ScreenSnapr: Yet Another Screen Capture Utility Released in Beta

If you haven’t picked a favorite screen capture utility, here’s one that you may want to put on your list of apps to try, especially if you want to upload your captures to an FTP server.

ScreenSnapr is a simple screen capture utility. The free version has no expiry date and lacks some of the more interesting features such as posting screenshots to Twitter, something that the full version includes, for a fee of 5$.

Since paying for screen capture applications is nonsense (browse our website to see that there plenty of free apps available), let’s have a look at the features of the free version:

• Unlimited 1-click uploads
• Custom FTP uploads
• URL shrinking
• Custom GUI
• Dual-monitor support

Using ScreenSnapr

ScreenSnapr is launched by a shortcut that is predefined within the program. The program settings are very simple and self-explanatory. FTP settings are easily configured.

A simple window pops up as soon as you create the shortcut. Note that the Tweet option is not functional in the free version of ScreenSnapr.

Conclusion

ScreenSnapr, while still in beta, is a very simple application with no real features that make it stand out. Even free web-based screen capture tools such as Aviary are more advanced than ScreenSnapr, and do not require a payment to use the full version.

Overall, it’s a nice program if you often upload screenshots to FTP, but otherwise it’s best that you evaluate some other alternatives, many of which are available by browsing this site.

You may read more about and download ScreenSnapr at ScreenSnapr.com.

Shutter - A Tool for Linux Screenshots

Shutter is a fully-featured screenshot tool for Linux. Within one window, Shutter lets you take a screenshot of the screen, a window, or an area of the screen, edit it, and upload it to the web. Shutter is fully open source and, according to their website, has the following features:

Features:

• take a screenshot of your complete desktop, a rectangular area or capture a website
• take screenshot directly or with a specified delay time
• save the screenshots to a specified directory and name them in a convenient way
  (using special wild-cards)
• Shutter is fully integrated into the Gnome Desktop (TrayIcon etc.)
• generate thumbnails directly when you are taking a screenshot and set a size level in %
• Shutter session collection
  • keep track of all screenshots during session
  • copy screeners to clipboard
  • print screenshots
  • delete screenshots
  • rename your file
• upload your files directly to Image-Hosters (e.g. http://ubuntu-pics.de), retrieve all the needed links and share them with others
• edit your screenshots directly using the embedded drawing tool

It works like your standard screen capture program (we review such programs all the time) and does not yet have a video recording feature. The program can be set to run automatically as soon as you press the PrtScn or Alt+PrtScn buttons. Read here about configuring Shutter to activate automatically.

Extended Features/Plugins

One neat thing about Shutter is the support of plugins.

These plugins are able to create effects similar to those in GIMP and PhotoShop but directly in Shutter, making it a nice tool for web developers who want to add effects to images on their website, but either don’t have the expertise or the time to do so. All plugins have a slate of settings to make your image look just the way you want it.

Uploading your Images

Shutter lets you upload your screen captures to a wide variety of free image sharing websites. One of the neatest feature of the upload feature is that you get embed and direct links to the uploaded images right away, without the need to launch a browser.

Conclusion

Shutter is a very powerful and fully-featured tool for capturing still screenshots within a graphical Linux environment. As a matter of fact, it surpasses many of its’ Windows counterparts in features, ease of use, and usability. For more information about Shutter for Linux visit http://shutter-project.org/.

PrintScreen.Me: Extend your PrintScreen Functionality

Are you a frequent user of the PrintScreen key? Ever wanted to get more out of that button? Sure, you can paste from the PrintScreen clipboard to any image editing or annotation program of your choice, but now there is a free alternative that extends the PrintScreen button’s functionality and makes it easy to create annotated screenshots and upload them right away to an image sharing site of your work. PrintScreen.Me works in four easy steps:

1. Capture your screen with the PrintScreen button
2. Annotate, draw, and add notes to your screen capture
3. Upload screenshot directly to Facebook, Twitter, Picasaweb, Flickr, or PrintScreen.Me’s free image server.
4. E-mail, print, or archive the screen capture.

Using PrintScreen.ME

You must first download and install the PrintScreen.ME program, it is available as a free download and works with Windows machines only. Once you install the program and run it, it will prompt you for a user name and password:

You must set up an account over at PrintScreen.ME. Luckily, the only personal information that is asked for is an e-mail. If you don’t want to disclose your e-mail address, however, anything may be entered into the box, as PrintScreen.ME does not require e-mail verification. After creating your account, you will be prompted to enter your account names and passwords for photo sharing sites like Facebook, Flickr, Twitter, etc.

The entire setup process takes less than 2 minutes. Once the program is installed, an icon should appear in the lower right (this screenshot was created with PrintScreen.ME):

Now, upon pressing the PrintScreen button you will be able to use PrintScreen.ME to edit and upload your screenshots. Here is a more detailed breakdown of PrintScreen.ME’s annotation features:

The verdict?

PrintScreen.ME is an extremely easy tool to use and comes in very useful. However, it has one huge drawback which is my reason for removing this program after using it for a day - no dual-screen support. This means that there is no way to capture the image on your second screen. It’s very upsetting that a fairly good program would not support such features, when the standard PrintScreen functionality in Windows camptures multiple monitors without a problem.

An Awesome New Tool for Web Based Webpage Screenshots and Annotations

Here at ScreenCaptureNews, when it comes to software, we like everything that’s free, useful, and simple. A good example of an application that abides by those three rules would be Aviary. Think of Aviary as a tool for capturing screenshots of webpages, similar to FireShot, which we earlier reviewed.

 

How it works

The way it works is quite simple, just place www.aviary.com/ before the URL of the webpage that you would like to capture.

Once that is done, you will be taken to a loading page, it means that your capture was successful and the Aviary image editor is starting.

You will then be taken to a full-blown image editor, as pictured below. The features are pretty self explanatory. Once you are done editing, you may click on “save to desktop” or “save & host online,” depending on what you would like to do with your saved capture.

 

Advanced Screenshot Editor

The most amazing feature of Aviary is, by far, the advanced editor, pictured below. It can be accessed by clicking on “Advanced Editor” in the top right of the window.

Those that work with Photoshop will have an easy time adapting to the advanced image editor, which tries to replicate the Photoshop interface and functions with some features like layers, history, magic wand, smudge tool, liquify tool, freeform selection tool, and more. All these features definitely make this web based applet more advanced than most free screenshot editors which need to be installed. What’s more, Aviary works with all operating systems including Windows, Mac OS and Linux, and allows for direct uploading of an image to the Aviary web servers, where you can share it with others.

Conclusion

If you don’t have a webpage screenshot editing tool that you’re used to, or if you’re looking to try something new, I would definitely recommend Aviary. It’s easy to use, it’s free, and it’s packed with features that you won’t find anywhere else!

Create Massive Screenshots from Webpages in Internet Explorer

There are many screen captutre programs that capture webpages from web browsers, such as the popular FireShot software for Firefox that we reviewed earlier. However, FireShot captures what you see on your screen only, and does not actually save the enitre webpage, which can be several pages long, as an image file.

Web Screen Capture is a small and free utility for making screenshots of webpages in Internet Explorer. It differentiates itself from other capture utilities by performing only this function and nothing else.

Using Web Screen Capture on the following webpage:

You end up with this *massive* screenshot:

 

This can be useful if you want to save the entire contents of the page as an image file (Web Screen Capture does JPG, GIF, PNG and JPG) and not just an area of your screen.

Web Screen Capture does not need to be installed and weighs in at under 1MB in size. This means that it can be used on public computers which don’t allow the installation of external computer programs. As well, Web Screen Capture can automatically batch convert multiple webpages to images or be launched through the command line.

For those wishing to integrate webpage screen capture into their existing software, the command line interface of Web Screen Capture can prove to be very simple to implement. Best of all, it’s all completely free!

Download Web Screen Capture here.

Read more about free screen capture programs and alternatives here.

Screenshot Software for Advanced Screen Capture, Screen Capture Annotation, and Tracking Bugs

If you’re a software developer, you know how аnnoying it is to try to understand a bug report which someone has sent you regarding your software. A picture is worth a thousand words, and a screenshot is worth more than any good text-based bug report.

Bug Shooting, a Windows-only application, not only captures screenshots and allows the user to edit and annotate them, it also allows the user to automatically send the screenshots over Skype, e-mail, or each of these bug trackers:
- FogBugz
- Gemini
- OnTime
- BugTracker.NET
- SharpForge

What’s more, Bug Shooting is absolutely free and also has the ability to send screenshots to any application using a command line interface. This means that you can integrate Bug Shooting’s functionality in your own software and custom applications with ease.

Functionality:
- Capture screen
- Capture windows
- Capture screen area
- Delayed capture
- Support for multiple screens

- Edit screenshot
- crop
- resize
- add geometric shapes
- add arrows
- add text
- add images
- rotate, flip

- Print screenshot
- Save screenshot
- Open screenshot from file
- Combine screenshots

- Shortcuts are possible for a lof of functions

- Send screenshots to different bug tracker
- FogBugz
- Gemini
- OnTime
- BugTracker.NET
- SharpForge

- Send screenshots to
- Skype
- Default Email Client
- Any application by using command line

- Multilingual
- English
- German
- Russian

- Custom commands: open an URL by shortcut

- Screen magnifier

- Automatic update function

- Silent installation and uninstallation

Bug Shooting constantly runs in your taskbar. Thus, it’s menu is activated by right-clicking on the little ladybug icon.

From here, you can select if you would like to capture your entire screen or just an area of your screen. Alternatively, you can press Alt+S to capture your screen from any application that is running or press Alt+A to bring up the “capture an area of a screen” function.

Bug Shooting has a pretty extensive interface, shown below, for editing your screen captures and sending them to a bug tracker or other application.

 

Bug Shooting also provides the user with a good amount of annotation tools, including formattable text, arrows, circles, squares, and so on…

 

Finally, Bug Shooting provides the user with a choice of which application to send the screenshot to.

 

Final Thoughts & Comments

Bug Shooting is one of those great, free, screen capture programs that has a nice, refined interface, takes up little system resources, and is extremely easy to use. Even though the original purpose for Bug Shooting is for creating bug reports out of screenshots, it is still a good application to use for general screen capturing of images. You may also want to compare Bug Shooting to the  other similar applications which we have reviewed, all of which can be found in the Software section of ScreenCaptureNews.

 

A Brilliant Way to Quote

 

How often have you wanted to quickly grab a screenshot of a webpage and post it online, publish it to a forum, e-mail it to your friends, or just save it to your computer? Of course, all these tasks are easily accomplished by complicated programs or browser add-ons, but what if you could do all that without ever actually installing anything?

This is where Kwout (pronounced like “quote”) comes in. Kwout is what is called a bookmarklet and is launched simply by adding the link provided to your bookmarks and then launching the bookmark. For convenient use, you can drag the link directly onto your toolbar, as shown below.

That’s it! You can now take screenshots of webpages, images on webpages, and even save text with links by going to the bookmark that you just added. When you see something on a website that you would like to save, simply click on the bookmark and follow the easy to use proccess. First, you will have to select the area of the webpage that you want to capture and click on “Cut Out”.

You will now be shown your captured area. At this point, you can customize the way it looks, add annotations, and select where to post it. You can copy/paste the HTML code given to put it directly on your site or blog, you can e-mail it to your friends, or post it to one of these photo-sharing and content sharing sites:

• Flickr
• Tumblr
• Blogger
• Vox
• sa.yona.la
• Livedoor Blog
• Ameba Blog
• Hatena Diary
• Excite Blog
• Cocolog
• So-net Blog

That’s it! You have now posted an exceprt/screenshot from another webpage! Keep this tool in your bookmarks, it’s easy to use and absolutely free. You never know when it could come in handy.

Source: http://www.kwout.com/

Sony PSP 3000 and PSP 5.0 Update

Now that we’re getting closer to the official October 14th release date of the Sony PSP 3000, the new PSP has apparently been popping up all over Best Buy stores in the US. Here is a picture of the new PSP 3000, packed with the Ratchet and Clank: Size Matters bundle.

If you’re lucky enough to convince the sales rep to sell it to you (they aren’t supposed to sell them before the 14th, but some do anyways), then you will find, besides the actual console, game, cables, instruction manuals, a 1GB memory card. It is surprising that Sony didn’t include a 4GB card, but it seems like they’ll be selling the PSPs with 4GB memory sticks once the 1GB cards run out.

Sony PSP 5.0 Firmware Update

The new Sony PSP 5.0 firmware update will include the following features:

• PSN (PlayStation Network) Access. This means that gamers will now be able to use the PSP for multiplayer online games. Most new releases will now have full multiplayer support, with possible access to the PlayStation Store. Users will also be able to chat with eachother directly through their PSPs.

• RSS Reader. While there is an RSS reader in the current release of the firmware, it is quite buggy and is not easy to use. The new RSS reader will be completely redesigned to address all of the features which Sony has received complaints about. The new RSS reader, besides having support for images and videos, will also have support for text.

• Screenshot mode. Users will now be able to take screenshots of their in-game action, which was something impossible with the previous firmware revisions.   The screen captures will then be saved to the Memory Stick. Most likely, full support for screen captures will only be available in newly released games.

PSP 3000 Hardware

So you now know about the new firmware. Now, let’s see what’s new on the hardware side of the PSP 3000, and is it really much better than the PSP 2000?

The new PSP has a more refined look than the PSP-2000. Sony has also done a lot of research in the ergonomics of the device, which have also been improved. Some of the ports on the PSP have been moved around to provide easier and better connectivity. The TV-out feature has also been improved to support TVs without progressive scan, whereas only progressive scan TVs were able to function with previous hardware version of the PSP.

Sony has also decided to add an integrated microphone to the PSP 3000, located just below the LCD screen. This feature would be very welcomed by those who use Skype on the PSP. It would even allow future games to support in-game voice chat (similar to TeamSpeak on PC). The rear (back) panel has also been refined for a different look, pictured below.

The biggest hardware improvement, however, is the new LCD screen. This really is a feature worth switching to the PSP 3000 for. This screen is probably the crispest and brightest of any portable video game console available on the market. The PSP 2000 is pictured above, while the PSP 3000 is at the bottom of the picture. Check it out:

 

For those users who absolutely need to know the specs of the new PSP 3000, Sony has announced the official specifications, shown below.

Sony PSP 3000 (PlayStation Portable) Specifications
Size: 169.4 x 18.6 71.4 mm / 6¾ x ¾ x 2¾ in
Weight: 189g / 6.7oz (with the installed battery)
CPU: System clock frequency 1-333MHz
Main Memory: 64MB
Display: 4.3 inches (16:9) full-transparent type, 480×272 pixel, 16,770,000 colors
Sound: Built-in stereo speakers
Main input/output:    Wireless LAN (IEEE 802.11b) (Wi-Fi)
High Speed USB (USB2.0) (mini-B)
Memory Stick PRO Duo™
Analog Video Out
Microphone
Main connectors: DC IN 5V connector; DC OUT connector; Video out/headset connector; USB connector
Memory Stick Duo™ slot
Power sources: Lithium-Ion rechargeable battery pack
AC adaptor
USB power supply
Internal disc drive: Read-only UMD™ drive
Access control: Region code, parental control
Ad hoc mode (connects up to 16 consoles)
Supplied accessories: AC adaptor
Battery pack (1200mAh)

The verdict? Two thumbs up from us! Sony really did listen to gamers’ views on the old PSP and has added some cool and, more importantly, useful features to make the PSP experience even better than before! If you’re still considering buying a PSP, then the PSP 3000 is the one to get!

More links/sources: Sony Official Press Release, QJ.net, Walyou.

Your Complete Guide to VGA and VGA Capture

Whether your application involves creating IT instructional manuals, recording from high resolution security systems, sharing a presentation with people from around the world, or printing handouts directly from any computer screen, you are looking at VGA video capture or VGA signal capture as a mean to achieving these goals. This article will explain in-depth how VGA signal capture works and what you need to know in order to capture such a signal.

The VGA Plug

Unlike DVI or HDMI, which are both digital standards, a VGA signal is purely analog. The differences between VGA, DVI, and HDMI are described in detail in this article.

“VGA” is short for Video Graphics Array and has been the most common connector/plug for analog video on computer equipment and various electronics with an analog video output since the introduction of personal computers (PCs). VGA carries a RGB (red-green-blue) signal and is sometimes referred to as “D-Sub” due to its’ 15-pin “subminiature” connector. The term “VGA” also refers to the VGA standard graphics resolution - 640×480 pixels.

A detailed VGA pinout is shown below to help advanced users understand how VGA works. Source.

VGA Video Connector Pinout

Pin #	Signal Name
1	Red
2	Green
3	Blue
4	No Connect
5	Ground
6	Ground
7	Ground
8	Ground
9	No Connect
10	Ground
11	No Connect
12	DDC DAT
13	Horizontal Synchronization
14	Vertical Synchronization
15	DDC Clock

 

VGA Frame Grabbers and How They Work

The only true way to capture and record a VGA signal is through a VGA-compatible frame grabber. A VGA frame grabber can be defined as a device that proccesses analog VGA signals and converts them into digital signals readable by computer equipment. While frame grabbers are described in slightly higher detain in this Wikipedia article, these three main internal components determine a VGA frame grabber’s performance:

1. ADC (analog-to-digital) converter. This is the circuit that transforms the analog signal coming from the source VGA signal into a digital stream that can be read by the target computer.
2. RAM (random-access memory). Also referred to as buffer memory, this memory is vital in storing the captured image for a short period of time on board the actual frame grabber.
3. FPGA (field-programmable gate array). This is the heart of the frame grabber and is analogous to a processor inside a PC. It is a part that is entirely programmed by the manufacturer of the frame grabber.

Some frame grabbers, like the PixelSmart VGA Master have no on-board RAM buffer memory. This fact alone, besides leading to a lower-quality image, lowers the maximum possible capture rate (also referred to as frame rate) achievable by the frame grabber. Frame grabbers without on-board RAM are sufficient for the capture of presentations with lots of static slides or any other static imagery, like capturing screenshots from the computer’s BIOS. On the other hand, if you are capturing a high-resolution image and/or are capturing from a source with a high frame rate, like a video game console (ie XBOX 360) or medical equipment (ie: ultrasound), a frame grabber with at least 16MB RAM would be preferred.  The VGA2USB Pro by Epiphan Systems, for example, has 32MB RAM memory and is able to capture at a whopping 60 frames per second in some resolutions.

PixelSmart’s Internal PCI VGA-Master

 

Epiphan Systems’ external USB-based VGA2USB Pro frame grabber

While RAM is important in defining the characteristics of a frame grabber and the quality of the image it outputs, another important factor is the way that the FPGA, or processor, is programmed. You will notice that the higher-end frame grabbers, like the VGA2USB Pro pictured above, have built-in features that some of the more basic frame grabbers, like the PixelSmart, do not have. A quick look at the Epiphan Systems webpage reveals the following features programmed via the FPGA processor: On-board cropping, Color space conversion, USB Transfer Accelerator™, Compression Booster Filters™. All of these software/firmware features allow the frame grabber to achieve extremely high quality and transfer rates without increasing the frame grabber’s size.

Please refer to our complete Frame Grabber Specifications Comparison Table for detailed and complete specifications on every VGA frame grabber on the market.

Applications for Frame Grabbers

Frame Grabbers, while being a niche product, have many practical uses in today’s IT-oriented business environment. The five most common and prominent uses are described in detail in our Top 5 Uses for High Resolution Frame Grabbers You Should Know About article. From the gaming industry to the military, frame grabbers are used accross many fields related to computer technology. To give you a general idea, some industry-specific uses for high resolution VGA frame grabbers are described below.

Computer Console Gaming

Microsoft’s X-BOX 360 gaming console has the ability to output its images via VGA or DVI. This means that a VGA frame grabber can be used to capture and record the gameplay from this game console, and even broadcast the gameplay live over the internet for other viewers to see.

The diagram above explains how to connect an X-BOX 360 to a frame grabber for recording and broadcasting the gameplay. The X-BOX’s VGA cable is connected to a VGA splitter’s input, from which one VGA output goes to the TV, and the other to the frame grabber-equipped computer. The image can then be broadcasted to the internet using the computer.

Presentation, Conference Broadcasting and Recording

In today’s globalized business world, businesses often have partners in many different countries. When conducting an online meeting or presentation, the presenter often has the need to share his screen with viewers around the world. For this exact reason, VGA frame grabbers are useful. They allow the presenter to not only share an image from a projector, but also from a BIOS screen, an ATM machine, a RADAR device, a medical ultrasound device, a security system, or even an electronic microscope. Most of these VGA sources are not able to be broadcasted in real-time with the use of traditional software sources, and frame grabbers are the only way to properly create diagnostic-quality images and videos from these devices.

In the diagram above, the VGA source is connected directly to a frame grabber-equipped PC with access to the internet. Using any web broadcasting software, the user is able to relay the images and video captured by the frame grabber to his or her audience.

Security System Surveillance Recording and Broadcasting

Today’s security systems and cameras are able to support digital formats as well as high resolutions required for complex security solutions. Of course, as solution is needed to record the outputs from the security system, store it in a digital format, and provide access to the files from remote locations. All of this can be accomplished with VGA frame grabber-based technology, such as the VGA Recorder, which have ample space for recording video files (up to 500GB), are able to directly transmit recordings to a remote FTP location, and give access to the recorded files through a web interface.

The diagram above, borrowed from the Epiphan Systems website, shows how easy it is to hook up a security system’s VGA output to the VGA Recorder. Everything can be set up in minutes, and the VGA Recorder is able to archive hundreds of hours of digital compressed video data to its internal hard drive.

Telemedicine and Remote Guidance

Telemedicine, also known as Remote Guidance, is an expanding field in which doctors are able to, through the internet, diagnose patients and provide advice. Telemedicine has many practical applications but some of the more notable ones are the delivery of expertise to areas in which it is not practical to have a qualified doctor at all times. For example, lets suppose that a player on a sports team gets a knee injury. Through telemedicine, the coach can use a portable ultrasound device like the Logiq Book XP and, with the aid of a frame grabber, relay the images from the Logiq Book directly to a qualified radiologist who can then make a decision on the severety of the injury.

The diagram above shows how any equipment with a VGA output, such as the ultrasound device, can be connected to a frame grabber, and the a computer. The images are then relayed to the qualified radiologist or doctor through the internet or a satellite uplink. If you would like to find out more about the field of remote guidance,  then this website is a good start.

 

Summary

The VGA signal is the most common format used on today’s electronics and computer-based equipment. When this equipment is coupled with a VGA frame grabber, the possibilities are endless. Using a frame grabber, which is a relatively inexpensive device, organizations can not only significantly cut costs, but can also improve their productivity.

 

 

Sony PSP 5.0 Firmware to Include Screen Capture Mode

Capturing the screen of the portable Sony PSP gaming console has so far been difficult. Gamers have been limited to using the TV-out on their PSPs (PSP-2000 model only) and then using a TV capture card on a capturing PC. All this is supposed to change with the upcoming release of the next Sony PSP model, PSP-3000. Besides releasing the new device, rumors are that Sony will also offer the 5.0 version of the PSP firmware, which will include things such as direct access to the PlayStation store, better RSS feed integration, and, of course, in-game screen capture.

So, if you want to be able to capture your pocket PSP action but haven’t been able to do so, hold on to your hat. The 5.0 firmware will most likely be released alongside the PSP-3000 model on October 14th in the US and October 19th in Europe.

Source: PocketGamer

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