Take Screenshots with Snipping Tool

In Windows 7, there is a built-in tool called Snipping Tool that will allow you take a snapshot picture of your computer screen to send to someone else or to save it as an image


Use Snipping Tool

  • Click Start button to go to the Start menu

  • In the Start menu, type in the word “snip” in the Search field

  • Click Snipping Tool at the top under Programs to launch the program



  • In the Snipping Tool dialog box, make sure the New button is depressed to activate the program



  • Click the down arrow next to New button to select a desired type of snip to capture screen shots

    • Free-form Snip.  Draw an irregular line, such as a circle or a triangle, around an object.

    • Rectangular Snip.  Draw a precise line by dragging the cursor around an object to form a rectangle.

    • Window Snip.  Select a window, such as a browser window or dialog box, which you want to capture.

    • Full-screen Snip.  Capture the entire screen when you select this type of snip



  • Click and drag the screen area to select an area you want to capture



  • Release the mouse button to capture the screen shot and the Snipping Tool window will appear with the exact screen shot you captured

    • To save the screen shot, click the Save Snip button on the Toolbar

    • To send the screen shot to other people, click the down arrow

  • To deactivate Snipping Tool program or cancel the snipping operation, click Cancel button on the program dialog box or press ESC on the keyboard

 

Quick notes

  • When Snipping Tool dialog box is open, a white overlay appears on the screen until you capture a snip. To turn off the overlay, do the following:

    • Click Options on the Snipping Tool dialog box

    • Uncheck/deselect the Snow screen overlay when Snipping Tool is active box

    • Click OK

  • The Snipping Tool Options dialog box provides some other options:

    • Hide instruction text – disappear or appear instruction text in the capture screen

    • Always copy snips to the Clipboard –  copy captured screen shots to the memory of computer so you can paste them in other applications (recommended)

    • Include URL below snips (HTML) – include the URL below the snip when capturing parts of a website (recommended)

    • Prompt to save snips before exiting - display a prompt to remind to save the captured scree shot before exiting the program (recommended)

  • To change the ink color of a highlighted area, go to Snipping Tool Options dialog box and choose a desired color from the drop down list next to Ink color