How to record a computer demonstration

I wanted to create a video of a computer-based work task and show it to teammates. A picture is worth a thousand words--the video would convey the concept way faster than my trying to convey the value via text like this.

I used these tools :

• MovieMaker (free on many Windows systems... look for C:\Program Files\MovieMaker\moviemk.exe)
  
• ManyCam (free to download and use; see http://download.manycam.com)
  
• A microphone (if you want to narrate)
  

Here's the basic concept. MovieMaker records videos. It asks for a "video source". ManyCam makes the computer think it is a video source. ManyCam lets you choose whether to use a webcam for video OR to display a portion of your Desktop. (So, if you do not have a webcam and all you really want to do is record your Desktop, you can.) Now, put these two together: tell MovieMaker to record whatever ManyCam is showing. Finally, MovieMaker has a Narration menu selection: if you prefer, you can add a voice track AFTER you create and trim down the video shots (I like that; I'm not skilled enough to narrate at the same time that I'm capturing the desktop activity).

ManyCam acts like a webcam substitute or a webcam middleman. Once you start and set up ManyCam to show your webcam or your Desktop, you can then fire up any other program that wants a video source, and you pick ManyCam as the source... and it works.

Okay, so what are the actual steps for recording your desktop activity?

[to be provided soon]
[how to turn off the ManyCam logo]
[how to start ManyCam and tell it to view your Desktop]
[how to setup for recording and select the ManyCam source]
[how to record; advice on motion; how to stop the recording]
[tips and tricks for refining your video's visuals before you narrate]
[how to add narration]
[how to save as a movie file; uploading to youtube]