Summary
Get started with Panopto, a lecture capture services that instructors can use to record and live stream lectures, demonstrations, and additional classroom video from anywhere.
Body
Overview
Instructors can record and live stream lectures, demonstrations, and additional classroom video from anywhere—using a laptop, tablet, or smartphone. Viewers can even submit questions to a presenter—in real time—for an interactive experience. Access Lecture Capture (Panopto) through My Pitt to create, store, and share videos securely.
Note: Instructors may also grant students Lecture Capture Creator access for completing class assignments or assessments.
Benefits of Lecture Capture
- Record and upload presentations and assignments.
- Broadcast live video to the Pitt community or the world.
- Share pre-recorded videos from previous terms or lectures.
- Combine multiple video sources into one recording.
- Integrate instructor videos with Learning Management System (Canvas).
Detail
Start Using Lecture Capture in 3 Easy Steps
- Download the Lecture Capture (Panopto) recorder:
Note 1: Lecture Capture (Panopto) uses the Pitt Passport single sign-on service for multifactor authentication.
- Configure the recorder:
- Record and post your video:
For additional information, check out the Panopto getting started guide, the Panopto security guide, or watch video tutorials. Information is also available about two different options for generating closed captioning.
More Ways to Get the Most from Lecture Capture
Using Lecture Capture (Panopto) Desktop and Mobile Apps
The following resources provide documentation for the recorder feature of Lecture Capture. Any mention of “server name” in Panopto documentation refers to pitt.hosted.panopto.com.
MacOS Recorder
Windows Recorder
Mobile Devices
Web Recorder
If you are unable to install the desktop client, a web recorder is available.
Panopto recommends use of Chrome, Firefox, or Microsoft Edge browsers for Web recordings. Instructions for using Safari 15.0+ are provided here.
Advanced Lecture Capture (Panopto) Resources
The following resources provide documentation for additional features of Lecture Capture. Any mention of “server name” in Panopto documentation refers to pitt.hosted.panopto.com.
Uploading
Managing Video
Broadcasting/Webcasting
Equipment
Learning Management System (Canvas) Integration
As an instructor, you can add Lecture Capture integration to a Learning Management System (Canvas) course:
- Log in to Canvas, click Courses on the left-side blue column, then select your course.
- Click Settings.
- Click the Navigation tab.
- Select and move the Panopto Video from the bottom list to the top list, then click Save.
- To interact with Panopto, click the Panopto Video in the Home menu.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Who can use Lecture Capture?
Anyone with a primary University Computing Account has access to the system. Sponsored accounts may request access to Lecture Capture by contacting the Technology Help Desk at 412-624-HELP (4357) or submitting a request online.
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Who can create content within Lecture Capture?
Faculty and staff with a primary University Computing Account are given "Home Folders" in the system. Users can create and share content via folders.
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How can students be granted access to create content?
Students can be given access to create content in a number of ways:
- A faculty or staff member can grant that student "creator" rights to their own folder.
- A faculty or staff member can create a subfolder within their own folder and grant the student "Creator" rights to it.
- An instructor can create Assignments folders for classes and grant permission to student viewers to record their own content. Students given this permission cannot see other students’ recorded content.
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How do I share content with users outside of Pitt?
If you need to share content with users outside of the University, you have several options:
- If the users already have Pitt accounts, you can share the content with those accounts and the users will be able to authenticate and view the content.
- If the users do not have Pitt accounts and you need to have them authenticate first, you can request that a sponsored account be created. Each user should be given their own account; they should not use a single shared account.
- If the users do not have Pitt accounts, select Anyone on the internet to share the video, then send the user a link to the recording. This will share it without requiring the users to authenticate first.
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What if I want to create content that is shared with a group, but not tied to any one person?
If you have a need to create content but don't want it tied to a specific user, create a subfolder under one user and use it to share content. If that user ever leaves, the subfolder can be reassociated with another user.
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Can sponsored accounts access the service? If so, what do they need to do?
Yes, but they are not given access by default. To request sponsored account access, please submit a request to the Technology Help Desk.
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Can I add closed captioning to my video?
Yes. Information is also available about a machine-generated captions and a modestly, priced human transcriptions service offered by Panopto for generating closed captioning. Please note that unedited, machine-generated captions do not meet the ADA 508 compliance standard. However, Human transcriptions meet this requirement.
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Does Lecture Capture have remote recording functionality?
Yes. To set up an automatic recording schedule for your classroom recorder device, contact the Technology Help Desk.
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Can I restrict access to Lecture Capture content using Active Directory groups?
No. It is not currently possible to restrict access to a folder or piece of content using Active Directory groups. Pitt IT is working on this. In the meantime, end users can create one or more local groups containing users with restricted access.
Other Uses
Lecture Capture is an excellent tool for capturing and sharing classroom lectures, but the service has many other potential uses:
- Broadcast live events: Lecture Capture can livestream campus events or presentations delivered by visiting speakers. Your viewers can even submit questions to the presenter in real time for an interactive experience. Once finished, you can publish livestream recordings online for viewing at a later time. Faculty and staff can use Lecture Capture software to record multiple video sources in a classroom, edit them into a single video, and share video content with students. For example, a faculty member might combine a recording of her lecture, her PowerPoint slides, a document camera, and a recording of the questions her students asked during class. Using Lecture Capture, you can upload pre-recorded videos from previous lectures or terms.
- Create training materials: Lecture Capture makes it easy to create and record training videos using a laptop and webcam. Host training videos in the cloud and make them available to anyone. You can also search inside videos to quickly find key terms. As faculty, use Lecture Capture to record lectures and make them available to students for playback. As a student, you can view recorded lectures on almost any device-searching and annotating the recordings to enhance learning.
- Store and share existing video content: Lecture Capture does more than just create new video content. It lets you store and share existing videos. Schools and departments can create an easily-accessible library of their video content–campus events, guest presentations, live webcasts, interviews–that are easily accessible from any device. Lecture Capture makes it easy for you to find videos and search them for specific content.
Related Information
Download Panopto for PCs:
Download the Panopto mobile app: