How to use xvidcap to record steps on Linux openSUSE
Sometimes I have to use the software xvidcap to record the steps for each action. This way will be more convenient for users to understand when I am teaching them. We all know that you can find many of this type of software in Windows, but there are only a small number of software have this capability in Linux. xvidcap is one of these softwares. Now, I want to share how to use it as follow:
Step1: Please make sure this software has been installed.
# xvidcap
bash: xvidcap: command not found
Step2: Install it via zypper command for opensuse
# zypper in xvidcap
Step3: You can run this application right now
# xvidcap
Step4: Click Select rectangular area to capture that you can draw a rectangle around the area you wish to record.
Step5: Here you can see the following example
Step6: Finally, you can click Start recording button to record steps
For the common no-sound problem in Ubuntu, ...:
1. Uninstall xvidcap in Synaptic
2. Install xvidcap from http://sourceforge.net/projects/xvidcap/files/xvidcap/1.1.7/xvidcap_1.1.7jaunty_i386.deb/download
3. Lock the installed version in Synaptic
4. Install pavucontrol in Synaptic (Needed in Ubuntu 10.04 but not in Linux Mint 10: already present)
5. Open the program with padsp xvidcap
6. Click on the recording button (red circle)
7. Run pavucontrol, go to the Recording tab and there choose Monitor of Analog Stereo Internal Audio
Done!!
To record with sound, the program has always to be run with padsp xvidcap (for example from ALT+F2). To run it always like that from the menu: run alacarte, go to Sound and video, then to XVidCap Screen Capture, Properties and where it says Command put padsp xvidcap.
The stated is to record the system sound, that is, the one coming out of the speakers, that can be of a song or movie of our hard drive or pendrive played by Totem, of a Flash music video of a website played by Firefox, ...
Nevertheless, sometimes it can be necessary to record the microphone sound, for example if we want to make a videotutorial to explain how a program works. In this case we put xvidcap in recording state, run pavucontrol and in the Recording tab we put Analog Stereo Internal Audio (without "Monitor of" ahead).
If we only want to record sound (without video) we can run from ALT+F2 gnome-sound-recorder. The first time probably it will be configured to record from the microphone. To record the system sound we run with ALT+F2 gnome-volume-control, go to the Hardware tab and in Profile we put Analog Stereo Output (it's also possible to do this running pavucontrol and using the Configuration tab).
But when we finish we have to put again Analog Stereo Duplex in the Profile of Hardware of gnome-volume-control (or of Configuration of pavucontrol), so we can still choose the origin of the sound when recording with xvidcap.
Another option, not to have to change once and again between Analog Stereo Duplex and Analog Stereo Output neither limit the sound source for xvidcap, is to leave Analog Stereo Duplex and use also gnome-sound-recorder with padsp ahead, that is, run padsp gnome-sound-recorder. Like the stated for padsp xvidcap, to change where we want to record the sound from, we put the program recording, open pavucontrol and in the Recording tab we put the desired option. We also can change the menu entry if we want with alacarte, going to Sound & video, then to Sound Recorder and then to Properties.
NB: sometimes, to change from Analog Stereo Duplex to Analog Stereo Output it may be necessary to change first to Off, close, open again and then change finally to Analog Stereo Output. The same for the opposite change. If not, the computer may "not notice" that we have applied the change.
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To install it in a x86_64 system I just have to use the --force-architecture option to the dpkg -i command.
user@host:~/Desktop$ sudo dpkg --force-architecture -i xvidcap_1.1.7jaunty_i386.deb
But when trying to run it I see that there are some i386 libraries missing. In order to easily install them I use the getlibs script.
user@host:~/Desktop$ padsp xvidcap
xvidcap: error while loading shared libraries: libtheora.so.0: cannot open shared object file: No such file or directory
user@host:~/Desktop$ getlibs /usr/bin/xvidcap
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About getlibs: http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=474790