What do you think - Video Tutorials?

[jcocking]

As we are getting close with the roll-out of the Wiki, I have been exploring the use of How To video tutorials.

The Wiki is a publishing system and it is easy to use, but also easy to mess up. I believe video tutorials would be the easiest way to show our members how to use the Wiki.

It would also make sense to create videos for the forum as well. Some of the tutorials I have considered are

• How to post images
• How to update username, email address and password
• How to format messages
• How the Private Message area works.

What other areas would you suggest we consider adding?

As a teaser, I posted my first video today. LotusElan.net Introduction and Overview.

What do you think of the video? Suggestions?

[Bud English]

Jeff- Good video intro and overview. It steps right along and has no obnoxious background music. Will that or something like be added to the home page "About LotusElan.net" section?

I think that having video links in the wiki is a great idea. I'm sure there will be folks that step up and provide that "how to" content that is a lot harder to explain than it is to show.

...and now we have a voice to go with the name.

[billwill]

Good Video, Jeff.

As you probably discovered, good videos take a long time an a lot of effort to edit to get them right.

~~~~~~~~~~~

I've found that it is best not to add even gentle background music to videos for Youtube; they have implemented some awful sound normalization algorithm, so that in pauses between the voice over the gentle background music roars into the foreground in a most horrible way.

I am going to have to re-edit one or two of my tutorial videos there (about my Scriptwriters Toolkit) to remove the background music completely.

[billwill]

Bud, I don't think Jeff particularly meant videos IN the wiki, I think he meant a tutorial video showing how each us us will be able to edit the Wiki to improve it.

[AHM]

Good video! Gives us a presence on YouTube. But I suspect most people find us through a search engine and most of them know how fora work. These are everyday things.

Who are your target audience?

What can they mess-up?

[RichardS]

Jeff

The video is very good and straightforward + informative.

Such videos will be helpful to new members.

I also notice one or two people are posting links to videos - eg recent post about play in throttle linkage (which I couldn't answer!). With more broadband around this is now practical. And if a picture is better than a hundred words then a video is better still.

Richard

[jcocking]

Thank you for everyone's comments.

Who are your target audience?

There are really two target audiences.

1. New Members - covering the basics
2. Existing Members - covering the used very little

Some examples of the "used very little":

• How to setup/change an avatar
• How to change your username or email
• How to bookmark favorite topics

What can they mess-up?

The Wiki is a web publishing tool. Every member, who is 1st gear or higher, will have the ability to edit every page. 800 members will have access to edit and change the content within the Wiki.

It is a new software product for many of our members. There will need to be training on how to use it. For example to add a new page to the wiki, is usually a 4 step process. I have made several automation shortcuts to make it easier, but our members will still need to be trained.

We can try to make the wiki as bullet proof as possible, but there will be "mess ups".

jeff

[AHM]

What can they mess-up?

The Wiki is a web publishing tool. Every member, who is 1st gear or higher, will have the ability to edit every page. 800 members will have access to edit and change the content within the Wiki.

That was what I was looking for - Oh boy!

[jcocking]

What can they mess-up?

The Wiki is a web publishing tool. Every member, who is 1st gear or higher, will have the ability to edit every page. 800 members will have access to edit and change the content within the Wiki.

That was what I was looking for - Oh boy!

If you look at most Wikis, the number of active members (5 edits per month) is low. We have a possible pool of 800 editors. Of that, we will have about 10 to 20 who will contribute on a regular basis.

Can you manage what Wikipedia is like with over 77,000 active members (at least 5 edits per month)?

[AHM]

Yes, but they are not all self taught experts on the same subject... with differing views !

There are a lot of imaginative and creative, but misguided people around here.

I can?t wait for the wiki explaining how to fit grease nipples to the rear hubs ? pure fantasy!

[billwill]

Yes, but they are not all self taught experts on the same subject... with differing views !

There are a lot of imaginative and creative, but misguided people around here.

Heh Heh, Wikipedia is just the same. Go visit it and take a look at the History tab of a typical page.

http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?tit ... on=history

[AHM]

Bill,
I can't wait! The minute detail, the pet theory, the outlandish unfounded claim (citation needed!)

Jeff,
I suspect like most people I will watch your video after I have buggered it up. The manual is what you read after you have obviously got it wrong!

In all seriousness I think it will be a great addition to the site!

[PeterK]

Jeff, a good idea I think. Video tutorials for the less frequent tasks, such as adding an avatar, will be far easier to follow for the less technically minded.

Will the servers cope with a rash of explanatory videos for servicing and modification task ? Come back Gary, just need a dog mount for Beauregard to hold his camera




Oh, one final point, the car is called an Elan, not an Elarn

[donselan]

JEFF,

I think the example video is great. Well organized, well paced and at an appropriate speed for the content to be conveyed. I agree that visually explaining something like an avatar can be a bit confusing for people who are more comfortable with a wrench would be very useful.

Thanks for the great work

[jcocking]

Oh, one final point, the car is called an Elan, not an Elarn

I thought I new how to enunciate words. Listening to oneself, you begin to realize how you slur words.

What was even scarier is Youtube creates an automated transcript of the video. Several of the automated translations that occurred were:

LotusElan.net => little of the salon dot net
LotusElan.net => lotus one dot net
Lotus Elan => lotus along
Lotus Elan => lotus salon
blog => belonged
click => quick

Will the servers cope with a rash of explanatory videos for servicing and modification task ? :

All the videos will be hosted at youtube. You have to tolerate the occasional advertisement in the beginning of the video, but no impact to the servers.

jeff