Icecream Screen Recorder

User Manual

2015

1. Overview
System Requirements
OS
Icecream Screen Recorder is compatible with the following versions of Windows: Windows XP,
Windows Vista, Windows 7, Windows 8 and Windows 10. Double check all the necessary
patches and service packs are preinstalled on your computer.

CPU
Intel, AMD or any other compatible processor with at least 1 GHz CPU speed will help you
successfully work with Icecream Screen Recorder.

RAM
We recommend to have at least 1GB RAM for Windows 7 and Windows 8 for successful work.
512 MB will be enough for Windows XP and Vista.

Video Card
Although the program is compatible with 1024x768 resolution displays, we strongly recommend
using at least 1280x1024 display.

Free Disk Space

Make sure you have at least 250MB of free disk space to install Icecream Screen Recorder.
Recommended free disk space requirements for video conversion are 2GB for standard files
and 5-10GB for HD videos.

Programs Features
Video Capturing
Icecream Screen Recorder allows users to capture streaming video, desktop, gaming sessions,
and any other on-screen activities and save the output files in MKV format. The program allows
you to pause, resume and stop the process at any time, edit the output videos, select the
desired resolution of the videos. It also offers a number of useful configuration options.

Screenshot taking
The application allows you to take screenshots of a full screen or a certain section of it. You can
either save the files as PNG images, copy them to clipboard or share screenshots as URLs.

Drawing
Icecream Screen Recorder allows you to edit and comment on your videos and screenshots by
using the drawing and text tools. You can type or draw over the captured video or image to
highlight, mark out or add some information. Icecream Screen Recorder also provides users
with such tools as brush, rectangle, circle, arrow, and text.

Active Desktop
You can activate your desktop during screen capturing or screenshot taking and use it in a
habitual way. Thus, you can easily switch between windows, tabs and folders, open new
programs, etc.

Sound Recording
The program successfully records both system and microphone sounds. If you want to record
system sounds, you can tweak the balance and volume settings and allow Icecream Screen
Recorder to capture video and audio simultaneously. Its also possible to use a mic to comment
on a video thats being captured.

Pause and resume screen recording

Its possible to pause video capturing at any moment to add extra elements, do the editing,
change the background, etc. After that, you can resume the process and it will be continued
from the exact point it was stopped at.

Full Screen Game Recording

Those who record videogaming sessions will appreciate programs ability to capture the video in
a full screen mode. Thus, you can record the games without cropping any panels, which is very
important for creating high quality gaming podcasts. Besides, you can record the games with a
sound and even comment on them while playing.

Hotkeys
Icecream Screen Recorder offers a number of hotkey combinations for a more convenient use.
There are default hotkeys that help you stop, pause, and resume a video, take a screenshot,
copy it or save it as a URL, and many more. Its possible to enter the desired key combinations
manually if you dont find the default ones convenient enough.

Fast access from the icon in tray

Programs icon will be added to the tray while youre using it, and you can right click on it to get
a quick access to basic options like video or screenshot modes, settings, etc. Thus, you can
control the process directly from the desktop.

File size and disk space limitations

The program allows you to set file size and disk space limitations to prevent recording files that
are too large in size and control your resources. By setting these limitations, you make the
program stop recording once the size of the file or the amount of free disk space exceeds the
configured limit.

Hide mouse and highlight it

In certain cases, users may want to hide mouse cursor from the screen (for example while
recording the games) or show and even highlight it (for various tutorials and reviews). Icecream
Screen Recorder allows you to hide or show mouse cursor depending on your specific situation
and also highlight it if you want.

Hide desktop icons

In case you dont want your desktop icons to be visible on the video, you can choose a special
option to hide them. After that, the program will capture everything except all your desktop
icons.

Convenient sharing
The program offers two ways of sharing screenshots saving them to buffer for posterior use or
sharing images as URLs.

Output Formats
Video
All the video files are saved in MKV format.

Screenshots
Screenshots are saved as images in PNG format.

2. Interface
Main Window
After launching the program, you will see the Loading window and then the main window of
Icecream Screen Recorder. Before you skip to the actual screen capturing in the working area,
you will see the programs logo and two controls in the middle of the window: Capture video
and Screenshot. Choosing one of them will bring you to a desired mode, and after that you
can start working.

Main Controls
Please, familiarize yourself with the main controls prior to using the program:
Capture video button - allows you to select a desired area of the screen and capture a video.
Screenshot button - allows you to take a screenshot of a selected area.
Icecream.me button - opens IcecreamApps.com website in your default browser.
Help button - opens the latest version of Icecream Screen Recorder manual on
IcecreamApps.com website.
Settings button - opens the settings panel.
Clear history button - allows you to clear saved media log.

3. Capture Video Mode

Select recording area
After clicking on the Capture video button in the main window, you will be allowed to select an
area of the screen to be captured. To do that, toggle the frame over the screen and release it
once it frames the desired zone. You will be able to see the resolution of the area as a little tag
in the upper left corner of the frame, where H stands for height and W stands for width.
After releasing the cursor, the frame will be fixed, but you still can change its size in case it
appeared to be too large or too small you can either stretch it manually by pressing and
holding the markers on the frame or choose one of the preset profiles that will be available in
the task panel near the frame. Particularly, you can choose such profiles as Custom, Full
screen, 720p, 1024x768p, 640x480p, 320x240p, or 160x140p. By choosing the
Custom profile, you can enter the desired values for width and height manually. It is also
possible to customize the size of the selected area with Up and Down keys of your keyboard.
You can move the selected frame around your desktop just click on it, hold and drag your
mouse to relocate the frame, and release once it's in the right place.

Control panel
Control panel will show up near the selected area. If the panel doesn't fit outside the recording
area (for example in a full screen mode), the program will suggest you to hide it. After that, your
desktop will become inactive. Use hotkeys to manage the process while the panel is inactive.

Control panel elements for video capturing

Control panel offers an access to several features:
Record/Pause/Resume
The Rec button in the left side immediately initiates screen capturing. After clicking on this
button, it will be changed to the Pause icon which you can press to stop recording for a while.
The Pause icon, in its turn, will be changed to the Resume icon click on it to proceed with
the recording.
Switch control
Clicking on this button will make the desktop active and allow you to use all the icons, panels
and tabs in a regular mode.
Area
This button allows you to adjust the size of the frame. About adjusting the frames read more in
Select recording area section.
Draw
In the Draw panel, you can add certain graphical elements to edit the video according to your
needs. Particularly, you can use the drawing or text tools similar to those featured by the
standard graphic editors. You can do that during the recording or while the video is paused.
Stop
This button helps you complete the recording and save the video. After clicking on it, you will
see a Video saved! informer with the output files path, duration, resolution, and size
information. Clicking on the folder icon will bring you to the containing folder with a focus on this
exact video file. You can select a folder to which all the recorded videos will be saved by default
through the Program Settings panel.
Note that you can use hotkeys for all these features while working.

4. Screenshot Mode
Select screenshot area
After clicking on the Screenshot button in the main window, you will be allowed to select an
area of the screen that you want to make a screenshot of. To do that, you are supposed to
follow the same guidelines that were described earlier in the Select recording area section of
the manual toggle the frame over the screen and release it, choose the resolution (stretch the
screenshot manually, choose one of the preset profiles, or type the desired values for width and
height manually), and use the tools on the toolbar that will be shown up near the selected area.

Control panel elements for taking screenshots

Screenshot
Once the area is framed, you can click on the Screenshot button in the upper left corner of a
toolbar. After that, you will see a Screenshot saved! informer in the bottom right corner of your
screen it contains the output files resolution, path, and size information. Clicking on the folder
icon will bring you to the containing folder with a focus on this exact screenshot. You can select
a folder to which all the created screenshots will be saved by default through the Program
Settings panel.

Copy
This button allows you to save your screenshot to your computer's clipboard and then paste it
whenever you want.

URL
Icecream Screen Recorder allows the users to save screenshots as URLs. To do that, simply
click on the URL button, and it will be immediately saved as a link that you can copy and
share. The image will be uploaded to Icecream Apps server and you can share created
screenshot by simple sharing the link to it.

Area
This button allows you to adjust the size of the frame. About adjusting the area, read more in
Select recording area section.

Draw
Draw panel of the Screenshot mode features the same tools that were described in the Capture
video mode: you can use drawing tools and text tool to complete your screenshot with graphics.
Note that you can use hotkeys for all these features while working. It's possible to change the
hotkey combinations in the Settings panel.

5. Draw Panel
The Draw panel allows you to add graphics to your video to make it more vivid,
comprehensive, demonstrable, and also accentuate certain things in your video. This panel is
available in both Capture Video and Screenshot modes.

Tools of drawing panel

Brush
This is a standard brush that you can use to draw on the screen. Its selected by default when
you open the Draw panel, and you can use it immediately. If you are drawing in the Capture
Video mode while the video isnt paused, the changes will appear in the output video exactly
like they were made, i.e. in progress.

Rectangle
Press and hold your cursor to add a rectangular autoshape to your screenshot or video.

Circle
Do the same thing to draw a circle within a selected area.

Arrow
Use the arrow tool to point at certain things on your screenshot or video.

Text
Point the cursor at a desired spot within the framed area to type the text. You can select font
size from a dropdown menu by clicking on the setting to the right of the Text icon.

Thickness
Its possible to change the thickness of brush, rectangle, circle and arrow tools three variants
of thickness are available at the left side of the panel. Simply click on the desired one and start
using the tools. Besides, you can choose a color of all the tools and text by clicking on the color
boxes on the bottom of the panel.

Buttons
Undo and Clear all buttons at the right side will help you cancel the recent changes or
remove all the added graphics respectively.

6. History
Table view
All your files are saved in the history log that you can see as a chart in the main window. The
chart contains basic information about the files:

Type of file
This data is displayed as an icon on the left of a filename. The Play icon stands for the video
while a camera one means that a file is a screenshot.

File/URL
Filename is actually a date and time of files creation.

Size
In this column, you can check files size.

Duration
This column only displays numerical values for videos. In case a file is a screenshot, the column
will have the - value.

Resolution
Each file is assigned with the resolution value, be it a video, a screenshot, or a URL.

Path
By clicking on the folder icon in the Path column, the containing folder will be opened with a
focus on the necessary file. In case the file is a URL, you will see the link icon in the Path
column in front of it.

Delete
There is a recycle bin icon for each file in the last column of the History table. You can click on
this icon to delete this particular file from the list.

Clear History
To delete all the files from the history, click on the Clear history button in the bottom left corner
of the window. Note that these file will only be deleted from the history list, but you can still find
them in the containing folders.

7. Program settings
The Settings button is located in the bottom right corner of a main window. It brings you to the
Settings panel where you can set the following configurations.

Sound
If you want to record a sound alongside with the video, check the Record sound box in the
upper left corner of the panel. Pressing on the Open mixer button in the upper right corner will
help you correct the volume and balance configurations for system sounds and microphone.
After that, press the Rec icon below. It will be changed to the Stop button which you can
press whenever you want to stop recording the sound.

Folders
In the Folders section of the Settings panel you can specify the output locations for videos and
screenshots. To select a path for videos, click on the folder icon at the right side of the setting
and use Windows Explorer to select a desired folder. Repeat the process for the Screenshot
path setting. After that, all your videos and screenshots captured with Icecream Screen
Recorder will be saved in the specified folders by default.

System
In this tab, you can set certain limitations to your output file size by specifying the maximal file
size and minimal disk space values. It will be necessary if you want to record a long video but
have certain maximal file size preferences that you dont want to exceed. So, type in the desired
values for Max file size and Min disk space.
You can also choose the language of the interface. The program supports multiple languages,
such as English, Russian, Italian, Spanish, French, German, Japanese, etc. Simply click on a
little arrow on the right side and choose the desired language from a dropdown menu.

Hotkeys
Icecream Screen Recorder disables the screen when you initiate the process of screen
capturing, which means that you cant use your mouse in a regular way (unless you press the
Switch control button while capturing the video). Thus, using hotkeys is an extremely
convenient way to manage the process without using your mouse. The program offers default
hotkeys for the following operations:
Rec/Pause if you want to start recording a video or pause the process, press CTRL+Shift+R;
Stop - CTRL+Shift+S combination allows you to finish recording;
Screenshot Press CTRL+Shift+T to take a screenshot. Note that a default parameters of the
screenshot in this case will be exactly the same as parameters of a previously taken
screenshot;
Copy Use CTRL+Shift+C combination to copy a screenshot to buffer;
URL Press CTRL+Shift+U to save a screenshot as URL;
Switch control Use the combination of CTRL+Shift+G keys to activate your desktop;
Draw Pressing CTRL+Shift+D will activate the Draw panel and allow you to use drawing
dools;
Show panel If you decided to hide a toolbar in order to prevent its appearing on the
screenshot taken in a full screen mode, press CTRL+Shift+H to show the panel again;
Cancel Use CTRL+Shift+E keys to cancel the changes.
All these hotkey combinations can be changed to ones that appear to be more convenient for
you. To do that, simply click on corresponding fields and press the necessary key-combinations.

Thank you for choosing Icecream Apps!

If you have any questions left please contact our support team at
support@icecreamapps.com