First-run setup
The first time you launch crowd-cast, a setup wizard opens automatically. It walks through three things: granting permissions, choosing which apps to record, and whether to start at login. When it finishes, recording starts automatically; signing in (to attribute your contributions) is a separate step you do from the tray menu afterwards.
The wizard also reopens automatically later if a required permission is missing. You can re-run it any time. See re-running the wizard.
1. Permissions
Section titled “1. Permissions”crowd-cast needs two macOS permissions. The wizard requests both and won’t be able to record properly until they’re granted:
- Screen Recording: required to capture windows. Without it, recording starts but there are no capture sources.
- Accessibility: required to capture keyboard and mouse input. Without it, video records but no input is logged.
If you skip one, grant it later in System Settings → Privacy & Security under the matching section, then restart crowd-cast.
No special permissions are required on Windows. The wizard goes straight to choosing which apps to record.
crowd-cast supports two Linux sessions: GNOME on Wayland (application
capture) and sway (full-screen capture). On anything else the wizard won’t
let you finish, so log into one of those first. Input is captured via evdev,
which requires your user to be in the input group; the installer handles this
for you (it’s the one step that needs sudo), then you log out and back in once
for it to take effect. On GNOME you also install the bundled focus extension
and relog in once, so per-app capture and input gating work.
2. Choose which apps to record
Section titled “2. Choose which apps to record”The wizard asks whether to capture all applications or to pick a specific set. If you pick a set, only those apps are captured: when a non-selected app is in the foreground, crowd-cast records a black screen and stops logging input. It is a one-time step: a selected app is remembered and keeps being captured on later launches, even after you close and reopen it.
What the app list shows depends on your platform:
The list shows the applications currently running. To record one that isn’t open, launch it first, then select it.
The list shows the applications currently running. To record one that isn’t open, launch it first, then select it.
The list shows the applications currently running (on Wayland, applications that have an open window). To record one that isn’t open, launch it first, then select it.
3. Start at login
Section titled “3. Start at login”The wizard offers to start crowd-cast automatically on login. We recommend keeping this on so the agent runs whenever you log in without you having to remember to launch it.
When you finish the wizard, the app restarts cleanly and its icon appears in your menu bar (macOS) or system tray (Windows/Linux). Recording starts automatically.
Sign in with Google
Section titled “Sign in with Google”The wizard does not ask you to sign in. Once setup is finished and crowd-cast is running, open the tray menu and choose Sign in with Google. This links your recordings to your account on the dashboard so your contributions can be attributed to you. Recording works whether or not you sign in, but without it your recordings can’t be linked to you and won’t appear on the dashboard.
See Account, uploads & dashboard for how sign-in works and what it does. Everything from here on is controlled from the tray menu.