Don't wiggle, sketch!

Thoughts on Instructional Design and TechSmith Camtasia

There are many different tools for instructional design. And I have seen many different approaches to interactive content. In this blog, I share some occasional thoughts on what I am seeing in this rapidly growing field. Have questions or thoughts to share? Please post your comments below or share them by contacting me.

The screen recording feature in Camtasia is a quick way to put an explainer video together for a software system. However, don't let the ease of recording make you forget that a little extra effort goes a long way.

Case in point: When explaining an item on the screen, don't wiggle your mouse pointer for emphasis or to draw the learner's attention to the item. Take a few moments as you are editing to add annotations to highlight the items of interest. A colorful and contrasting Sketch Motion box adds just the right amount of motion and is guaranteed to draw the learner's attention.