Presenting your ideas to ­people, ­especially if it’s explaining how to use a ­particular piece of software or ­demonstrate its latest features, can be a serious amount of effort. It is ­mind-numbingly frustrating, as you know what you want them to know, but your audience ­cannot read minds.

Camtasia is screen recording software that captures everything you do on the screen. This is touted as being the best screen recording software on the Net, and it’s easy to see why. The interface is very good and the tools are very ­powerful.

SmartFocus keeps track of where the action is happening on the screen while you record it. It then produces a video that zooms in on parts that you want your audience to see. You can add ­narration to the video on the fly or you can edit it in after recording. If you need to send someone a PowerPoint ­presentation you can use the Camtasia toolbar within PowerPoint to record the entire presentation and email it.

We’ll definitely be using Camtasia in our web video clips to illustrate how ­certain pieces of software work.

Get it for R2726 (incl VAT) from Holton & Associates on 011-789-6181 or visit www.holton.co.za for more info.