Taking a Screenshot

Screenshot is screen capture wherein you can create and save an exact image of the way the screen is appearing to you. A lot of people often wonder how do you print screen or take a screenshot, as there are numerous applications of this knowledge. Certain websites these days have restrictions on selecting and copying content or saving pictures from the web page to your computer. You can play smart by taking a screenshot and then cropping out the undesired part. Gamers, who have the urge to showcase their skills through a high score they have achieved or reached a particularly difficult level, can easily do so by taking a screenshot. In case you are having some trouble with your computer, you can grab a screenshot and email it to a person to show him the exact problem and ask for its solution. It is therefore handy learning how to take a screenshot, which can be done following simple instructions given below.

Taking a Screenshot on Windows

Taking a screenshot on a PC is much easier if you are using Windows Vista, as it has a specifically designed application for the same. But for people using Windows XP or any lower version, need to use the traditional 'print-screen' method. Details on the same are discussed below.

Taking a Screenshot in Windows XP

• Go to the page of which you want a screenshot of, and press the 'Prt Scrn' button on your keyboard. This button is next in line after the function keys.
• Click Start → All Programs → Accessories → Paint. This will open the Microsoft Paint window.
• When the paint window opens, click on the 'Edit' option on the menu bar, and select 'paste', or hold the 'ctrl' and V keys together. The screenshot will be copied in the paint window and you can crop, resize and adjust the image as per your need.
• Next, go to the 'File' option on the menu bar and click on the 'save as' option. A widow will pop up after this in which you need to change the 'Save as Type' option to JPG, JPEG or PNG , as per your requirement. Type an appropriate name for your file in the 'File Name' space provided in the window and from the options appearing in the left hand corner of the window, select the location where you wish to save you file.
• Your screenshot is captured and successfully saved on your computer.

Taking a Screenshot on Vista

• There is a specifically designed toll for taking a screenshot, called the snipping tool, present in all versions of Windows Vista except the home basic version.
• Arrive on the page of which you want to take a screenshot. To take capture the screenshot, you will first have to open the snipping tool. Click on the start button menu type 'snip' in the search tab which appears on the left hand bottom region of the menu. Click on the snipping tool icon which will appear in the menu.
• As the snipping tool window opens, your screen will get covered in a white color mask. Click on the 'new' option present on the menu bar and you will see four options appearing in the drop-down list - full screen snip, window snip, free-form snip and rectangular snip.
• Select the option which best suits your requirement. The free-form snip mode lets you to manually draw and select the area of which you want the screenshot of, the full-screen mode selects the entire screen, while the window snip mode tool can select a particular window for your snapshot.
• After selecting the option and snipping your image, it will automatically get copied within the snipping tool and also to the windows clipboard, for your further use.

How to Take a Screenshot on a Mac

For people using a Mac operating system, can learn how to take a screenshot on a Mac following instructions given below.

• Command+Shift+3
  This command will automatically capture and save a screenshot of the entire screen as you see it, on your desktop in a PNG format.
• Command+Ctrl+Shift+3
  This command does the same function as the previous one, except that the screenshot you take will go to your clipboard and you can use it immediately.
• Command+Shift+4
  This command helps you to capture only a certain portion of your screen. When you press these keys together, a cross -hair cursor will appear on the screen which you can use to select the required screenshot area. After you release the mouse button, a PNG file of your screenshot will be saved on your desktop.
• Command+Shift+4+Ctrl
  This command only has a minor variation from the above command, which allows you to use the screenshot right away, by saving it on the clipboard instead of your desktop.

Having the knowledge about taking a screenshot will surely be useful in many ways, especially when you need to preserve contents of your screen for further use.