I have had people tell me that occasionally their computer will give them a problem. However, this is occasionally where the real problem starts. When they talk to a geek or go to have the computer repaired, they either cannot explain it to the geek clearly enough, they may forget exactly what happened, or they cannot get the problem to duplicate itself. It may also be either side of the conversation causing issues. A geek that does not speak like a human or the person not being able to speak geek. Then the person with the problem feels hopelessly lost.
Never fear, Microsoft thought of you with Windows 7 and continued it into Windows 11 of today. The application is called “Steps Recorder” and is really a minor miracle of technology. However, if you are now using Windows 11, you will not get it to work satisfactorily. More on that later.
It is very simple to use and will give your computer repair technician more than enough information regarding what is happening with your computer. And that will help them resolve it much more quickly.
To get to it, you can either click on your Start Menu and type “Steps Recorder” and click the link when it comes up. Or you may type “PSR”, as it was formerly known, Problem Steps Recorder, and click it that way. Either takes you to the same place.
A rectangular window will pop up on your monitor that is labeled, “Steps Recorder.” From here, it is pretty simple. Click the “Start Record” button and everything from that point on will be recorded as steps in a process. It will record your screenshots anytime you click your mouse or type. A red dot appears to show it was recorded at your mouse pointer. Each thing you do is recorded along with exactly what page you were on, a screenshot of what you clicked, the mouse location, etc. It makes a great slide show for your geek.
While recording, you can also add a comment by clicking the appropriate button on the controller for PSR. It will open a text box in the recording area and you can type notes or thoughts regarding the process. They will appear when you play the file back later.
Once you have finished stepping through your process, click the “Stop Recording” button and you may then save it. It will automatically create a “zipped” file to make it easier to email or take to another person for help. If you would like to experiment, try it now. Save the file, (best to your desktop) and once it completes unzip the file and run the file and be amazed. If happy with the results, delete it, or send it to your repair tech.
Now the “More on that later,” comment from the beginning. A recorded steps file can “currently” only be opened in Microsoft’s Internet Explorer Browser. Guess what, IE was done away with when Windows 11 premiered. It was replaced by the Microsoft Edge Browser. Edge will not play back steps as IE did in the past without a small change. That was a silly way to deal with it, which was left out by Microsoft developers.
To make them play correctly in Windows 10, you need to open them in Internet Explorer, which is still available with W10. To view the screen recorder in W11 you have to adjust the browser and here is how. Open Edge, click the three dots in the upper right, click on Settings, now in the left panel click, “Default browser.” Now on the right side next to “Allow sites to be reloaded in Internet Explorer mode (IE mode)” change the selection to “Allow.” Close Edge and reopen your unzipped steps recorder file and open it again. It should open properly for your enjoyment.
Your geek should have no problem with the file. But if you do, follow the above steps. Then I hope the Microsoft Developers will resolve this issue quickly for this very useful feature found in Windows.
