why. I appreciate that Ubuntu is unlikely to be one of your target OSes but cross-platform doesn't hurt.
So, all in all - a lot of potential but a poor implementation. Sorry to be harsh but I feel it's justified as you obviously have the capability to pull this off. Keep at it! :-D
Furthermore… pricing is cool. A pricing page is even cooler. If it's too early have the page. Say its too early.