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How-to video for a team wiki: record one in Chrome

Record a how-to video for a team wiki in Chrome: write the steps first, share one window, add a transcript the wiki can search, and keep the file current.

By Cheap Recorder · 17 October 2026 · 8 min read

A how-to video for a team wiki saves you from explaining the same click path twice. A written page is fine for a short checklist, but when the steps live on a screen, a video shows which menu hides the setting and what the result should look like. This post walks through one way to record it in Chrome with Cheap Recorder, from the steps you write first to keeping the video current.

Why a how-to video for a team wiki saves time

Wiki pages go stale and get skimmed. A short video shows the real screen, so a new teammate can follow along without guessing which button you mean.

It also cuts repeat questions. Record the answer once, put it on the page, and send the link the next time someone asks.

Cheap Recorder runs in Google Chrome on macOS, Windows and Linux and saves one MP4 on your own computer, with a transcript. That file plays almost anywhere, so it suits whatever wiki you use. The same habit works for other team videos, such as a product walkthrough for a new teammate or a weekly team update.

Write the steps and set up your screen

Ten minutes of prep saves a re-record. Write the task as five or six short steps. You are not reading a script. You are making sure you do not skip a click.

Keep to one task per video. "Reset a customer password" is a video. "Everything in the admin panel" is a series of videos.

• Share one window or one tab. Anything on the shared screen ends up in the file. A single window or browser tab keeps your other tabs, apps and private things out.
• Close what you do not need and silence notifications. A chat pop-up in the middle of a how-to is hard to remove later.
• Get the starting state right. Log in, open the right page and clear anything that distracts from the steps.
• Use test data. The recording keeps everything that appears on screen, so never show real customer details.
• Use a headset or desk microphone. The transcript is made from what Chrome hears on your microphone, so a microphone close to your mouth beats a laptop's built-in one in a noisy room. Our post on testing your microphone before a long recording covers the check.

Record the screen and your voice in Chrome

Open the recorder at cheaprecorder.com/app in Chrome.

1. Choose a folder. Under Where to save, press Choose folder.... Chrome opens its folder picker and then asks whether the page may edit files in that folder. Allow it. Until you pick a folder, Start recording stays greyed out and the note beside it says why. The recorder does not remember the folder between visits, so you choose it each time.
2. Name the recording. In Name this recording, type the task, for example Reset a customer password. The name is used for the file and its folder.
3. Pick what to capture. Under What to capture, choose A window or A browser tab. Chrome opens its own sharing box. Pick the window or tab and press Share.
4. Allow the microphone. Allow it when Chrome asks. If the level bar stays still while you talk, check the microphone's own mute switch.
5. Check Live transcript. It is ticked by default under Options. The language menu lists 25 languages and goes back to its default each time the page opens, so check it before you start.
6. Press Start recording. The note beside the button reads ready to record when you can go.
7. Press Stop and finish when you are done. Do not use Chrome's own Stop sharing bar, because that also finishes the recording. The recording then appears on the page with a player, and it is already saved in your folder.

Recordings are written to your disk as you go and are not uploaded. The Free plan covers all of this.

A worked example: reset a customer password

This one is made up, to show the shape. Say your support team needs a video for "Reset a customer password" in the wiki.

1. Write five steps: open the admin page, search for the customer, open their account, press Reset password, confirm the email was sent.
2. Share only the admin tab, logged in with a test customer.
3. Name the recording Reset a customer password, tick Live transcript and record a 30-second test first. Play it back to catch a wrong microphone or a muted tab.
4. Record the real take. Say what you are about to do, then do it: "Now I search for the customer." Pause a beat after each click so the viewer sees the result.
5. At the start of each step, press M to drop a marker. Markers are only added while you record, not while you type in a text box.
6. Stop with Stop and finish and open the folder. You should see Reset a customer password - 2026-10-18 10.30 with the MP4 inside, named after the recording.

Two minutes of video is a quick re-record when the admin page changes. A twenty-minute one never gets redone.

Add a transcript so the wiki stays searchable

Most wikis search text, not video. The transcript fixes that. With Live transcript on, the recording's folder gets a plain text file with the time of each line, for example Reset a customer password - transcript.txt. It opens in any text editor, so you can paste it under the video on the wiki page.

From the card after you stop you can also press Captions .srt and Transcript. The .srt is made in the page and is not written to the folder, so download it while the recorder page is open if your video host takes caption files.

If the transcript was off when you recorded, you cannot add one afterwards. While it is on, Chrome sends your microphone audio to Google to turn it into text. If that is a problem for a recording, untick it before you start. The live transcript and captions guide has the details.

The Transcript fold on the card also lets you rename the Speaker boxes and press Save captions. In a normal one-file recording, cutting words changes the transcript and captions, not the MP4. If you have a lot of ums, the filler words guide explains it.

Put the video on the wiki page

Your recording is a file on your own disk, and Cheap Recorder keeps no copy. Where it goes next is up to you.

1. Find the file. Open the recording's folder. The video sits inside, named after the recording.
2. Put it where your team already keeps files. That may be your wiki's attachment feature, a shared drive or a company video library.
3. Add it to the page. Write one line about what the video shows above it, and paste the transcript below it.

If your wiki needs another format, use Convert on the card. It offers MP4, MOV, WebM, GIF, MP3, M4A and WAV. Convert and Download MP3 send the file to the Cheap Recorder server, which deletes its copy when it finishes. The original in your folder is never changed. The card lasts only while the recorder page is open, so convert before you close the tab. More in the convert guide.

If the how-to is for a client rather than a teammate, the client demo guide shows a publish page with the video and its transcript. It needs a plan with the publish page, and you tick Also save every source separately before you record.

Keep wiki videos up to date

• Put the date on the wiki page, not only in the file, so a reader sees how old the video is.
• Use the same recording name when you re-record. The folder gets a new date and time, so the old take stays beside the new one. A second recording with the same name in the same minute gets (2) on the end.
• Swap the video and the transcript on the page, and the links around them keep working.
• Search the transcripts for a button name when a release renames it. The matches show which videos are out of date.

For most wiki pages, a short take you can redo is enough. If you are weighing options, see the comparison with Loom, Camtasia, Descript and Riverside.

Frequently asked questions

Can I record a how-to video for my wiki on the free plan?

Yes. The Free plan includes recording, live transcript and captions, and 12 hours of recording a month. No card is needed.

Do I need to install anything?

No. Cheap Recorder runs in Google Chrome on macOS, Windows and Linux. You open the page, choose a folder and record.

Where does the video go after I record it?

It is written to the folder you picked on your own computer. Recordings are not uploaded, except when you use Convert or Download MP3, which send the file to the server and delete it there when finished.

Can I show one app and keep the rest of my screen private?

Yes. Choose A window or A browser tab under What to capture instead of the whole screen. Other tabs and apps stay out of the recording.

Can I add a transcript after I record?

No. Live transcript must be ticked under Options before you press Start recording. It is on by default.

Get started

Pick the task your team asks about most, write down the steps and record it. Start recording on the free plan. It needs no card, and your recordings stay on your own disk.