How to Take a Screenshot

Learning how to take a screenshot can enable you to capture stills to share with others. Using screen shots, you can capture a picture from a digital home movie, show your employees how to access new software in an office memo or explain a problem to your tech guy.

How to Take a Screenshot with "Print Scrn"
The "Print Scrn" key takes a digital snapshot of whatever is on your screen at the time when you hit it. It is then saved to your Clipboard for you to use later. Look on the upper right hand side of your keyboard. You should see a key labeled "Print Scrn" or "Prt Sc."

Capturing Your Desktop
Let's start out with a simple test run by taking a screen shot of your Windows desktop. First, you'll need to minimize this screen once you're finished reading the instructions. Next, when you're at your desktop, hit the "Print Scrn" key (Note: on some laptops you'll need to hit Shift or Ctrl + the "Print Scrn" key). Now open a blank Word document. Go to the toolbar, and select "Paste From Clipboard." A picture of your desktop should have been pasted into the Word document. You can use this feature learn how to take a screenshot no matter which program you are using.

Capturing A Still From A Home Movie
If you have a digital home movie on your computer and you want to get a still shot of a frame, you can isolate that frame using the "Print Scrn" key. Play the movie and pause it on the frame you want to capture. Next, maximize the movie player's window, and hit the "Print Scrn" key. Now you can either paste that still frame into a Word Document like we did above, or you can paste it into a picture editing program, such as Windows Paint. You can then edit it and save it as you see fit.