I have developed a good amount documentation and training on non-Microsoft® Windows® based software. In doing this I have learned tricks about taking screenshots and full motion screen captures using various remote login software.

The first trick I want to mention is make sure the login used for the remote login software is generic. This avoids any usernames or user specific files showing up in the capture. 

The thing that makes screenshots in VNC tricky is that most screenshot and full motion screen capture software does not remove the cursor when taking the picture. This is easily worked around by moving the mouse away from the shot before capturing. When capturing dynamic items, like tool tips, menu items, and so on, the cursor may have to be manually removed.

Because Reflections X windows appear as standard Microsoft Windows, windows there is not cursor issue. The tricky part with Reflections X in my experience is two fold. First, the desktop of the remote machine does not appear, so no screenshots can be taken of that. Second, each tool opens in a new window. This only becomes and issue when working with multiple tools and/or capturing full motion screen captures. The best work around is to plan the pictures and video around the issues.

I hope these tips are helpful. If you have any more please post them in the comments section.

I watched the iPhone OS 4.0 announcement last week (yes, I’m a geek). I noticed the simple yet effective presentation style that Steve Jobs was using. He seems to use the same style for most Apple announcements. It all had a black background, white text (when there was text) and graphics. Not just any graphics, simple one that illustrated what he was talking about. For example, when talking about Multi-Tasking on the iPhone the only thing on the slide was the multi-tasking icon and the word multi-tasking below it.

His style reminded me of the Beyond Bullet Points strategy for presentations. If your not familiar with this strategy, I highly recommend Cliff Atkinson’s book. The basic strategy or thought is that people process text and audio in presentations differently. If you have alot of text on the slide the audience will read the text and not listen to you, but if you limit the text there is nothing for them to read and they listen to you more.

I’ve been playing with this strategy in the eLearning materials I’ve been working on.  (I also used this when I did my presentation for the eLearning Guild.) Its been a bit of a struggle. Its been tough at times to come up with graphics that will work for what is being taught and not resort back to bullets. I have found that the process of writing the script/narration first has created a better flow to the topics. I’ll post more once I get feedback on the effectiveness of the strategy in eLearning, but for now, back to the Apple presentation.

I was impressed by how much enthusiasm and energy was given off by the presentation. I think a good chunk of that was do to Steve Jobs himself, but I think the way the presentation was designed allowed his personality and energy to come out.

So to sum up, I’m becoming more and more in the less is more and bullets are bad camp when it comes to presentations.

Over the past week or so I’ve worked on a number of eLearningmaterials and have been taking a large number of screenshots. So, I figured I would share some of the tricks I’ve learned from taking screenshots.

Use the Right Format
When taking screenshots it is important to remember that the software image is created pixel by pixel and the output format should match. This means screenshots should be outputted as either bmp, gif, or png. The best of these three is png, due to its smaller file size and the lack of any legal issues with the format (thought I believe the legal issues with gif have been resolved).

Remove Any Personalization or Use a Generic User
When taking screenshots make sure there is nothing on the screen that identifies the person that took it or the machine it was taken on. This is very tricky when taking shots on your own computer. Make sure to change the background wallpaper to something standard or generic. (I use a plain blue background.) When taking shots of a Internet page, turn off all extensions or personalization within the browser. To accomplish this I have two different browsers installed on my system and I only use one of them to take screenshots.

Also, if the software requires the user to login, use a generic login (for example John Doe, student, or service).

Use the Best Method Available
There are a number of software packages and methods to capture screenshots. I have been using SnagIt for quite a while and am quite pleased. If no software is available, MS Paint or Adobe Photoshop work just as well.

Next  week, Screenshots From Remote Login Software

Do you have other tips or tricks? Post them in the comments.

Over the past few years as I’ve embraced my geekdom, April Fools Day has become more fun. Here are some of the pranks I found today:

Google is now Topeka

The Leaky Cauldron is now devoted to Glee

Slash dot is just having too much fun

YouTube goes ASCII

I may not drink coffee, but this was funny  

Even the BBC got in on the fun

So Happy April Fools Day and Happy Birthday Fred and George

I’ve always wondered if my tricks for writing end-user documentation really help someone writing a college paper, a master’s thesis, a memo, or a report for the boss? I’ve been helping some friends with some of their writing and I’m finding that some of my writing tricks are useful. Though I will admit at least one of them I learned in English 120.

Active Voice—Yep, I learned this in English 120. Active voice makes the sentence more forceful and easier to read. Sometimes I think the forcefulness of saying “This thesis covers XXX….” instead of “This thesis will cover XXX….” makes some writers hesitate.

One Sentence, One Thought—Somewhere along the way through High School and College people started to thinking (myself included, for a time) that short sentences are bad and that sentences should be long and require a lot of punctuation. The problem with this idea is that readers have a limited amount of space in short term memory. Most things I’ve read figure about 5 to 7 chunks. When a single sentence has more then 7 chucks, it is hard to process and most likely confusing for the reader.

Take the Person Out—To explain this tip, avoid including, you, we, I, or one in the sentence. Sometimes these terms have to be used, but they also have a tendency to make a sentence clunky.

This must be watched carefully when writing as a representative of an entity (company, group, etc). Setting aside any legal documents, when refering to a company or group, the proper name should be used not We. This helps to maintain any trademarks and the entity branding.

When writing for academia, third person (or one), is appropriate. Though many times “one” can be removed, thus making the sentence shorter and easier to understand.

Put the Action First—I had to include at least one procedure related tip. When writing steps always put the action first. For example, “Select File > New to xxxx” instead of “To xxxx select File > New.” This puts the most important information first and allows the readers to skim the instructions if they have most experience.

So how do those sound? Did I miss anything big?