Since the spread of COVID-19, our lifestyles have changed. We are forced to be inside our homes. Conducting meetings, taking online classes, finalizing a business deal, all these duties have to be performed over virtual calls as compared to the in-person meetings preferred in the pre-COVID era.
However, there are times when you just can’t be available for a meeting that was scheduled days back. But what if, someone records the virtual session for you which can be viewed afterward. It would be of immense help, wouldn’t it?
Screencastify, a video recording software can be useful in recording your online meetings. Used by over 12 million people to record, edit and share their videos, the video recording software can be used to record the important virtual meetings. Moreover, the software works with well almost all the video conferencing applications like Zoom, Google Meet, Skype, Microsoft Teams.
If you’re in a tough situation where you have lined up a virtual team meeting on Google Meet but can’t make it? Then all you got to do it is record the session and view it afterward. Below is a detailed step-by-step guide to using Screencastify to record your Google Meet sessions and never miss out on any important details being discussed in a meeting.
How to Download and Set Up Screencastify Extension
There are two ways to record your Google Meet session through Screencastify: browser mode and desktop app mode. Both ways are pretty similar and easy to implement. In this guide, we’ll be looking at how to record Google Meet session through Screencastify via browser mode.
To get started, you need to first download the Screencastify chrome extension which is available for free on the Chrome Web Store. You can either search for ‘Screenscastify’ on the store or click on the button below to directly reach the extensions listing on the store and install it.
Click on the ‘Add to Chrome’ button available on the Chrome Web Store to install the extension on your browser.
A new pop up window will show asking for your permission to confirm the install the extension. Click on the ‘Add Extension’ button to confirm.
Once installed, screencastify extension will appear in the extensions section next to the address bar in Chrome.
Next, click on the extension icon to open the ‘Screencastify Setup’ screen in a new tab in Chrome. Then, continue with the setup process by first signing in with your Google account. Click on the “Sign in with Google” button.
💡 Tip
While signing using your Google account, please make sure that the “Automatically save videos to Google Drive” option is on. If the option isn’t on, make sure to do so.
On the next step, give Screencastify permissions to use Camera, Microphone, and ‘Drawing and Annotation Tools’ on your system. Make sure the checkboxes for all these options are checked and then hit the ‘Next’ button.
The Screencastify extension will confirm if you want to allow it to “Read and change all your data on the websites you visit”. Click on ‘Allow’ to confirm.
Once the Screencastify setup is complete, you can start recording your Google Meet meetings using the extension.
How to Use Screencastify to Record a Google Meet
In an ongoing Google Meet session, click on the Screencastify icon in the toolbar.
A pop-up window will open with all the options you need to start recording the Google Meet session opened in one of the tabs in your browser. In the screencastify pop-up, click on the ‘Browser Tab’ option to get started.
Make sure the ‘Microphone’ option is enabled and the correct device is selected.
💡 Tip
If you are not using an external microphone, please make sure to select the Default option from the drop-down bar that appears beside the Microphone button.
Next, access the additional settings by clicking on the ‘Show More Options’ line.
Under advanced options, ensure ‘Tab Audio’ toggle is enabled. This will ensure audio recording of other participants in the Google Meet as well.
Finally, click on the ‘Record’ button to start recording your Google Meet.
A countdown timer would show on the screen, and after that Screencastify will begin recording the currently opened Chrome tab where your Google Meet is happening.
By default, Screencastify will show an overlay recording controls bar at the bottom left corner of the screen. Alternatively, you also access the recording controls by clicking on the extension icon while recording is on.
To stop Screencastify from recording, click on the ‘Stop’ button (the square icon) on the recording controls bar.
Screencastify will open the recording in a new tab where you can view it, and even trim it before sharing or downloading the recorded Google Meet clip.
To download the recording, click on the ‘Download’ option on the left panel of the recording preview screen.
Screencastify by default records in webm format. When you click the ‘Download’ button from the expanded menu, it will download the recording in a webm format that may not be viewable in all media players.
To ensure you can view the recording on any device and media players, click on the ‘Export as MP4’ option below the download button.
Then, let the extension convert the recording into a .mp4 file. When it’s done, you’ll see the ‘Download MP4’ button at the bottom right corner of the screen. Click on it to save the Google Meet recording in a MP4 file that you can view on any device.
Screencastify also saves your recording on Google Drive. If you want to share it with anyone, head over My Drive » Screencastify folder in your Google Drive to easily share the recoding with anyone.
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