User Guide - Narrate
6. Narrate
Until narration is added, the movie is silent. The next step in the digital storytelling process is to add a narration in the student’s own voice. To record, a microphone must be connected to the audio input of the computer. A usable microphone can be obtained for ten to twenty dollars from a local electronics store (such as Radio Shack, Circuit City, or Best Buy). You can either use the internal Digital Storyteller audio recorder or an external program such as Audacity to record the narration.
The script can be recorded in any audio recording program. Audacity is a popular open source program that is frequently used for this purpose. Audacity provides considerable flexibility in editing that makes it possible to remove extraneous noises and glitches in the sound recording. It also allows sentences from several takes to be combined in a final version.
The file must be saved as an MP3 file when it is finished. Audacity requires an external MP3 encoder for this purpose. Directions for downloading and installing this encoder are provided on the Audacity web site.
Windows also provides a simple Sound Recorder program that can be used for this purpose. This program is found in the Accessories folder of the Start Menu, in the Entertainment subfolder. The Windows Sound Recorder saves in a .wav format. Therefore a freeware program such as Audio Converter to convert the audio file to MP3 format will be required if the Sound Recorder is used.
Once the MP3 audio file is saved on the local computer, it must be transferred to a web server, such as the school or district server. After the MP3 narration has been transferred to this server, enter the web address of the MP3 in a web browser to verify that it plays satisfactorily. Once this has been verified, the URL for the web address of the audio file can be linked to the digital story.
To link the narration stored in an external audio file to the story, select the Option button at the bottom of the Narration window. Select the “Add MP3 Narrate” option on the submenu to add the recording to the movie.
Then click the Play button at the lower left-hand corner of the Narration window to verify that the linked audio file is working satisfactorily. Note: Set the Narration audio level in the View window to 100% initially, and then adjust the volume to the desired level of intensity.
The final step is to adjust the length of the movie to the length of the audio track so that then end of the movie and the end of the narration coincide. The rate slider bar at the bottom of the Narration window can adjust the speed at which the movie plays so that it matches the rate (in words per minute) at which the reader narrated the accompanying text:
This adjustment also be made automatically through the Auto-time feature accessed through the Option button at the bottom of the Narration window.
This feature calculates the length of the audio narration and adjust the movie so that it plays for the same amount of time. The Auto-time feature is useful for setting the initial length of the movie. This rate can then be fine tuned through the rate slide bar at the bottom of the Narration window.
An external audio recorder provides a great deal of flexibility and offers an optimal solution. However, it also requires installation of an audio recorder on a local computer, and the ability to transfer the MP3 file to a local web server. Schools are increasingly restricting installation of software (such as audio recording software) on local computers. They also are increasingly adding layers of administrative approval for use of school web servers.
We would recommend a discussion with the local technology coordinator or administrator to gain the increased flexibility available through the local recording option. However, an internal recording option has also been incorporated into Digital Storyteller for those teachers or schools for which external audio recording capability may not be an option.
To access the internal recording option, select the Option button at the bottom of the Narration screen, and choose the Open Recorder option on the submenu that appears.
This will load an audio recording applet. The internal recording applet is written in Java; if Java is not already installed on the host computer, it can be downloaded from the Java site (www.java.com). [Note: more detail is needed here.] The internal audio recording applet has the conventional recording options: a red recording button to start the recording, a square blue stop button to stop recording, and a triangular play button.
Begin by pressing the red recording button and record a test phrase:
- Check levels by doing a test record (the red button)
- The recorder will ask your permission the first time
- Play it back to check it. (the triangle button)
A sound level bar will register green when the record level is correctly adjusted.
Troubleshooting tips: If the recording level is too loud, the sound level bar will register in the red. In that case, either (a) decrease the microphone input level, (b) move further away from the microphone, or (c) speak more softly. If the recording level is too low, the sound level bar will register in the blue. In that instance, either (a) increase the microphone input level, (b) move closer to the microphone, or (c) speak more loudly. If the sound level indicator does not register at all, check to make sure that the microphone is connected to the microphone input jack of the computer.
Once you have verified that the audio recorder and microphone are working properly, you are ready to record the narration. You can either print out the script or read it on the screen. If you read it on the screen, the text will be scrolled up in the display window as the narrator reads it. (The speed of the scroll can be controlled by a rate slider control at the bottom of the screen.) The narrator should select the recording method that is most comfortable. In either case, three steps are involved.
- Record your narration (the red button)
- Stop recording (the square button)
- Play it back to check it. (the triangle button)
You can record the script and play it back as many times as you like. Once the narration is satisfactorily recorded, the next step is to send the recording to the central Digital Storyteller server:
- Click the "Send" button in the audio recorder and wait until the audio file is transmitted to the server
- Select the options button at the bottom of the Narrate screen.
- Choose "Add to Movie" in the submenu that appears.
- Click the "Play" button beneath the text of the Narration screen to hear the audio.
After the audio file has been transmitted to the central Digital Storyteller server, there sometimes is a 15 or 20 second processing delay, depending upon the server load.
Troubleshooting tips: Be sure that the Narration volume level slider in the lower left-hand corner of the View screen is set to 100% (i.e., maximum loudness). Also, be sure that your computer speakers are turned on.
A second sound track is available for a musical accompaniment. A local MP3 music file can be uploaded by selecting this choice on the submenu that appears when the Options button at the bottom of the Narration screen is selected. Alternatively, a music track can be recorded in much the same way as the voice narration can be captured by using the Digital Storyteller internal audio recording module.
In either case, once a music track is added, it can be played together with the narrator’s voiceover as the digital movie is played. A music sound level bar at the bottom right-hand corner of the View screen allows the music level to be controlled independently of the narration track.
It is important to only use non-copyrighted music in the sound track. The Creative Commons site is a good source of non-copyrighted music that can be legally used for musical accompaniment. Local and regional artists are sometimes willing to permit their creations to be used for educational applications as well. This also offers an opportunity for an audience for original student compositions.
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