NCast Presentation Recorder Reference Manual
•
Session Length – If the cameras are recording a backup copy of the sound and video (which
is a really good idea) the MC must know that MiniDV tapes only record for an hour (or some
other length of time) and need to be changed at some point.
•
Discrete Units – The webcast file recording should be broken up into discrete units by topic
or speaker so that the file lengths remain manageable and viewers can download or view
only the material of interest. A continuous three or four hour conference recording is very
difficult to manage or post-process. The MC must plan for some breaks.
•
Speaker Order – If the MC plans on changing the order of speakers or presentations, the
recording crew needs to be informed so that the proper sequence of overlay graphics can be
readjusted.
13.3.3. The Conference Speakers
If possible, the recording crew should talk to the speaker(s) prior to their presentation and make the
following points:
•
Use a microphone – Even if the room audience can hear the speaker well, non-use of a
microphone can be a disaster for the webcast or recording. The proper microphone must be
on and functioning, period.
•
Stay near the podium – The speaker should stay near the lighted area of the podium and not
wander up and down the front of the room.
•
Don’t stand in front of the projection screen – Talking in front of the projection screen leads
to video backlighting problems and should be avoided.
•
Start of Talk – Ideally, the presenter’s discussion should start once the proper graphics are
being projected, and no sooner.
•
Repeat the Question – If there are audience questions or comments, the speaker should
repeat them or summarize them for the viewing audience.
13.3.4. The Conference Audience
The conference audience should be informed that a webcast/recording is underway and that a few rules
need to be applied:
•
Audience microphones – The audience needs to use the audience microphones any time a
question or comment is being given. The MC and/or speaker needs to help enforce this
directive.
•
Public audience – Comments provided by the audience are being recorded and archived so
that any type of inappropriate comment, personal attack, sexist joke, or other outburst should
be avoided.
13.3.5. Summary
Fixing these problems in post-production is very time-consuming and expensive and recompression
degrades the quality of the captured material.
With these relatively minor changes and help from the organizers and the MC and perhaps a little
training for the speakers the recordings will be captured well and become great historical archives worthy
of the effort.
13.4. V
IDEO
P
OST
-P
RODUCTION
If there is a need to do some minor editing on an archive file, there are tools which can clip and trim the
archive file without recompression of the material.
13.4.1. Streamclip
One such tool is a free utility called “Streamclip”. This program may be obtained at the following website:
http://www.squared5.com/
To use Streamclip to trim a file, follow these steps:
NCast Corporation
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