There are a number of ways to do screen captures, depending on your level
of skill and understanding of Microsoft Windows, so I will go through
several different ways to do it and you can pick the one you are most
comfortable.
Quick Start
(You may find this works great for you. If it doesn't, then take a look
at the more detailed description below.)
Make sure what you want to copy is on top. Click in the window to
make sure.
Hold down the ALT key and push once on the Key labeled "Print
Screen".
Click on the Start button, then select Run.
Type in mspaint and hit enter.
When MSPaint comes up, click on Edit and then on Paste. You should
now see the picture you just captured.
Now click on File, then on Save As and save the file - make sure you
note where you are saving the file. Type in a name for the file and
keep the name short and hit enter.
Then create a new email and use the Attachments or Insert option to
add the file to your email. You can then send it to who you want.
If you were able to capture and send your picture, then you don't have
to read any further.
Otherwise... click
here for other things to consider when doing screen captures. A More Detailed Start Step 1 (For all methods)
First, make sure that whatever you want to capture is on top by clicking
on its title bar. Then, while holding down the key on your keyboard labeled
"Alt", press on the key labeled "Print Screen". Now
release both keys. Windows is now holding a copy of your screen
in memory. To make sure you don't lose the image, you should save
it right away.
Step 2 (Pick one of the following choices to save your capture) Choice #1 Use MsPaint (this should work for almost everyone)
Click on the Start button, then select Run. Type in mspaint
and hit enter. This will start up a graphics program that comes with Win95/Win98
and NT.
If nothing starts up, then try one of the other choices below.
Once the program is up and running, click on Edit at the top and
select Paste.
If you don't see Paste as an option, then you don't have a copy
of the capture available. Go back and repeat Step 1, making sure you do
the "Alt-Print Screen" step.
Once the screen capture is "pasted", save the file by clicking
on File at the top, and selecting Save As. Type in
a filename in the box labeled File Name.
DO NOT HIT ENTER YET! Look at the top of the Save As window
to see where your file will be saved.
Click on the arrow next to the box labeled Save as type:. See if
there is an option for JPEG or GIF - if so, click on it. If neither option
exists, then click the 24-bit Bitmap option.
Once you have done the above, click on the Save button to save
your file.
You can now send the file in an email, using your email program and selecting
Add Attachment and then selecting where you saved your file.
Choice #2 Use Microsoft Write (this should work for most people.)
Click on the Start button, then select Run. Type in write
and hit enter. This will start up NotePad or WordPad. If nothing
starts up, then try one of the other choices below. Once the program
is up and running, click on Edit at the top and select Paste.
If you don't see Paste as an option, then you don't have a copy
of the capture available. Go back and repeat Step 1, making sure you do
the "Alt-Print Screen" step.
Once the screen capture is "pasted", Save the file by clicking
on File at the top, and selecting Save As.
Type in a filename in the box next to File Name.
DO NOT HIT ENTER YET! Look at the top of the Save As window to
see where your file will be saved.
Now, click on the Save button to save your file.
You can now send the file in an email, using your email program and selecting
Add Attachment and then selecting where you saved your file.
Choice #3 Use Microsoft Word
Click on the Start button, then select Run. Type in winword
and hit enter. This will start up Microsoft Word. If nothing starts
up, then try one of the other choices below. Once the program is
up and running, click on Edit at the top and select Paste.
If you don't see Paste as an option, then you don't have a copy
of the capture available. Go back and repeat Step 1, making sure you do
the "Alt-Print Screen" step.
Once the screen capture is "pasted", Save the file by clicking
on File at the top, and selecting Save As.
Type in a filename in the box next to File Name.
DO NOT HIT ENTER YET! Look at the top of the Save As window to
see where your file will be saved.
Now, click on the Save button to save your file.
You can now send the file in an email, using your email program and selecting
Add Attachment and then selecting where you saved your file.
Choice #4 Use your own graphics program.
If you have a graphics program that you use, you now open it and use
the Edit/Paste option to paste your capture into the program. Save it
as file in whatever format you want. I personally recommend JPEG
(*.jpg) - the color map comes out better than if you save in a GIF(*.gif)
format.
You can now send the file in an email, using your email program and selecting
Add Attachment and then selecting where you saved your file. Some other things to consider when doing Screen Captures
Instead of using ALT-PrintScreen, you may find SHIFT-PrintScreen
useful.
This command will copy everything visible on the monitor and would
be useful for documenting more than one window at the same time.
if your system is NT or Windows 98, there is a free upgraded version
of MSPaint available at the Micorsoft website. go to "downloads".
It's big advantage is that it can your images in JPEG or GIF
files, which are much smaller files that the default BMP format that
the regular MsPaint program saves.
When sending a file as an email attachment, please try to give it
a meaningful but short name. Otherwise, such attachments come
through with garbage names like "MYFIL~01.doc". It's better
to stick to names with 8 or fewer characters if at all possible.
The Zone suggests that whenever sending documentation to Zmaster,
a sysop, or a host, please make the subject line clear and meaningful.
For example, "complaint about PlayerA regarding XYW problem
01/08/00 in BG RR1". Be sure to include both the game area and
the room name. If possible, paste the documentation into the
body of the email itself. Without proper information, Zmaster
or Sysops will seldom even bother opening the picture.
Any comments or disagreements? Post them to my forum.
