Screencasting tools for the Mac

Something we'd like to do to promote Sequence Matrix is by making some narrated screencasts to show off just how quick and useful Sequence Matrix can be. Here's some handy tools I've seen so far:

• Screenflow is a bit tricky to wrap your mind around, but a powerful, useful tool once you do. I particularly like their ability to hide your desktop temporarily while making a screencast, and you can export it into a number of formats. The big downside is the cost: 99 USD isn't all that steep, but when you're just going to make a handful of screencasts, it's a bit much to justify. Still, the most powerful of the ones I've seen so far.
• iShowU is a techy little program that supports a ton of output formats and sizes. At 20 USD, it's a whole lot cheaper than Screenflow too. On the downside, it doesn't seem to have video-editing built in, and - since it records in a box of a particular size around the mouse - the resulting video is kinda jumpy. But if you're looking for a whole-screen recorder, this might be just what you're looking for. Thanks, Curren, for recommending this program to me.
• Screenr has a very cute interface, and is completely on-web and cross-platform. I love the simplicity of this. I don't think I can get the movie out of this, though, which might be important for making these videos. You can't beat the price, though: free.
• Jing - I haven't had a chance to try this yet, but it looks interesting.

I'll update this list as I spot other tools. Do you have a preferred screencasting software for the Mac? Please let me know!

Comments

[Curren Tipnis]

Just found your blog while searching stuff on the net. I have used ishowU from shinnywhitebox to create screencast on Mac for my school project last year - it was pretty good and I think costed me $20 or so.

[Gaurav]

Curren: Thanks! I've added it to my list. It's great, but I'll probably end up going with Screenflow: the editing features are quite nice. With any luck, I'll have to make a lot of screencasts over the next few years, so it'll "pay for itself" quickly. Thanks for the tip!