Record video demonstrations with Adobe Captivate Classic

Click Video Demo on the Welcome screen. Or, click File > Record a New > Video Demo.

The recording window, marked by a red box, and the recording options appear.

Click Screen Area or Application based on what you want to record and specify the associated options:

Option - Screen Area

Select this option when you want to capture all events that occur within an area on the screen.

Select this option if you want to customize the dimensions of the recorded project. You can choose from a list of standard sizes, or define a custom size. The selected application is automatically resized to fit inside the boundaries of the recording area. Best practice is to have a clear idea of the dimensions of the project before you start recording it.

Select this option if you want to set the size of the recording window to the size of your computer monitor. The entire computer screen is treated as the recording window. If you work on dual monitors, you can choose the monitor that you want to use for recording. Recording in this mode can potentially produce large projects and output file sizes due to the large screen resolution on monitors.

Option - Application

Select this option to specify the application which you want to record. The Select The Window To Record drop-down lists all the open applications on your computer. Click the required application from this list.

Select this option if you want to record the entire application window. The dimensions of the application are not altered. The recording rectangle is resized to fit the application.

Select this option if you want to record defined areas in an application. For example, if you are recording a window that has three frames, the recording window snaps to individual frames when the mouse moves over them. The dimensions of the application are not altered. The recording rectangle is resized to fit the defined area in the application.

Select this option to record the narrator who demonstrates or presents a project or application including audio narration.

Do one or all of the following:

• Select a panning mode if you want the recording window to follow your movements across the screen. For more information, see Panning.
• If you are adding narration during recording, select the type of audio input. In the patch for subscription and Adobe Software Assurance customers, you can select System Audio to record audio from your computer's speakers, for example, the sound you hear when error messages pop-up. For more information, see System Audio.
• To change the default settings that Adobe Captivate Classic uses when recording a video demo, click Settings. For more information on customizing recording preferences, see Set video recording preferences.

Click Record.

Press End key (in Windows) or Cmd + Enter (Mac OS) when you have completed the recording.

For more information on setting and changing keyboard shortcuts, see Setting recording preferences in Captivate Classic.

Click File > Record a New > Video Demo.

On the dialog, choose the option Webcam Only.

If your webcam is turned on, you can see the webcam feed on the screen.

You can now customize the backgrounds in the videos that you shoot.

Shoot your footage with a plain background of a single color, remove that background, and replace it with something more attractive during post-production.

Here is a before and after example that illustrates how you can use this feature to alter your background.

You can change the background of your course at any point in time. 

• At the start - before starting to record, or, 
• After recording your video

To change the background, you first need to take a snapshot of yourself and mark out your outline. You then replace the background with one of your choices.

You can also use your desktop as a background for your webcam video. Click Desktop Screen.

On the screen, click Change Background.

Before you start recording, click Take my snapshot.

Start marking yourself by dragging the mouse across your image to draw a straight line across your face to mark the length. Then draw a straight line across your shoulders to mark the width.

To produce a better-quality foreground image, press Ctrl and draw a line from the marking line to edit the foreground to include just your image. 

To clean up background sections, click drag with the Alt key pressed.

To delete portions of the selection, hold your mouse and scribble across the area you want to delete.

Click I am fully satisfied if you are satisfied with the result, and would like to see the preview.

• Click if you want to define the foreground/background marking again.
• Click  if you want to retake the snapshot.

Click My Preview looks good if you are satisfied with how complete your image looks against the background.

Click anywhere on the preview screen to change the background to any one of those backgrounds packaged with Captivate Classic.

When editing the video demo, place your webcam video at the required position.

In the Property Inspector, click Change Background.

Select the background of your choice from a list of default backgrounds.

Bring the playhead to the point on the Timeline from where you want to start masking the video.

Click Mask Video at the bottom.

Choose the area to mask.

Click Mask Video. You can see that the area of the vide that has been masked is now indicated with an eye icon. Click the eye to unmask the portion of the video.

Play the video file using the Play button in the Timeline.

Pause (click the play button again) at the point where you require the pan and zoom effect.

Click Pan & Zoom in the Timeline. The Pan and Zoom icon appears in the video clip and the Pan & Zoom panel appears.

The Pan & Zoom panel displays the frame at the point you chose in the video.

To specify the area to be magnified, resize the blue box around the frame using the handles. Then, drag-and-drop the box to the required position on the frame. The smaller the box, the greater is the magnification.

You can also specify the magnification value in terms of percentage using the Scale slider or box.

Use the Speed slider to specify how fast Adobe Captivate Classic has to zoom in.

Click the transition icon that appears at the beginning and end of the video clip.

Choose a transition effect from the Transitions panel. To see a preview of a transition effect, hover your mouse over the effect.

In the Speed list at the top of the Transition panel, click the required speed for the transition.

Click the video clip in the Timeline.

Click to play the video and click the icon again to pause at the point where you want to split the video.

Click Split in the Timeline. The Timeline now shows two video clips.

Drag-and-drop the second clip to create space for the text that you want to insert.

In the button bar, click Text > Text Caption. The default text caption appears on a separate layer on the Timeline.

Drag-and-drop the text caption in the Timeline and position it so that it corresponds to the space between the two parts of the video clip.

Preview the project to check the timing of the text caption.

Click the video clip in the Timeline.

Click to play the video and click the icon again to pause at the point where you want to trim the video.

Click Trim in the Timeline. Start and end markers that define the region for trimming appear on the video clip.

Click or to move the start and end trim markers to the current playhead position. You can also click and drag the trim markers left or right to choose the portion of the video clip for trimming.

Click Trim in the Timeline.

Click Edit > Edit Mouse Points.

Click the mouse icon and modify the properties in the Property Inspector:

Choose the required pointer. Click Browse for any pointers stored on your local disk.

Choose to double the size of the pointer.

Toggle to show or hide the mouse action. When you hide the mouse action, the mouse icon is still visible on the video clip. However, when you play the video, the action from the previous mouse point to the hidden one is not visible.

By default, the mouse path is rough, traced by the actual movement of the mouse during recording. Select this option to make the mouse path smooth either using a straight line or a curve.

Select this option to slow the mouse movement down before the click occurs. This option is useful for a long mouse path that moves quickly and stops suddenly.

note: This option appears only if you have selected Smoothen Mouse Path.

Adds a visual click effect to the mouse movement.

Displays a quick, small burst of color when the user clicks the slide. You can select a color for the color burst.

Select this option to use a SWF file as a visual click effect. Adobe Captivate Classic includes two effects you can use. Test them by clicking the pop-up menu, selecting one, and then clicking Play. View the effect in the small preview window on the right.

To apply the modified properties to multiple mouse points in the video, click and click one of the options.

Click the video clip in the Timeline.

Click to play the video and click the icon again to pause at the point where you want to insert a mouse action.

Click Insert > Mouse. A pointer appears on the frame at the playhead point. Adobe Captivate Classic plots the mouse position based on the coordinates derived from the previous and the subsequent mouse points.

Drag-and-drop the pointer to the required place on the frame.

Edit the properties using the Property Inspector. For details on the different properties you can edit, see Change mouse properties.

In the CPVC file, click Insert > Video Recording.

For information on recording video from within CPTX files, see Insert videos in CPTX files.

Select the recording options and the area you want to record, and click Record.

In the full screen mode, click . In the CPVC file, click File > Publish.

Specify a title for the project.

Specify a folder in which the project must be published. By default, the project is published in the folder specified in the project preferences.

Click one of the options in the Select Preset list.

Adobe Captivate Classic automatically sets the video settings based on the option you select. If necessary, you can customize the settings by selecting the Customize Video Settings check box.

Drag-and-drop the black start and end markers to define the portion of the video you want to publish.

You can also specify the Start and End time in the Property Inspector. Click anywhere on stage outside the video to view the Start and End time.

Do one of the following actions:

• Click File > Publish to publish the portion of the video as an MP4 file. See Publish video as an MP4 file for more information.

• Click File > Publish to YouTube to publish the portion of the video directly to YouTube. See Upload projects to YouTube directly from Adobe Captivate Classic for more information.

Save your video demonstration as a CPVC file.

Open the CPTX file in which you want to insert the video demonstration.

Click the slide after which you want to insert the video demo, click Insert, and click CPVC Slide.

Browse and select the CPVC file you want to insert.