Newsletter Archives

• Make the most of the snipping tools in Windows

  Posted on February 10, 2025 at 02:45 CST by Mary Branscombe • Comment in the Forums

  

  ISSUE 22.06 • 2025-02-10

  WINDOWS 11

  

  By Mary Branscombe

  When you need a record of something you see on screen, Windows has multiple tools — plus ways to get images you saved on other devices, too.

  As usual with Windows, there isn’t just one way to snip, clip, or capture a screenshot of part of your screen. There’s a handful of options in Windows 10 and a more powerful new tool just for Windows 11.

  Windows 10 comes with an update of the Windows 7 Snipping Tool. You can open that from the Start menu, but it’s very basic and has a broken link to Paint 3D.

  Read the full story in our Plus Newsletter (22.06.0, 2025-02-10).
  This story also appears in our public Newsletter.

  Windows 11 Edge, Newsletters, OneNote, Screen capture, Snipping Tool, Windows 10, Windows 11

• Redaction made easy for screen shots and PDFs

  Posted on September 30, 2024 at 02:42 CDT by Peter Deegan • Comment in the Forums

  WINDOWS 11

  

  By Peter Deegan

  Both Windows and Mac have tools to remove (redact) details from screenshots and PDFs before sharing. As usual, there are some hidden traps that I’ll help you avoid.

  My recent article on screenshots got a lot of forum comments, with some folks asking for more help with redaction tools. Given the slightest encouragement, I’m willing to dive in.

  Read the full story in our Plus Newsletter (21.40.0, 2024-09-30).

  Windows 11 macOS Preview, Newsletters, Privacy, Redaction, Security, Snipping Tool, Windows Paint

• MS-DEFCON 2: Continuous dribbles

  Posted on June 6, 2024 at 02:45 CDT by Susan Bradley • Comment in the Forums

  

  ISSUE 21.23.1 • 2024-06-06

  

  By Susan Bradley

  When will it stop raining?

  Remember the old Star Trek episode titled “The Trouble with Tribbles?” Well, we’ve got trouble with dribbles, leading me to raise the MS-DEFCON level to 2.

  Changes are coming to Windows, both 10 and 11, but not necessarily to everyone. I find this to be the most annoying part of recent updates to Windows. This “you may see it; you may not see it” is part of nearly all recent changes. If you want to trigger this after installing the June updates, you’ll just have to be patient.

  Anyone can read the full MS-DEFCON Alert (21.23.1, 2024-06-06).

  AskWoody Plus Alert, MS-DEFCON AI, Alerts, Dribbled updates, MS-DEFCON, MS-DEFCON 2, Patch Lady Posts, Siri, Snipping Tool, Windows 10, Windows 11

• Windows 11 screws up Print Screen — here’s how to fix it

  Posted on April 24, 2023 at 02:44 CDT by B. Livingston • Comment in the Forums

  PUBLIC DEFENDER

  

  By Brian Livingston

  The behavior of the reliable old Print Screen button on your keyboard, affectionately known as PrtScr or PrtScn, has been radically changed in a preview build of Windows 11, which is almost certain to become the version we will all eventually have to live with.

  Microsoft released to members of its Windows Insider program this month a new version of the OS. At this writing, it’s known as Preview Build 22624.1546 of Windows 11 22H2.

  If and when this is rolled out to all users in the world as an update, the Print Screen key by default will no longer place a copy of your screen onto the Clipboard. Instead, the key will launch a version of Redmond’s Snipping Tool, which has several new controls to learn.

  Read the full story in our Plus Newsletter (20.17.0, 2023-04-24).

  Public Defender Newsletters, Print Screen, PrtScn, Snipping Tool, Windows 11

• MS-DEFCON 2: Prepare for April showers

  Posted on April 6, 2023 at 02:45 CDT by Susan Bradley • Comment in the Forums

  

  ISSUE 20.14.1 • 2023-04-06

  

  By Susan Bradley

  The next round of updates is coming soon and may be confusing.

  For one thing, it now appears that Windows 10 and Windows 11 updates will diverge. That is reason enough for me to raise the MS-DEFCON level to 2.

  Any confusion instantly causes me to recommend deferring updates.

  It does not appear that the forthcoming updates for Windows 10 will introduce any changes. They will include only security patches. Microsoft stated:

  After March 2023, there are no more optional, non-security preview releases for the supported editions of Windows 10, version 20H2 and Windows 10, version 21H2. Only monthly security update releases will continue for these versions.

  Anyone can read the full MS-DEFCON Alert (20.14.1, 2023-04-06).

  AskWoody Plus Alert, MS-DEFCON Alerts, Exchange Server, Microsoft Store, MS-DEFCON, MS-DEFCON 2, Patch Lady Posts, Snipping Tool, Windows, Windows 10, Windows 11

• How to take screenshots in Windows 11

  Posted on February 20, 2023 at 02:43 CST by Lance Whitney • Comment in the Forums

  WINDOWS 11

  

  By Lance Whitney

  The ability to take a screenshot in Windows can come in handy, both for personal and professional reasons.

  Maybe you’re documenting a certain process. Perhaps you need to share an image of an error message. Or maybe you’re making certain changes in Windows and want to capture the before and after. I take screenshots to supply images for the articles I write.

  Whatever the reason, Windows 11 (and 10) provides several methods to take a screenshot of an app or window.

  Read the full story in our Plus Newsletter (20.08.0, 2023-02-20).

  Windows 11 Newsletters, Screen capture, Snip & Sketch, Snipping Tool, Windows 10, Windows 11

• Patch Lady – Snipping tool removal?

  Posted on August 20, 2018 at 14:50 CDT by Susan Bradley • Comment in the Forums

  I’ve been living under a rock.  Or rather missed the announcement.  I spotted online a discussion about the potential removal of snipping tool in a future feature release of Windows 10.

  I’m concerned for several reasons:

  1.  It appears to me that you will need to download the app from the Microsoft store.  I don’t enable the store on business machines.  Currently snipping tool is built into the operating system.
  2. It appears that it will rely more on printscreen.  On different devices print screen is either in different places on the key board or in the case of the Lenovo Carbon X1 laptop, part of the adaptive keyboard experience – which normally means I can never figure out how to do it when I need it.
  3. Snipping tool is something that my users are used to, it works, it’s easy to find and get to.  I can’t even install the new screen sketch on my 1803 at the office because I’m not on an insider build.  So I can’t even start to try to roll it out slowly to folks.

  Thus snipping tool is always parked on the task bar on every computer so that everyone can use it and easily find it.  One can print from it (the enhancement in Windows 10) whereas in Windows 7 one couldn’t print.  But for many years it just worked with no fuss or failure.

  In looking through the feedback venue, there is even a feedback item asking to not remove the snipping tool.  (Hopefully everyone on 10 can log in and see that).

  So what do you think about snipping tool?  Will you be sad to see it go?

  Windows News Patch Lady Posts, Snipping Tool