Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Ask HN: Software for producing terminal-based tutorials?

news.ycombinator.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

11–20 of 45 posts

Re: Ask HN: Software for producing terminal-based tutorials?

#12

Post by Bob_LaBLahh »

haar wrote: post #3

I've given some live showcasing/presentations with the help of https://github.com/paxtonhare/demo-magic to smooth over parts that are either time consuming, or not error-proof (e.g. networking and such). It might be useful here as well?

Demo magic is a good tool. I used it for recording a video course. But here's one minor caveat: there's no hint for what command will be executed next. Sometimes I would start talking about a subject, then hit ENTER to auto-type the next command, only to find that my words were off topic from the current command. My fault, but it was always a pain to recover from.

I still recommend demo magic. But use it with eyes open if you're mistake-prone like me.

Re: Ask HN: Software for producing terminal-based tutorials?

#14

Post by photonemitter »

I like OBS as it allows a good amount of customization.

Also allows you to set up your layout for the video-windows, with presets/templates, iirc.

Recommend you have a second screen open on the obs, though, so you can easily manage what’s up or not.

Would also be a good idea to start experimenting early to figure out some good layouts etc depending on how you want to present the material.

Re: Ask HN: Software for producing terminal-based tutorials?

#16

Post by mmoez »

By default, macOS ships with a Screenshot utility (Applications > Utilities > Screenshot).

It can capture PNG files or record the whole screen or a portion of it and generate a video file from the whole session.

https://support.apple.com/guide/mac-help/take-screenshots-or...

Re: Ask HN: Software for producing terminal-based tutorials?

#17

Post by ivansavz »

photonemitter wrote: post #14

I like OBS as it allows a good amount of customization. Also allows you to set up your layout for the video-windows, with presets/templates, iirc. Recommend you have a second screen open on the obs, though, so you can easily manage what’s up or not. Would also be a good idea to start experimenting early to figure out some good layouts etc depending on how you want to present the material.

+1 for OBS. It's very easy to use (add different inputs and click record). External monitor is a must. A good (as in > $20) microphone is worth investing in to avoid annoying noises, in particular computer fan noise which is likely to be an issue given you'll be recording video.

Just yesterday I was researching how to connect an external camera like Canon EOS M50 to use as a overhead projector (so you can show handwriting/diagrams like a whiteboard), and it seems possible using https://github.com/v002/v002-Camera-Live but I haven't tried yet.

One last recommendation (to the OP) — keep the videos short. Video is great as the introduction material and to show more complicated bits, but if you can use text + code samples, I think you students will appreciate.

Re: Ask HN: Software for producing terminal-based tutorials?

#18

Post by tpaschalis »

Since you mentioned terminal-based tutorials, here's a terminal-based solution.

Most linux systems should include script [1] and scriptreplay[2], which should suit your needs. Here's a complete example of a recorded/replayed session[3].

On MacOS it should be as easy as `script -r ` to record and `script -p ` to replay. YMMV, but I like it for _small_ use-cases, as it puts simplicity and portability over features.

[1] http://man7.org/linux/man-pages/man1/script.1.html

[2] http://man7.org/linux/man-pages/man1/scriptreplay.1.html

[3] https://www.tecmint.com/record-and-replay-linux-terminal-ses...

Re: Ask HN: Software for producing terminal-based tutorials?

#19

Post by bobwaycott »

If you want to stick with what’s on your Mac, you can screen record with QuickTime. If you need to speak during the recording, there’s an option for capturing audio while you record the screen. Alternatively, you can record the screen with QuickTime, import the video into iMovie, then add an audio track after the fact. This can be a particularly nice approach if you’re good at scripting your way through a video, plus it allows you the ability to add some freeze-frames when you need more time to explain than you have video.
Post reply on HN