Been trying to get my head around building a standalone video recorder using Java, as my next step towards the Audio/Video repository plugin. When it comes to java, this is what at least I was able to conclude after trying a lot of alternatives to JMF (Java Media Framework). It is not simple to get a cross-platform solution working using Java (in media recording/capturing). Below are some of the solutions I looked upon this weekend.

JMF - This is a long dead solution. Installation of the framework involves a lot of troubleshooting, and the documentation isn't of much help, as it is obsolete. My being a 64 bit Linux machine didn't help either. JMF doesn't have a direct binary for 64 bit systems. As a result workaround involving extensive SO searches are the only options.

FMJ - As this itself is an abandoned project since 2007. It didn't make sense to try this one, after I had trouble getting the JMF installation to work.

v4l4j - This is a Java framework based on Video4Linux API. The project is recent and is very well documented. I managed to get the installation working on my 64 bit machine. Very few dependencies, and clear troubleshooting instructions did help in getting it working quickly.

There is a simple example on screen capturing that I would be using to build a Webcam-recorder. This looks like a good platform to start with. Will be experimenting more with the API and would look to get a standalone version working in quick time.

Update : This actually produces raw frames of video data which must be trans-coded before the video can be saved.

Some of the alternatives I didn't try but could be useful

vlcj - This is a framework in Java that provides Java bindings to allow an instance of a native vlc media player to be embedded in a Java AWT window or Swing.

P.S. I have trouble switching between the JDK version I have installed in the process, so here is a simple way to switch between the Java versions installed.