Reference Department Training Guide 2009 

Week 4: Freedman Center Audio Voice Capture

Week of July 13th, 2009

NOTE: Mark Eddy will be away from the library between, July 13th - 21st.  Please contact Jennine Vlach, FC Training and Operations Manager, if you have questions (contact information on training main page to the left).  This also might be a good week to team up with a colleague and do the module exercises together.

About Digital Audio at the Freedman Center

There are many technologies in the FC for capturing voice audio.  In addition to using Language Learning Center equipment and software, patrons can check out digital voice recorders, or schedule time in the FC podcasting booth.  Patrons can also check out voice recording headsets and prepare voiceover audio files using FC multimedia workstations. This week we will cover the basic process for capturing and editing digital voice audio using FC equipment and software.

Resources and Equipment

* Here are just a few of the types of equipment that can be used and/or checked out from the FC for audio capture.

Olympus WS-200S Digital Voice Recorder

Students and faculty can check out these recorders for up to 48hrs to capture interviews, lectures, and dialogue on-site. Students from the Communication Disorders department have used them to record and analyze speech pathology for example. The digital voice recorder kits now include lapel microphones to make capturing lectures, interviews, and presentations simple.

Alesis MultiMix8 Firewire

Podcasting! This is our studio soundboard for recording dialogue and interviews which can be published as podcasts or burned to CD. The microphones connected to this soundboard in the FC Podcasting booth also work great for high-quality voice overs for training videos and DVD content. The department of modern languages has used this to record interviews in foreign languages for example.  And, our own Bill Claspy uses the Podcasting booth and soundboard to record book discussions for his Off the Shelf podcast series.

Digital Voice Recording Headset

Voiceover headsets (there's Bill!) can be used to capture high-quality, noise free voice files which can then be edited and used for podcasts, video or image voiceovers, language learning, and screencast tutorials.

What Can Patrons Do at the Freedman Center

Patrons can,

• Capture and edit voice files using Podcasting booth microphones, handheld digital voice recorders, and digital audio headsets
• Apply voice files to multimedia projects (PowerPoint slides, image slide shows, podcasting and screencasting, video voiceover projects)
• Upload voice files to Web 2.0 sites and tools like Voicethread
• Use voice capture technology for language learning exercises

Reference Interview Tips & Notes

FC Do’s and Don’ts

Doesn’t – Instruct patrons on how to edit voice files.  Basic editing procedures only.

Does – Help patrons set up computer workstations and software to start the voice capture process

Doesn’t – Provide podcasting or audio capture fee-based services.  See the Premium Services web page for further information.

Does – Allow patrons to check out digital audio and digital voice recorders for use outside the library

Does – Provide audio/voice editing software such as SoundForge and Audacity (open source, but not supported at the FC)

Does – Provide training opportunities to learn more about audio editing through the CaseLearns program.

Top 4 most popular voice capture activities:

• Conducting interviews in the podcasting booth (Project examples include Off the Shelf and CaseStories)
• Voiceover of video clips using Adobe Premier Elements video editor 
• Student use of voice recorders to conduct research interviews for courses and projects
• Voice audio capture for recording sorority skits

Try it Out

*** Remember that that FC staff can always set you up at a workstation and help you get started ***

*** Remember also that the wiki tutorials can be accessed from any computer, including Freedman Center workstations. ***

Study the FC wiki on voice audio capture. Then,

• Check out a computer key and a digital voice recording headset from the FC front desk and try recording a few minutes of your voice in SoundForge at one of the audio/video workstations.

• Open the SoundForge application and record 30-45 seconds of your voice.

• Try some of the cut/paste editing features in SoundForge

• Refer back to the the wiki tutorial on voice audio capture and learn how to use iTunes to convert your voice file to an mp3.

Getting Credit

Using the voiceover feature in VoiceThread, to create and post a voice-over about your scanned pictures from the Week 2 module to your online VoiceThread project.  Feel free to post other pictures if you like and create a full-fledged VoiceThread story.  For the voiceovers, you can check out and use a digital voice recording headset from the FC.  You can do the voiceover on an FC workstation or on your personal/office computer.

Notes and Comments

CASELEARNS 2009 SUMMER SCHEDULE IS NOW AVAILABLE

If you haven't already, take a moment this week to click the CaseLearns 2009 Summer Schedule tab at the top of the page in this training wiki for the schedule of upcoming multimedia workshops.  Please try to attend as many of these workshops as your schedule allows. These workshops will enhance your knowledge of multimedia and the FC tremendously!

Comment Summary and Overview

As participants this week discovered, the SoundForge voice edit features are powerful and easy to use when you want to clean up a signal and convert it to another file form.  This will be good practice for Week 7 when we will take a sample of analog audio from a tape or a vinyl disc and edit it in SoundForge to create a digital sound track.

If anyone has trouble using the voiceover features in SoundForge or VoiceThread and would like help, please contact the program coordinator.

The VoiceThread postings this week were great!  As Stephen discovered, you can use VoiceThread for quick presentations and tutorials.  In Week 5 we will explore an even better tool for creating video tutorials, one that takes care of the drawbacks in VoiceThread that Stephen mentioned.