Screen Capture using VLC

Screen casting is a process of digital recording of computer screen output which is needed for various tasks, tutorials etc. In Ubuntu there are various video capture software available to the job. But in this tutorial we will use the native and popular media player VLC to capture video output.

How to record your desktop activity using VLC in Ubuntu – Steps

a) Launch VLC (Gnome: Application -> Sound and Video -> VLC Media Player | Unity Dash: Search for VLC)
b) Click on the ‘Screen Capture’ on the left side items. After you do that, in the playlist section, ‘Desktop’ item would be listed.

c) Right click on the ‘Desktop’ item and click ‘Save’, a ‘Convert’ window should open. At this point we are not yet started the recording and telling VLC the file name where the screen capture video would be stored.

d) In the ‘Convert’ window, do the followings:
-> Choose your desired recording file format from ‘Profile’ drop down.
-> In the destination section, click Browse and choose a file name.

VLC Support below file formats catering to almost all popular types:

e) Now, click Start button in the ‘Convert’ window and the screen recording processing would start. Whatever you are doing on the desktop would be recorded and being saved in the file name you chose.
f) To stop the recording, Click the STOP button in the main VLC Player window.
g) Once it is stopped, go to the directory where you have kept your recording file and play using any media player.