How to reduce SWF file size during the screen recording file editing

It’s quite popular to record your computer screen to make a tutorial, demo or gameplay video in order to share your masterpiece to the world. However, here is one big trouble that once you find out the output file occupies all your hard disk, resulting storage room shortage and system slowdown, furthermore, anyone can stand the long eternal upload progress of your 45-min yet 1GB video?

So now get some tips on what you can do to compress SWF file, please read it before you start to record your screen video.

Attention, all tips get to the root of this matter. No matter what screen recording software you use, all you should do is following the methods then gaining the engaging result.

Tip 1: Adjust the FPS (Frame per second) of your SWF output

This value describes the frequency at which an imaging device produces unique consecutive images.

Generally speaking, for regular screen captured tutorial and demo, setting up FPS to 12~20 frames is enough to produce all steps and movements on your screen. If you want video with more great fluency, just simply add some frames/Second. You can make attempts on figuring out a proper value to balance the video quality and SWF file size.

Tip 2: Optimize images you insert into SWF files

During the editing of screen recording videos, several of extra components might be added in as decoration and additional remarks. The most common one is image and that’s also a key element on altering SWF file size.

You can give preference to the image in JPG and GIF format. Since SWF size varies directly with the bitmap size, BMP and PNG are not recommended for they contain so many pixels lined up in rows, indicating the lesser image compression they can reach.

Tip 3: Use less key-frame animation

The key-frame creates the important frames of a sequence. The more key-frame you use in screen recording, the bigger the SWF file size will be.

To avoid the size increase of SWF files, you can decrease the redundant mouse clicks while recording, or delete those repetitive frame produced by mouse click and keyboard strike in the interface of screen recording software.

So there are two ways to simplify the key-frame. One is combination, it’s widely used in cases when two adjacent key-frames contain similar slide appearance, you can add all actions originally in the second frame after the first frame, then delete the following one frame. In this way, you save one key-frame.

Another way called replacement is rather gimmicky but still impressive and effective. Firstly, make a screen capture for one key-frame slide which differs from the prior one in display and save it as an image. Then import it to the prior frame, set up the right time it appears in the frame tool bar and add the certain effects you want. Check the preview; does it look the same as former state which has two key-frames? And how about the file size?

Tip 4: Choose the ideal audio file for your SWF files

Use MP3 compression, it’s the smallest sound form. In most instances, you can change both the bit rate and sampling frequency to control the audio quality of your screen recording output.

Here for regular narration, we suggest audio file in 22 KHz, 16 bit, single output signal. One more, avoid the stereo sound, it will make your file size double.

Tips 5: Limit the fonts and font styles use

Be careful when you’re about to embed smart font styles into text or button box in screen recording video. The fonts and font styles will make your SWF in corpulence especially when you are trying to embed some unique fonts which need extra room to store in SWF file.

If it’s not essential or on certain purpose, just type all text in one font. You can put the words in different size or various colors, it do little influence to the video size compared with the font mixing.

Tip 6: Pay heed to new screen recording utility

DemoCreator is a really neat screen recording software for web designers, teachers, e-learning workers and basically anyone who is using screen recorders and wants to share their high quality tutorials, demos and video presentations in compressed SWF files.

With the latest version of DemoCreator, it can reduce your SWF file automatically and optimize the whole part of video to export the best quality output demo as far as small in size, according to official announcement to be published in early November.