A screenshot is a photo taken from what’s on the screen that you can share with your friends. Below you will find ways to take a screenshot in Windows.
How to screenshot on Windows
You can take a screenshot on any platform, and taking screenshots in Windows is nothing extraordinary here – of course it offers this feature. It has a built-in option that is great for basic tasks, but many third-party programs offer simpler operation and functions. In this article, I will show you several different ways to take a screenshot in Windows 10.
If OneDrive is available on the computer, the system will ask if the screenshot should be saved there.
Print Screen
Pressing the Print Screen key is the fastest and easiest way to take a screenshot, but certainly the least convenient. Since the screenshot is not saved, but only saved in the system clipboard, after it is done, paste it into a graphics program or text editor. The system only remembers one snapshot, so if you do not immediately capture the image, pressing Print Screen again will replace it with a new one, which will not be useful if you need to make a series. Alternatively, you can expand the system’s clipboard capabilities with applications such as Clipboard Master.
Alt + Print Screen
This solution works just like pressing Print Screen, but only saves the active window. So if you have several folders open on your desktop, pressing Alt and Print Screen at the same time will allow you to save the image without clutter in the background.
Windows + Shift + S
Your screen will be grayed out and the cursor will change. Click and drag on the screen to select the part of the screen you want to capture. The screenshot of the selected region of the screen will be copied to the clipboard. You can paste it into any application by choosing Edit> Paste or by pressing Ctrl + V, just like you pasted a shortcut to the full screen using the Print Screen key.
This only works in Windows Creators Update. In older versions of Windows, this shortcut is part of the OneNote application from Microsoft. With the Creators Update, Microsoft has integrated this shortcut into Windows 10 alone.
Snipping tool
Did you know that Windows 10 has a built-in screenshot tool? In the original it is called Snipping Tool, which in the Polish edition of Windows systems has been translated somewhat roughly as the Cutting Tool. It is well known to owners of Windows Vista, 7 and 8 / 8.1, and is found in the System Accessories section. After starting it, you can choose the area that will be captured – the active window, full screen, rectangle or shape that you choose yourself. The screenshot can be saved to the system clipboard or in a place selected by the user. Available recording formats are .png, .html, .jpeg and .gif.
Sample programs for creating screenshots
- Microsoft Paint – shipped with Windows
- Snipping tool – shipped with Windows 7, Vista, Windows 8 and Windows 10
- Irfanview – free
- Paint .NET – free
- XNView – free
