MIT Libraries Screencast - A Good Example

Today I watched a screencast entitled "About the MIT Libraries" (available at http://libguides.mit.edu/video/ ) on their LibGuides page.

I have started creating video tutorials for library staff at my workplace, so I'm interested in how to make good screencasts; scripting, what to cover, how to speak, and how to display a screencast.  Watching MIT Libraries' introductory video gave me some ideas for my own work.

I suppose that most people who are likely to watch video tutorials know how to enlarge the viewing area so it fills more of the screen than the default 4 cm x 5 cm space on a webpage.  However, I wonder if it might be good to include a note--either as a caption to the static video screen, or initially in the video--that one can click on the 4-arrow icon to enlarge the picture.  Myself, I rarely enlarged video screens on webpages when I watched them.  But my husband always maximizes the screens because he can't stand watching something so small.  I wonder if people would eschew video tutorials based on their unawareness that they can make the screen bigger?  We post our tutorials on our workplace Youtube channel, so most users wouldn't find this an issue…I think?

In any case, I maximized the screen to watch MIT's video.  It captures the libraries' webpage and contains too much detail to watch in its smallest mode.

The narrator works her way step by step through the most basic steps on the home page; her explanations of the sidebar are clear and succinct.  She also directed viewers to other video tutorials for help using the sidebar selections.

The next part of the tutorial was a map of library locations, each representing a subject area or two.  The video also directs viewers back to the home page, and on to LibGuides to find the subject librarian for their faculty, and that librarian's recommended resources. 

The tutorial concludes by pointing to the "Ask Us" and "Tell Us" buttons on the home page which allow a simple way for students to communicate questions or comments. 

The screencast is under 4 minutes, and gives good basic info for students within that length of time.  There was only the briefest of stumbles on her words in the middle of the video, highlighting that the script was well-practiced and otherwise very well delivered.