Inexpensive, simple screen recording application for mac

Question

I am more and more consistently running into the need to create screencasts (record my screen) for clients to show them how to use programs or websites. Up until now I've been using Jing and it's been wonderful. But I would like something that can give me something less annoying than a .swf. A .mov or, best of all, something that plays without fuss on Mac and Windows. Also, the 5-minute limit is annoying, but not show stopping. Basically, I'd like to be able to actually give them the file on a CD or something instead of relying on whatever host I use staying up for eternity.

To sum up, here's what I require:

• Record a portion or all of the screen.
• Records audio from mic while recording screen.
• Exports files easily playable on Mac and Windows (requiring Quicktime is okay, but not ideal)
• Will work on Mac OS 10.5+
• Allows recording videos of at least 5 minutes.
• Text in recorded videos is easily readable when exported.

Bonuses points for:

• Records videos greater than 5 minutes
• Exported videos will work in Windows Media player without any fuss.

I haven't upgraded to Snow Leopard yet but I know it has some screen recording stuff built in but I don't know if it would be sufficient or not.

The reason I say, "simple" is because most of the applications I've seen do much more than I need (I mean, Jing is nearly perfect for my needs) and cost more than I would like to spend.

Answer 1

I like iShowU and Screenflow. I believe the default output of iShowU is mov but ScreenFlow has various export options.

Answer 2

Camtasia for Mac should be able to do most, if not all of the things you are after.

With Camtasia, you can record yourself using a mic and/or iSight to put yourself into the screencast, or use SmartFocus to record only the important parts of your screen. It also displays any text or key presses you make on the screen so they can be seen easily

You can also export the screencast to a variety of formats, such as DVD, Youtube, Screencast.com, as a Quicktime file or as a embeddable flash video.

I suggest you give it a look. They even have a free 30 day trial you can download so you can see if it will fit your needs exactly.