By Dale Farris, Secretary
Golden Triangle PC Club
March 2004

Program Overview

SnagIt 7 is TechSmith's latest and greatest capture program that just keeps on getting better and better. Well known among the computer industry, SnagIt has for over 14 years been the predominate capture program most used by owners. In May 1990, SnagIt 1.0 was released as a simple screen capture and print utility. The program was initially developed as an in-house utility to document for TechSmith's clients the early Microsoft Windows applications.

SnagIt 1.6 was distributed in the "Windows Secrets" book by Brian Livingston. He described it as "the utility Microsoft Windows forgot." This version included additional output and input features.

In Fall 1990, TechSmith decided to create a commercial version of SnagIt. Features were added to the internal use version, and a demo version was uploaded to several shareware bulletin boards.

In Spring 1991, the first commercial version of SnagIt was released. At this time, Windows was still in the early stages of acceptance, so people had not yet discovered that they needed SnagIt. They soon realized this, and the rest is history.

With SnagIt, you can easily make copies of images and other "stuff" on a computer screen, and then include this image in other files or send it to others. In the computer training industry, a capture program has become an essential standard. Computer book publishers and computer software tutorial developers need to be able to clearly point to images on the page that are being explained.

The program is also a super tool for use by technical support personnel, especially if the user with the problem has SnagIt and can capture and send to tech support a copy of the screen that contains data that explains their problem. Or, vice versa, SnagIt can be used by tech support to create a copy of a screen image that clearly shows what a user needs to do or should be doing in order to help resolve a problem.

At this point, SnagIt is the only screen capture program that is capable of capturing images, text, video, web images, and even DirectX sources. While other capture programs boast ability to perform some of these, SnagIt is the program that can do all these captures.

Once you have snagged, or captured the image, text, or video, SnagIt then gives you the ability to manipulate, alter, save, and use the capture for numerous other tasks. First, you capture the item, then you manipulate the capture, and then you direct it to a file, the clipboard, the web, or even as an email attachment. You can also  send the capture to multiple outputs simultaneously, manage captures individually or in batches in the included Catalog Browser, or print, copy, move, email, rename, or delete captures from the Catalog Browser.

Essential Features in SnagIt 7

Image Capture
Within two clicks of the mouse, users can capture virtually any type of graphical content from the screen including windows, regions of the screen, icons or graphics, menus and so much more. SnagIt makes it so easy to capture images from your PC and use them wherever you want.

Sure, copy and paste works for most places, but SnagIt captures text where you need it most. It’s a breeze to capture text from error messages, file directories, database tables and more. You can even capture text from HTML tables and place it right into Microsoft Excel. Use SnagIt to ensure you will always be able to capture exactly what you need.

There are times when a static screenshot just won't suffice. In those cases, use SnagIt's video capture to record all of your onscreen activity, including typing, mouse, and cursor movements. All of this is saved in an industry standard AVI file, making viewing and sharing these videos easier than ever.

Do you save lots of Web images? Love downloading all those online photos? SnagIt takes the tedious process of downloading file after file into one simple step with Web capture. Now capture an entire Web site's JPEG, GIF and PNG files in one click. You can even save images from pages that are linked to within a Web page, making SnagIt the perfect capture utility for all your Web capture needs.

Printer Capture
No need to print out those critical documents you need to archive - SnagIt's printer capture allows you to print any document to SnagIt's virtual printer and save that output as a graphic file. SnagIt saves the content exactly as it would print. Since you possess an electronic version of your information, you can eliminate the hassles of paper and filing!

SnagIt Add-ins
Now, with SnagIt add-ins and plug-ins, you can access SnagIt from within your other programs! SnagIt's add-in toolbars for the Microsoft Office products provide quick access to the most common capture features - directly from the application. The SnagIt plug-in for Adobe FrameMaker places SnagIt directly into your FrameMaker menu so you can instantly insert screenshots from within the application.

Image Editor
Designed for quick and professional editing, users have the convenience of quickly drawing, annotating or adding effects to their screenshots in the SnagIt Image Editor. Better yet, you can even access these new features from the preview window right after you capture your image, making it easier than ever to perform quick edits on the go.

SnagIt Studio
SnagIt Studio is designed for editing screenshots that need extensive annotation, as well as re-editing an image’s drawing, clipart and callouts. With convenient drawing tools and clipart such as stamps, arrows, shapes, callouts and much more, SnagIt Studio works for project-based editing where users need the flexibility to make changes, while being able to manage those changes for days, months and years to come.

Catalog Browser
The Catalog Browser is for managing, viewing, editing and publishing screenshots and digital pictures, both singly and in batches. Seeing and manipulating all of your captures at once not only aids in organization, but also saves you time. SnagIt's browser offers access to all the features of a professional image editing program to perform post-capture editing. You can also select multiple files to save, convert file formats, print and e-mail in batches.

SnagIt OneClick
By providing true one-click access to any capture profile, users can now take screen captures faster than ever. The best part is that this utility remains hidden on your screen at all times until you are ready to take your next capture.

Just by moving your mouse to the edge of the screen where OneClick resides, you’ll be able to access any capture profile you ordinarily would access from SnagIt's main interface. The purpose for this handy feature is to make taking screen captures as fast and seamless as possible.

Mark up images using drawing tools, highlights, animation shapes, frames, borders

Apply artistic drop shadows, torn, faded and wave edge effects
Add text boxes, stamps, arrows, sticky notes
Create and save custom annotation shapes
Eliminate unwanted areas of screen captures with crop, cut and join features

Open images and save images in a variety of formats including: BMP, GIF, EPS, JPEG, PNG, PSD, TGA, TIF and many more

Take advantage of these same editing features in the preview window, so you can edit your screen captures as you take them

What's New in Version 7?

Completely re-engineered interface for improved workflow - TechSmith offers a completely new interface and workflow. This makes SnagIt easier for beginners to use, while still providing maximum convenience and flexibility for screen capture experts.

New SnagIt Image Editor – Powerful and convenient drawing tools - TechSmith listened to their customers and added tools that make editing screenshots easier and more convenient. The new SnagIt Image Editor is the answer, with all the popular editing features you would expect in a high-end image editing application. The best part about this new editor is that it has been embedded into SnagIt’s preview window as well, making the job of editing as you take screenshots more convenient than ever before.

Latest SnagIt Add-In – SnagIt now available inside Microsoft Outlook - SnagIt's greatest capture options have been added to the popular e-mail client, making the process of e-mailing screen capture content quicker than ever.

SnagIt now supports the entire Microsoft Office Suite.

New Image Effects – SnagIt offers more options to enhance your screenshots

Perspective/Shear Effects - SnagIt has added the ability to give a 3-D look to your screenshots, helping you raise content off the page to really catch your audience’s attention. Turn screenshots left or right, top or bottom, or even both. SnagIt gives you the ability to control this look with just a click of the mouse.

Spotlight/Magnify Effect – Dim/Blur Effect - Focus attention on exactly what you want to show. SnagIt now offers the ability to pull specific areas off the screen, while dimming and/or blurring the background, to soften the surrounding content and ensure your audience sees what you want it to see.

Join Feature - Love saving clippings off the Web, but tired of all the banner ads in them? Well, SnagIt now offers a join feature that automatically cuts out the unwanted section and connects the rest of the image, creating clean and professional content once again.

Convenient New Profile Management - TechSmith gave considerable thought to SnagIt’s new approach to capture profiles. As a result, it is now possible to create profile groups so you can easily organize profiles. Additionally, you can add, edit, rename and delete profiles as necessary. SnagIt even allows users to easily move profiles up and down within the list for maximum flexibility and customization.

These profile management features can be accessed from either a special Organize Profiles dialog box or from a right click context menu. You can make changes to the profile right from the main interface and use them instantly. This removes the barrier between managing profiles and quickly changing profiles for immediate needs.

SnagIt OneClick – True single-click captures - As you master the profiles in SnagIt, getting faster access to them will be even more important. With that in mind, TechSmith created SnagIt OneClick. This useful utility resides hidden on your desktop, just waiting for your next screen capture need. When you’re ready to capture, just move your mouse to the edge of the screen, making SnagIt OneClick pop out. From there, you just click the desired profile and instantly you are into the capture process. Eliminating any extra steps, taking screen captures with SnagIt OneClick is literally a one-click process. In addition to its speed and convenience, the SnagIt OneClick also enhances the utility nature of SnagIt, as it is out of the way, but always there anytime you need to take a screen capture.

What You Can Capture With SnagIt 7

Screen - Click the Screen option from the SnagIt input menu to capture the entire Windows desktop. This option captures every window, object, icon, image -- everything that is visible on the screen.

Window - Click the Window option from the SnagIt Input menu to capture an entire user-selected window or any portion of it. The captured image can include the whole window within the border, title bar, menu bar, scroll bars, or caption line. Select this option when you need to capture just one window, not the entire screen. 

Active Window - Click the Active Window option from the SnagIt Input menu to capture the active window. The active window is the window that has the focus on the Windows desktop when SnagIt is invoked. This way, even if you have several windows open, you can capture just the active one you're interested in capturing. 

Region - Click the Region option from the SnagIt Input menu to capture a user-defined rectangular region of the screen. This option is useful for when you need a window and a surrounding area, only part of a window or only part of the screen. Click and drag to choose a small or large area.

Fixed Region - Click the Fixed Region option from the SnagIt Input menu to capture a user-defined rectangular fixed region of the screen, defined by screen pixel coordinates. If you know exactly the area you want to capture, you don't have to click and drag like with region capture -- just use the Input Properties choice from the Input menu to type in the capture dimensions. 

Object - This is a great way to capture very small items on your computer screen. Select the Object option from the SnagIt Input menu to capture Windows objects. This can give you better control over exactly what is captured, depending on your goal. For example, using this method with Image Capture, you can capture individual icons from toolbars. In Text Capture mode, you choose Input Properties to capture the Object Name, Description and Value. 

Menu - This input option is helpful for capturing drop-down menus from Windows applications. You can also choose to include the cursor in your menu capture. Use the Input Properties menu to choose to include the menu bar or to capture cascaded menus. 

Shape - The Shape capture menu allows you to define five different shapes on screen to be captured -- Freehand, Ellipse, Rounded Rectangle, Triangle and Polygon. Use the Input Properties to change the background color to be used outside the capture area when capturing irregular shapes.

Top 50 Uses of SnagIt

Show how software settings are supposed to look
Capture error messages
Show off an entire Web site at the same time
Take a user step-by-step through program scenes
Send images simultaneously to the printer, a file and the Clipboard
Grab scenes from computer games
Easily enhance educational handouts with up-to-date images
Grab any section of a Web site
Create impressive PowerPoint images
Add arrows, highlights and text boxes to images
Capture text that you can't obtain with cut and paste
Quickly share graphics
Create straightforward, custom handouts and Web sites
Capture still shots to serve as chapter headings for videos
Easily add company logos or other branding elements to presentations
Capture any photo on your PC, including from scanners and digital cameras
Add short video clips of onscreen activity to training presentations
Capture the screen remotely at a designated time
Create useful user manuals
Capture visual bugs in applications
Illustrate strategic points with real-life examples from the Web
Capture evidence of digital crime and use images in computer forensics
Snag an image from an MPEG-4 video stream
Quickly create thumbnails links for large graphics or streaming media
Document the history of a Web site's design and compare competing sites
Preserve the exact image quality of captured images - no need to touch up
Take a screenshot of a newly developed Web page to share with the team
Easily obtain graphs, charts, and informative graphics from the Web
Bring training to life by implementing images that are clear, simple and easy
Prevent cases from going to court by documenting compelling findings
Monitor Web sites without being present
Gather indisputable evidence from computer hard drives, illegal Web sites
Collect, document and archive digital images
Simultaneously collect every graphic on a Web site
Insert CAD images into applications like PowerPoint, Word
Send images through e-mail
Instantly insert captured text into appropriate columns and rows in Excel
Use Menu Capture to add application menus to Help tutorials
Create thumbnails of images that link to full images
Capture dialog boxes and menus for installation and configuration
Use SnagIt COM Server to document database applications
Overcome languages differences by sharing images
Capture anything you would normally send to the printer
Constantly view work as you make an unlimited number of modifications
Save, convert file formats, print and e-mail in batches
Capture images from anywhere to improve Web design process
Capture images to create icons in program toolbars
Enhance FAQ site with images that explain complex directions
Obtain screen capture capabilities from Word, Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint
Use Web page creator to share an online album

Targeted Customers

SnagIt is simple enough for beginners to use, but powerful enough for those who need to batch-process captures, output to multiple formats, and grab irregular screen regions. For educators needing to integrate screen shots into their class work, or exams, SnagIt is an essential tool that will make this much easier. Anyone involved in creating computer training or education material will want to seriously consider SnagIt as their primary capture tool that will support their need to integrate captures into their training material.

Without a doubt, SnagIt is one of the more important and essential computer utilities. Once you begin to work with it, you will never again have to resort to the PrintScreen command, and open MS Paint to edit those huge, bloated BMP files.

Price

$39.95 single user license
$29.95 5+ user license

Minimum System Configuration Requirements

P-90MHz processor (400MHz recommended)
Windows 98, ME, NT 4.0 (SP 6a), 2000, XP
(NT 4 requires IE 4.0 or later)
16MB RAM (64MB RAM recommended)
20MB free hard disk space
Windows compatible sound card and microphone (recommended)

About TechSmith.com

The TechSmith Corporation develops practical screen capture software, and video screen recording and production tools to capture and manipulate images, video and voice. Applications for TechSmith products range from technical documentation and software demonstrations to developing streaming content for web sites and broadcasting desktop activity over the Internet.

SnagIt is their very successful and quite popular advanced screen capture software, introduced in 1990, that has a large and loyal following. SnagIt has become "The Screen Capture Standard" in the Windows world. Camtasia, their multimedia video screen capture and production tool, was originally unveiled in the 1999 Fall Comdex. Camtasia quickly established itself as a must-have tool for people who want to capture the action from the Windows desktop and save it in industry standard video formats.

Established in 1987 and located in East Lansing, Michigan, TechSmith initially provided custom Windows software development and local area network remote access consulting and solutions. The shift to product development was completed in the early 1990s. TechSmith is a privately held Michigan corporation rated 3A1 by Dun & Bradstreet. 

TechSmith holds several registered trademarks and domain names, including techsmith.com, snagit.com, dubit.com and camtasia.com. TechSmith's co-founder and president is William Hamilton.

Contact Information

Betsy Weber
Chief Evangelist
TechSmith Corporation
2405 Woodlake Drive
Okemos, Michigan 48864-5910
800-517-3001 (USA Only)
517-381-2300
FAX 517-381-2336
b.weber@techsmith.com
www.techsmith.com

You can also order from other retailers or online vendors.