GLP - Finished Video

Yesterday, my team mate Alex Gonzalez and I finished our 10 minute instructional video for our Group Leadership Project. It was a good team work experience. I think we both contributed a lot of good ideas and were dedicated to deliver a good final product. It’s even sad about it being over and not knowing if we'll get the chance to work together again. Watch the video and tell us what you think:


Google Apps Scripts PD Presentation from Alex Gonzalez on Vimeo.


What tool did we use to deliver the tutorial? Why?

The great thing about technology is that it no longer matters were you are. For this project we used a great variety of tools to communicate and collaborate. By now, you’ve probably noticed that we’re both very much into Google Apps, so we used some of them for this project. Gmail was an essential part of our communication; it was nice to know that we were just an email or a chat away. We also shared a Google document and created a Google site for our script and storyboard. Collaborating with these apps was really easy! It allowed us to focus more on the content and creation process of the project and not so much in the technology.

We also used videoconferencing tools like Skype and Vyew. I’ve never used Vyew before and it does have some nice features, but Skype has become one of my favorite ways to communicate with others. I could hear Alex a lot clearer and being able to see his screen during the editing process of the video pretty much felt like we were working together in the same room. What can I say, Skype rocks!

For the actual production of the video, we also used a mix of tools. From the commonly known MS Power Point program for visual aids, to screen capturing programs like Screenflow and Jing. Not to mention other not so very essential tools like Photoshop and Soundbooth for editing photos and recording audio.

There are very few projects that I’ve done that required such a variety of tools. It was nice learning experience.

What did I learn during the development process of the final product?

Aside from combining all the tools that I mentioned earlier, I also learned that a well-planned storyboard makes a great difference if you’re creating a tutorial of this kind. It allowed us to organize ourselves better and work our parts at our own pace and time. At the end, putting it all together wasn’t hard at all because we had followed our plan.

Of course, I also learned that you have to be flexible and some things may change when you construct the video. It’s like when you see some clothes that you like in a store, but later change your mind when you try them on. We made some last minute changes, some parts from the script or storyboard didn’t quite fit anymore or we added other elements to make our message clearer.

What would I do differently if I had to develop a similar product again?

The topic of our video reminded me of old times, when I worked as a web developer. I think the video is a nice overview of what Google Apps Script is, but there is still so much more to be said. I would have liked to make more specific short videos of the things we mention. This tool has so much potential, for those that are willing to take the time to program a little, there are so many possibilities for what you can do. Our video can give you a very broad idea of the scripting feature but it won’t actually teach you how to really use it.