GoRails – Ruby on Rails screencasts for web developers
gorails.com
gorails.com
I write my scripts out when I do my videos. It helps me prepare the lesson plan. I place all the code I'll type in there too. Then I record. And then if I deviate from my script, I can just fix it up. It doesn't need to be a 1:1 thing.
But I find that this really helps speed up the process because I have a plan in place, and the script can easily turn into the transcript.
Just thought I'd share to see if there's anything you can steal from this process.
What's a little bit negative is the sound quality of the screencasts, it's really, really bad. It would be a really important improvement if you got a proper studio microphone and did some audio post-processing (I recommend https://auphonic.com/ for this kind of stuff, it's magic what they do).
Heil PR 40 - the microphone KeyCastr - visual keyboard shortcuts
Both are valuable.
I've watched a couple of them now and, if I hadn't seen your comment, I don't think I would have given the audio a second thought.
If Chris Oliver happens to see this: nice work!
So far, the feedback from people who learned from an episode was that they didn't even notice the audio quality was bad which I'm happy about. It will improve as I have practice, but the content should matter more than the quality of audio.
Ruby Tapas[2] by Avdi Grimm is a good replacement - although it's ruby and not much rails.
[1] - http://www.metacasts.tv/
Haven't done much recording before, so I'm learning the ropes. Auphonic looks really cool. I'll definitely be checking them out.
The traditional pop filter made from a pair of tights and a wire coathanger works very well too.
Also get some good closed back headphones asap, so you can monitor how you're coming in as you speak.
The next thing to think about after you're getting a decent capture is some kind of dynamics control, ie. compression, but that's beyond the scope of this comment.
Like the parent says compression is also quite important. It’s a big part of what makes radio voices sound radio, for example. Seeing it simplistically it is basically about lowering the dynamics of your sound—make the loud parts softer, so you can make the whole thing louder.
Any audio editing software comes with basic compression plugins. It takes some exercise to get right. Also, as you are making parts of your recording louder, any bad acoustics, noises artefacts are amplified.
Some recording software allows you to monitor effects while you are recording—this can help in finding the right acoustics. Of course there will always be a slight delay—a dedicated hardware compressor solves this problem.
It has honorable pricing, an unlimited trial, and every feature you could ever need. It's particularly well suited for the kind of stuff you're doing: it has ripple editing, automatic alignment of repeated takes and so on. Can't recommend it enough. Make sure to read the manual though, it uses the mouse buttons in an unusual way.
It is definitely worth $9 for all of the existing great content.
- Look into adding transcripts (you will get lots of traffic from google)
- Add RSS feed + iTunes feed (www.apple.com/itunes/podcasts/specs.html)
- Add "feedback" tab at the top where people can get in touch
- Use that feedback to develop your product
- Have a marketing plan! How to get new customers and keep them.
- Have a way to generate episode ideas people are looking for (ask them)
- Create an intro with your name+email (if downloaded you want branding)
- Try trello.com for developing episode ideas (create lists/add nodes, etc)
The thing I would personally like to see more, is screencasts from (or similar to) Destroy All Software[0]. These don't typically target very specific gems, but rather cover general aspects of programming, design, testing methodologies and how those concepts integrate. I personally found those far more thought-provoking.
Another side-benefit is that whereas some screencasts about a specific gem or a library become almost irrelevant when new versions are released, those more approach-oriented talks and screencasts don't go stale that quickly.
I personally have mixed feelings about Avdi Grimm's approach. Some of his small tweaks are brilliant. Others feel to me like OO going totally overboard for no good reason. That's where I identify more with Gary Bernhardt's views. In that sense, DAS is perhaps much harder to replace.
Most beginner tutorials just say "do this, do that" on things that aren't part of Rails proper. I found this really frustrating and glad you're thinking like a beginner would.
One thing I would like to see that I'm spoiled from Railscasts is a quick summary of what you will be doing and the results that were achieved prior to the tutorial starting.
I'd love to add this to my podcasts/video-casts. Or, at the least, to my RSS-reader to see when new episodes arrive. Maybe this is a good idea to add (and a nice subject to make a screencast about...)