Nowadays, it's essential that everybody learns the basics of using a PC, especially given just how quickly technology moves on. Even though technology is constantly advancing, you're lucky in the sense that most of the basic operations of many kinds of technology stay the same so that old and new users can still use it.
If you know that you can copy and paste text on a computer, you'd likely think that you can copy anything on your screen, and you'd be right. When you use a computer, you can copy the contents of your screen and there are several ways and reasons to do so.
Let's take a look and why and how to take a screenshot on your PC.
Reasons to Take A Screenshot
A screenshot, as the name suggests, is essentially an image of your screen. You can copy anything that's being displayed on your device's screen whether it's text, images, your desktop, etc.
You can save this screenshot as an image file (.png, .jpg, .gif, etc.), which can be particularly useful and save you a lot of time. Some of the most common reasons to screenshot include:
- Snipping or copying text from a website or page whose text prohibits copying and pasting.
- Showing and saving errors to show tech support (which often have very long messages and error codes)
- Walkthroughs and guides (you can use step-by-step screenshots of the process)
- Saving useful information and research in a visual format
- Creating images from software
These are just a few of the reasons, but no matter the reason for taking a screenshot, PCs and almost every other device like smartphones, tablets, etc. can all take screenshots.
Taking a screenshot is just one of the basic operations that PC users can perform, but there are still several ways to take a screenshot.
Taking a Screenshot on a Windows Device
Most computers either use Microsoft Windows or MacOS. If you're using a PC with the Windows operating system (OS), it's quite easy to take a screenshot as the function is built into the OS.
The Print Screen Button: The Built-In Function
- Open the window or windows you'd like to capture or clip
- Press Control + Print Screen (the buttons with "Ctrl" and "PrtSc on them")
- It won't seem like anything has happened, but your screenshot will have been saved to the clipboard, which is where the copied content is stored so you can paste it later.
- Open a program to paste your screenshot into such as Microsoft Paint or Word.
- You can now paste your screenshot into a program of your choice. You can put this into Paint or Word.
- From there, you can save your screenshot either as a Word document or an image. In MS Paint, you can save as one of several formats including .jpg, .png, .gif, etc.
The Snipping Tool: Microsoft Window's Built-in Software
Using the Snipping Tool to create screenshots is slightly more advanced than the simple screenshot option that will capture everything that's currently visible on your screen.
The functionality of this tool includes:
- Drawing around an area to get a hand-drawn clip or screenshot
- Selecting a rectangular area of the screen to screenshot a specific part of your screen or a particular window
- Getting a screenshot of just one particular window
- Capturing the whole screen (just like the built-in screenshot function)
- Doing timed screenshots and screen captures
Opening and Using the Snipping Tool
- Open the Windows Start Menu by clicking on the Windows icon, the Start button, or by pressing the Windows key on your keyboard. How this button appears on your desktop and where it's found will vary according to the version of Microsoft Windows you're using.
- Type "Snipping Tool" into the search bar (though the Snipping Tool will usually have appeared in the results by the time you've finished typing "snip").
- Select the Snipping Tool app.
The Different Options for the Snipping Tool
- New: Click this button to start creating a screenshot.
- Mode: Select this option to choose which type of screenshot you would like to capture including free-form snip, rectangular snip, window snip, and full-screen snip.
Once You've Captured Your Screenshot or Snip
When you've captured a screenshot using the Snipping Tool, you can then do a few things with your image.
- Draw on the screenshot or highlight parts of it.
- Save your screenshot.
- Copy your screenshot and paste it elsewhere.
- Share your screenshot.
Other Software You Can Use for Capturing Screenshots
Just as there's more than one method for capturing screenshots, there's also more than one program you can use to do it. There are plenty of different kinds of software for capturing images from your screen or recording your screen.
One such piece of software, SnagIt, is a premium software package (that means you have to pay for it) and it comes with a lot of different functions and features for those who need more functionality when capturing screenshots. You can read more computer tips for beginners in our other guide.
The software is available on Microsoft Windows and Mac and can do a number of nifty things including:
- A timer you can use to capture tooltip and drop-down menus (which usually disappear when you click on something else)
- Capturing hidden features
- Adding arrows and blurring and obscuring parts of the screen. This can be useful if any sensitive information is present.
- Linking images together and making .gifs.
- Multiple different ways to share your screenshots.
- Microsoft Office integration.
Fireshot is another program that you can use to capture websites and pages. There is both a free and a premium version and can be integrated into popular web browsers such as Firefox, Opera, Chrome, etc. Since it integrates into web browsers, it works with any operating system that can run said browser.
Features of Fireshot include:
- Capturing entire pages without having to do multiple screenshots. Fireshot will capture parts of the page that aren't currently visible on your screen.
- Adding notes and editing the screenshots you've already made.
- Sharing screenshots in many different ways.
- Saving screenshots as images of as .pdf files.
GreenShot is another screenshot tool for Windows. You can choose whether or not to capture the mouse cursor, send screenshots to a printer or other programs, and annotate, highlight, and obscure areas of your screenshot.
Other useful features include:
- Printing your screenshot
- Copying to the clipboard
- Attaching your screenshot to an email
- Sending to the Microsoft Office suite
- Uploading to image banks like Flickr, Picasa, etc.
Here are some of the useful keyboard shortcuts for taking screenshots:
- Ctrl+PrtSc: Captures the entire screen.
- Alt+PrtSc: Captures the active window
- PrtSc: Captures a region
- Shift + PrtSc: Captures the last region
- Ctrl + Shift + PrtSc: Captures Internet Explorer
Capturing Screenshots on Mac
On MacOS, there's also the free built-in Screenshot feature that includes a lot of the same functionality as the other tools we've mentioned so far. To take a screenshot on your Mac, you just need to do the following:
- Open the software.
- Select the type of screenshot you'd like to take from the toolbar found at the bottom of the screen.
- Fullscreen
- Window
- Rectangular
- Record full screen
- Capture window video
- Capture with a timer
Within these options, you can also choose whether or not the mouse cursor is captured.
- Your screenshot will be saved in the default location.
- You can edit the screenshot.
- You can also share your screenshot.
There are also a few keyboard shortcuts you should know:
- Cmd+Shift+3: Captures the entire screen.
- Cmd+Shift+4: Captures a selected area or window.
- Cmd+Shift+6: Captures a screenshot of the touch bar.
Taking Screenshots on a Smartphone
To take a screenshot on a smartphone, it's quite easy. However, depending on your device, you may need both hands to do it. The most common reasons to share screenshots on a phone is either to share a conversation you're having with somebody else or because you've seen something funny or interesting that you'd like to share with friends in a chat.
Here are the ways to take and share screenshots on a smartphone.
Taking Screenshots On Android Phones
The most common way to share a screenshot on an Android phone (such as Samsung phones) is by pressing the power button and the volume down buttons at the same time. However, some Android devices use a different way.
The three main ways are:
- Power Button + Volume Down Button
- Back Button + Power Button
- Home + Power Button
You need to hold these buttons down for a bit before it takes a screenshot, but you'll know it's done it as there's normally some visual feedback to indicate a screenshot has been taken. On some devices, the screen will lighten or darken initiating a camera shutter whereas other devices will show an image of the screen flying off into the corner (indicating that it's been saved).
Taking Screenshots on iPhones
Taking a screenshot on an iPhone is just as easy as taking one on an Android phone. You just need to press the power button and the home button at the same time. Your screen will flicker to show you that the screenshot has been saved.
There's a folder on your device called "Screenshots", which is obviously where your screenshots are saved by default.
Taking screenshots is easily done on almost every device and it's quite a useful function on almost every device. Now you know how to do it, you can start saving, editing, and sharing screenshots!
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