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How to Use Print Screen

This wikiHow teaches you how to take a snapshot of your screen's contents on a Windows or Mac computer. Windows computers usually have a 'Print Screen' key on the keyboard that allows for full-screen snapshots. Mac users don't have a...
Method 1 of 2:

On Windows

  1. How to Use Print Screen Picture 1How to Use Print Screen Picture 1
    Find your computer's "Print Screen" key. It's usually in the upper-right side of the keyboard, right a key or two of the F12 key. The "Print Screen" key usually has "sys req" ("System Requirements") written on it as well.
    1. The "Print Screen" key might be labeled "prt sc", "prt scr", "print scr", and so on.
    2. If the "Print Screen" (or similar) text is below other text on the key, you may have to hold down the Fn key while pressing the "Print Screen" key. Look for Fn in the lower-left side of your keyboard.
  2. How to Use Print Screen Picture 2How to Use Print Screen Picture 2
    Find the Windows ⊞ Win key. The Windows logo key is usually in the lower-left side of the keyboard. Holding down the Windows key while pressing the "Print Screen" key will take a snapshot of your entire screen's contents.
    1. On Windows 8 and prior, you cannot take a screenshot using the ⊞ Win key.
  3. How to Use Print Screen Picture 3How to Use Print Screen Picture 3
    Go to a screen that you want to screenshot. Navigate to a page that you want to take a screenshot of. Keep in mind that everything on the screen (except your mouse pointer) will appear in the screenshot.
  4. How to Use Print Screen Picture 4How to Use Print Screen Picture 4
    Hold down the ⊞ Win key. Do so firmly, and don't release the ⊞ Win key until after you've taken your screenshot.
    1. If you determined that you'll need to use the Fn key, hold that key down as well.
    2. Skip this step if you're on Windows 8 or prior.
  5. How to Use Print Screen Picture 5How to Use Print Screen Picture 5
    Press firmly the ⎙ Print Screen key. You should see your computer's screen dim for a brief moment. At this point, you can release the "Print Screen" key and the Windows key.
    1. If the screen doesn't dim, try using the Fn key if you didn't, or don't use it if you did.
    2. Sometimes Windows won't recognize your screenshots the first couple of times that you attempt to take them, so try a few times.
  6. How to Use Print Screen Picture 6How to Use Print Screen Picture 6
    View your screenshots. After you've taken a few screenshots, your computer will create a "Screenshots" folder in the "Pictures" folder, which can be found by opening Start
    How to Use Print Screen Picture 7How to Use Print Screen Picture 7
    , clicking File Explorer
    How to Use Print Screen Picture 8How to Use Print Screen Picture 8
    , and clicking the Pictures tab on the left of the File Explorer window.
    1. If you're on Windows 8 or prior, your computer won't create the screenshots folder. Instead, open Start (or Search on Windows 8), type in paint, click Paint when it appears, and paste in your screenshot by pressing Ctrl+V. You can then save the screenshot by clicking File, clicking Save, and clicking Save in the pop-up window.
Method 2 of 2:

On Mac

  1. How to Use Print Screen Picture 9How to Use Print Screen Picture 9
    Find the ⌘ Command and ⇧ Shift keys. Both keys can be found in the lower-left side of your Mac's keyboard. In order to take a screenshot on a Mac, you'll hold down both of these keys at the same time while pressing a number key.
  2. How to Use Print Screen Picture 10How to Use Print Screen Picture 10
    Go to a screen that you want to screenshot. Open a page or go to a screen that you want to save as an image file.
  3. How to Use Print Screen Picture 11How to Use Print Screen Picture 11
    Take a screenshot of the whole screen. Hold down ⌘ Command and ⇧ Shift, tap 3, and then release all keys. Your Mac will make a camera snapshot noise, and the screenshot's image file will appear on your computer's desktop.
  4. How to Use Print Screen Picture 12How to Use Print Screen Picture 12
    Take a screenshot of a specific section of the screen. Press ⌘ Command+⇧ Shift+4 to turn your mouse cursor into a crosshairs icon, then click and drag your mouse across the area that you want to screenshot and release the mouse.[1]
    1. If you press the spacebar while the mouse is in the crosshairs mode, it will switch to a camera icon. You can click an open window with the camera cursor to take a picture of only that window.
  5. How to Use Print Screen Picture 13How to Use Print Screen Picture 13
    Save the image to the clipboard instead of to a permanent file. Press Control along with the ⌘ Command and ⇧ Shift keys to save the image to the clipboard temporarily instead of to a permanent file. This will allow you to paste the screen image into another application, such as software that allows you to edit the image.
  6. How to Use Print Screen Picture 14How to Use Print Screen Picture 14
    View your screenshots. Your screenshots are saved to the desktop by default. You can double-click a screenshot to open it.
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