how do i record sound

I am a mac newbie and i use it during class, i was trying to find out if i can record the lectures onto the mac using the stock microphone? What software do i use and which is better to use?
Thanks for the help.

I use audacity. its free.

http://audacity.sourceforge.net/

the internal mike should work. never tried in a class room settings, but im guessing it would work.

How far will you be from the lecturer? A simple condenser mic plugged into the audio-in port might be better for recording than the inbuilt one. If you can rig up a deflector cone just below the head of the external mic, that'll help divert the sound to the diaphragm. Making a simple stand for the mic would help too, but cushion it with foam rubber at its base.

Both Audacity and Garageband will record the sound.

thanks. i am not too far from the prof. i am usually within 20 ft.

I would go with an small USB condenser mic. You can pick one up for under $100.

Do you have microsoft office? If you do you can do it directly in Word. I've used it from the back of the room and it works great.

Go to View - Notebook View. Then go to View - Toolbars - Audio Notes. A new menu bar will appear and will show that there is signal. Then just adjust the level to where you want it and hit record. This way you can record lectures and keep them organized based on the topic being discussed, or you can just let it run all the way through.

You can also use Garage Band. Go to preferences - audio/midi, and make sure the Audio Input is set to "internal microphone". Then hit Shift+Apple+N, select real instrument and when you're ready hit record.