Campbell Craig :: The Irish Duck

10 Tips for Recording Audio

// August 4th, 2010 // No Comments » // e-learning

I have been doing a lot of audio recording as part of work for the e-Learning module I am working on and if you don’t have the budget for a professional voice-over person or you just prefer to do-it-yourself, these tips may help you to create more professional screen recordings using a product like Captivate (which I use) or another screen recording tool.

1.  Storyboard your presentation and script it out (might do an article on this one day) making sure to note where slides change or where a point should be emphasized with voice inflection or a pause.

2.  Record your visuals first without audio, but for practice talk through the audio so that you get the right timing for slide changes. Personally, I’ve found the audio quality is much better when the visual and audio tracks are recorded separately, plus programs like Captivate have bugs in this, but thats a different story.

3.  It’s a good idea to start and finish your recording all on the same day as your voice changes pitch. It’s weird but I find it really hard to make my voice sound the same on a different day.

4.  Record the whole thing in one take if you can, it doesn’t have to be a perfect one track wonder. If you mess up a line, make a loud noise to cause a spike on the audio track, pause a moment and then begin again. The spike on the audio track indicates where you need to come back to for editing. I use GarageBand and Audacity, but its totally up to you what software you use.

5.  Take a big drink of water before you begin and if you need to have some during the recording, just go ahead. Again, make a loud noise to indicate it’s an area of the track that needs editing, pause and then continue with the script.

6.  Avoid coffee and sugary drinks before recording as it does something weird to your saliva production and can make for some interesting mouth noises.

7.  Stand up to speak if you can. At the very least sit up straight on the edge of your chair and drop your knees to open up your chest for maximum voice projection and nice deep breaths.

8.  I use a headset with a mic which works pretty well as you can position the mic a short distance from your face, and out to the side to minimize breathing and mouth noises.

9.  Make sure to do your recording when traffic noise and background noises will be at a minimum. I always record in an office no-one uses as my mic picks up every little noise. In the past, I have recorded with a box over my head, weird but hey it works. You can remove background noise in the post production afterward, but it’s not always perfect.

10. Finally, it may sound random but having apple slices handy while you are recording is a good idea because the pectin in apples helps to reduce mouth noises I read somewhere.

So, hopefully thats a few cool tips for you all. Good luck and feel free to share with me your experiences.

Edutainment Links

// August 2nd, 2010 // No Comments » // awesomeness, e-learning, games

As you all know I do a fair bit of research in e-Learning and look at several hundred web links monthly. While doing so, I like to document a few of the better ones. So here you go – 100 Learning Game or as I call them Edutainment links. If you are already developing learning games, these links will broaden your horizons, as they did mine. If you are contemplating beginning – it might help to look at links that interest you to get some grounding ideas.

1. It is All Fun and Games…And Then Students Learn- Kapp Notes, July 30, 2008
2. Building Better Learning Games- Learning Visions, April 9, 2009
3. Marc Prensky – Digital Game-Based Learning
4. Gadgets, games and gizmos for learning- Clive on Learning, January 29, 2008
5. How to Delight and Instruct in the 21st Century
6. What Makes a Learning Game?
7. Serious Games Blog
8. mLearn08: MiLK: students building mobile learning games in higher education by Debra Polson- Ignatia Webs, November 12, 2008
9. Marc Prensky – Twitch Speed, June 17, 2009
10. Using computer games in education- ThirdForce Blog, January 30, 2009
11. Digital games and learning gains (PDF), June 17, 2009
12. Learning in Immersive worlds: A review of game-based learning
13. Army War College – digital game resources
14. Immerse Yourself in Another Language- Kapp Notes, June 3, 2008
15. Resources: Games and Gaming in Education- Don’t Waste Your Time
16. Which name is better – Serious Games or Educational Simulations or…?- The Learning Circuits Blog, October 13, 2007
17. Interactive learning with game-based design principles
18. More Educational Games- Kapp Notes, August 7, 2008
19. Examples from TWITCHSPEED.COM Digital Game-Based Learning, June 17, 2009
20. The Art of Making Video Games- Kapp Notes, June 10, 2008
21. Linking Commercial Games with Defense
22. Colleges Play Games- Kapp Notes, May 27, 2008
23. Casual Games get Serious, June 17, 2009
24. Aspects of Game- Based Learning
25. Walk a Mile in My Shoes: Games Let You Do That- Kapp Notes, July 30, 2007
26. Educause
27. Digital Game Based Learning
28. Good Video Games and Good Learning
29. Digital Games: A Motivational Perspective
30. The use of computer and video games for learning
31. For a Better World: Digital Game and the Social Change Sector
32. Games for Change – Toolkit
33. Lego Games
34. Additional Resources for Digital Game-Based Learning
35. Why Are Video Games Good For Learning?
36. Teaching Educational Games Resources
37. using the technology of today, in the classroom today
38. Simulation Games – A Learning Tool
39. Video games and the future of learning
40. moving learning games forward
41. 36 Learning Games to Change the World
42. Game Development Research
43. BBC School Games
44. Yes You CAN Create E-learning Games- Bozarthzone , June 22, 2007
45. Apple Learning Games
46. And You Thought Mechanical Engineering was Boring- Kapp Notes, August 14, 2008
47. Adopting Digital Game-based Learning: Why and How- Upside Learning Blog, March 26, 2009
48. ZaidLearn: 75 Free EduGames to Spice Up Your Course!, December 11, 2008
49. A Theory of Fun- Clive on Learning, August 16, 2007
50. Games e-Learners Play, April 29, 2009
51. The treatment matrix- Clive on Learning, August 5, 2008
52. PDF: Serious games: online games for learning (PDF), June 17, 2009
53. Where games, sims and 3D worlds meet- Clive on Learning, June 24, 2007
54. The Top 5 Platforms for Creating Educational Video Games « Educational Games Research, June 17, 2009
55. Caspian’s ILS taxonomy- Clive on Learning, November 17, 2008
56. 24 Questions about computer games and education- The Learning Circuits Blog, August 8, 2005
57. Casual and Serious Digital Games for Learning – Some Considerations- Upside Learning Blog, April 17, 2009
58. Clark Aldrich’s Style Guide for Serious Games and Simulations: costs for simulation, December 11, 2008
59. Gadgets, Games and Gizmos: Learning Algebra in a Game- Kapp Notes, November 19, 2006
60. Latest Issue of The Escapist Focuses on War Games and Gaming, September 23, 2008
61. Games and the Gamer Generation: Keynote- Kapp Notes, August 10, 2007
62. Games and Learner Assessment- Kapp Notes, May 30, 2008
63. World Bank: Serious Games and Urban Planning, October 30, 2006
64. Top 10 Educational Games of the 1980s- Kapp Notes, September 20, 2008
65. Game Studies 0102: Cultural framing of computer/video games. By Kurt Squire, June 17, 2009
66. It’s Monday, Are You Stressed? Relax with a Unique Video Game- Kapp Notes, October 29, 2007
67. Confessions of an Aca/Fan: The Official Weblog of Henry Jenkins: From Serious Games to Serious Gaming (Part Four): Labyrinth, November 14, 2007
68. Save Planet Helios from ecological devastation!-3D Game by IBM- Kapp Notes, August 29, 2008
69. Serious Games: Slideshow of examples from an event at Harvard Business School, December 13, 2007
70. Email Games, June 17, 2009
71. Trends with Games, December 23, 2008
72. Learning Circuits – ASTD’s Online Magazine Covering E-Learning
73. Learning in Video Games
74. Hong Kong Digital Game Based Learning Association
75. Gadgets, Games and Gizmos: MMORPG in ICT Education- Kapp Notes, January 16, 2007
76. GDC’s Serious Games Summit- Upside Learning Blog, April 3, 2009
77. Rapid authoring for immersive games and sims- Clive on Learning, January 26, 2009
78. Gadgets, Games and Gizmos: ESL in SL- Kapp Notes, February 13, 2007
79. What is a Game? The Art of Computer Game Design, June 17, 2009
80. TCC09: Digital Learning Environments: Context Sensitive and Imaginative Classes in Second Life, April 14, 2009
81. Why Most Off the Shelf Commerical Games Will Not Work in Education? And What Is The Alternative?, June 17, 2009
82. Textra Games, June 17, 2009
83. Shootorials: Kongregate Teaches You How To Make Your Own Games, October 22, 2008
84. Predictions for 2009, December 30, 2008
85. Simulations – Are They Games (PDF), June 17, 2009
86. Serious Games Enhancing The Rehabilitation Environment, June 17, 2009
87. Training Games, June 12, 2007
88. Eight Myths About Video Games Debunked, June 17, 2009
89. Computer Games and the Military: Two Views, June 17, 2009
90. Serious Games, June 17, 2009
91. Social Sites, Design, Informal Learning, & Brain Games, May 4, 2009
92. Groupboard, May 7, 2008
93. Why Do People Play Games? – The Art of Computer Game Design, June 17, 2009
94. Video games are good for you!, February 13, 2009
95. Army is to Spend $50 Million in Edutainment for Troops, November 25, 2008
96. Playing with Our Heads – Why Video Games are Making our Kids Smarter-and more obedient, June 17, 2009
97. Federal Consortium on Virtual Worlds, November 19, 2007
98. Examples of Games Based Learning, June 17, 2009
99. Interesting Web Sites for Game-Based Training, e-Learning and Education:, June 17, 2009
100. Fourteen Forms of Fun, June 17, 2009

I will continue to add links over time and as always open to suggestions so please comment here with links & descriptions and I’ll definitely take a look at the sites suggested and consider inclusion.

Can You Work and eLearn at the Same Time?

// June 16th, 2010 // No Comments » // e-learning, strategy

As you all know most self-paced eLearning courses have been developed, and deployed by management, with the perfect world in mind: The users will be able to take these courses, right from their workstation computer, during breaks, lunch, slow-times, or even by staying a bit late! I think that eLearning at your desk isn’t quite that simple and there are a lot of factors at play.

As a guy who has been involved in rolling out eLearning programs in corporate environments, I think it is very naive to simply make the lessons available to the employees and hope that they find the time. As everyone knows, too often training initiatives get put on the back burner, and if the employees sense that management really isn’t behind the initiative, then you can bet the users won’t go out of their way to find the time to complete the training. If you expect users to take eLearning at their desks, then there has to be 100% management support to back it up. If the importance is not stressed, then there is no way that users will work through their daily distractions to find the time. Here are some ways that management can support eLearning initatives:

1. Keep users informed of the eLearning development progress along the way. Let the users know what will be coming and what they will need to do. Also, most importantly, explain how the applicable eLearning training initiative will help them perform better at their jobs.

2. Create a communication, marketing campaign designed to build interest for the users, weeks or even months before the training is rolled out. For example, one client of ours had a promotional day designed to provide information about the rollout. Project managers and SMEs wore specially designed t-shirts and a festival like atmosphere (food and contests) was created to build excitement.

3. Make sure that a certification process, or a passing score, is required to complete the training. If a mandatory element is placed on the eLearning course material, then the users will be more inclined to complete the training.

4. Face facts and don’t expect the users to “find” the time to take the training at their desks. Direct supervisors need to think of the training program as a mandatory job function and schedule time for users to complete the training. This may mean having someone else perform an employee’s duties while they take the training, or even authorizing overtime so they can take the training.

5. Do what you can so users have an opportunity to take the eLearning at their desks, however, create a secondary option for the users, if their environment just has too many distractions. For example, we had a client that made and entire nearby training room available for the training rollout. This room, and all the computers, were available 24 hours a day as a designated eLearning center. This provided the users with a quite alternative, if learning at their desks just wasn’t possible.

What do you all think?