Recording Setup¶
The Recording Setup screen is where you configure all aspects of your recording before going live. This is the most feature-rich screen in the application.
Screen Preview¶
Field Reference¶
Basic Information¶
Title¶
Title - Text Input
The title of your recording. This becomes:
- The video title on YouTube
- Part of the output folder name
- Displayed in the recording history
Spell Check: The title is automatically checked for UK English spelling and grammar issues as you type. Warnings appear below the input field with ⚠ indicators.
Best Practices
Use descriptive titles that explain what the video covers. Avoid special characters that may cause filesystem issues.
Episode Number¶
Episode # - Number Input
The episode number for this recording series. Auto-incremented from the last recording in the same topic.
Behavior:
- Automatically increments when you start a new recording
- Can be manually overridden
- Resets to 1 for new topics
Topic¶
Topic - Selection
The category/topic for this recording. Topics help organize your recordings and can be managed in Options.
Default Topics:
- QGIS sketches
- GIS development tutorials
- Open source workflows
- General tutorials
Use Left / Right to cycle through available topics.
Recording Options¶
These toggles control what gets captured during recording.
Record Audio¶
[✓] Record Audio
Captures audio from your default microphone.
| Setting | Result |
|---|---|
| Enabled | Audio captured and merged into final video |
| Disabled | Silent video output |
Audio Normalization
Audio is automatically normalized during post-processing to ensure consistent volume levels.
Record Webcam¶
[○] Record Webcam
Captures your webcam feed as a picture-in-picture overlay.
| Setting | Result |
|---|---|
| Enabled | Webcam overlay in bottom-right corner |
| Disabled | Screen-only recording |
Performance Impact
Enabling webcam increases CPU usage. Ensure your system can handle simultaneous capture.
Record Screen¶
[✓] Record Screen
Captures the selected monitor.
| Setting | Result |
|---|---|
| Enabled | Screen is captured |
| Disabled | Audio-only recording (rare use case) |
Vertical Video¶
[○] Vertical Video
Generates an additional vertical (9:16) version of your recording, optimized for YouTube Shorts.
| Setting | Result |
|---|---|
| Enabled | Creates -vertical.mp4 in output |
| Disabled | Only horizontal video created |
Webcam Support:
- With webcam: Creates a stacked layout (screen + webcam + branding) or left-split layout with circular webcam overlay
- Without webcam: Creates a screen-only vertical video with the screen filling the top portion and branding at the bottom (or left-split mode fills the entire frame)
Social Media
Enable this for YouTube Shorts, TikTok, Instagram Reels, or other vertical video platforms. Works with screen-only recordings too!
Left Split¶
[✓] Left Split
Only visible when "Vertical Video" is enabled
When enabled, the vertical video is rendered by cropping and scaling the left half of your screen recording to fill the entire 9:16 frame. This is ideal for presentations where your content is on the left side of the screen.
| Setting | Result |
|---|---|
| Enabled (default) | Left half of screen fills the vertical frame |
| Disabled | Traditional layout with screen on top, webcam in middle, branding at bottom |
Left Split Layout (with webcam):
┌─────────────────┐
│ [Left] [Right] │ ← Logos in top corners
│ │
│ Left half of │
│ screen video │
│ (fills 1080px │
│ width edge │
│ to edge) │
│ [cam] │ ← Circular webcam bottom-right
├─────────────────┤
│ [Banner] │ ← Branding area (if video
│ │ doesn't fill full height)
└─────────────────┘
Left Split Layout (screen only, no webcam):
┌─────────────────┐
│ [Left] [Right] │ ← Logos in top corners
│ │
│ Left half of │
│ screen video │
│ (fills 1080px │
│ width edge │
│ to edge) │
├─────────────────┤
│ [Banner] │ ← Branding area (if video
│ │ doesn't fill full height)
└─────────────────┘
The left half of your screen is scaled to fill the full 1080px width corner-to-corner. If the aspect ratio means the scaled video doesn't fill the full 1920px height, the remaining space is filled with the configured background color.
Traditional Layout (when disabled, with webcam):
┌─────────────────┐
│ Screen video │
│ (top third) │
├─────────────────┤
│ Webcam video │
│ (middle third) │
├─────────────────┤
│ [Left] [Right] │
│ [Banner] │ ← Branding area
│ Title │
└─────────────────┘
Traditional Layout (when disabled, screen only):
┌─────────────────┐
│ │
│ Screen video │
│ (top 2/3rds) │
│ │
├─────────────────┤
│ [Left] [Right] │
│ [Banner] │ ← Branding area
│ Title │
└─────────────────┘
Add Logo Overlays¶
[✓] Add Logo Overlays
Enables professional branding overlays on your video.
When enabled, additional configuration options appear:
- Left logo position
- Right logo position
- Bottom logo position
- Title text color
- GIF animation mode
Logo Configuration¶
Only visible when "Add Logo Overlays" is enabled
Logo Positions¶
Left Logo / Right Logo / Bottom Logo
Select logo files from your configured logo directory. Use Left / Right to cycle through available logos.
Supported Formats:
- PNG (static images)
- GIF (animated logos)
- SVG (vector graphics)
Position Reference:
┌────────────────────────────────────┐
│ [Left] [Right] │
│ │
│ │
│ │
│ [Bottom] │
└────────────────────────────────────┘
Title Color¶
Title Color - Selection
The color used for the title text overlay.
Available Colors:
| Color | Hex Code |
|---|---|
| White | #FFFFFF |
| Orange | #FF9500 |
| Blue | #0066CC |
| Green | #00CC66 |
| Red | #FF4444 |
| Yellow | #FFCC00 |
GIF Loop Mode¶
GIF Mode - Selection
How animated GIF logos are displayed.
| Mode | Behavior |
|---|---|
| Continuous | Loop GIF throughout the video |
| Once at Start | Play GIF once, then show last frame |
| Once at End | Show first frame, play GIF at video end |
Monitor Selection¶
Monitor Selection
Choose which monitor to record. All connected monitors are listed with their resolution.
Information Displayed:
- Monitor name (e.g.,
DP-1,HDMI-1) - Resolution (e.g.,
2560×1440) - Primary indicator
Use Up / Down to select, or navigate with Tab.
Description¶
Description - Text Area
A multi-line description for your recording. This becomes the video description on YouTube.
Spell Check: The description is automatically checked for UK English spelling and grammar issues as you type:
- UK English: US spellings are flagged with UK alternatives (e.g., "color" → "colour")
- Grammar: Common grammar issues are detected (e.g., "a" vs "an", double spaces)
- GIS Terms: Common GIS and QGIS terminology is recognized and not flagged
Warnings appear as ⚠ messages below the field. Up to 3 issues are shown at a time.
Tips:
- Include relevant keywords
- Add timestamps if applicable
- Credit any resources used
Action Buttons¶
Go Live¶
[ Go Live ]
Starts the recording. Navigates to the Countdown screen.
Requirements:
- At least one recording option must be enabled
- A monitor must be selected (if screen recording enabled)
Cancel¶
[ Cancel ]
Returns to the Main Menu without starting a recording.
Keyboard Shortcuts¶
| Key | Action |
|---|---|
| Tab | Next field |
| Shift+Tab | Previous field |
| Space / Enter | Toggle option / Select |
| Left / Right | Change selection (topics, logos, colors) |
| Up / Down | Navigate options or monitors |
| Esc | Cancel and return to menu |