Processing Screenshots

[GSGregg]

I would like to take a screenshot of (could be anything, but in this case it's) a table blueprint in the Editor; select a small section and enlarge it so that when I submit it for advice it's easier on the viewer's eyes. Am I correct in thinking that this can not be done in Paint? If so, I guess I need Photoshop or Gimp or something; I see "free downloads" of these, but are they 'safe'?

Thanx, all.

 

[Patch]

Can be done in Paint ...
Hit 'print screen' on keyboard
Open Paint, click edit, then click paste
& you'll have your screenshot, & the move tool cursor
use that move tool & drag image up & left to the section of SS you want to keep
then crop the bottom & right side, by dragging the corner or middle extreme points
up & inwards.
Then save as ...
No need to enlarge if you had the table magnified in the editor
when SS was taken
Sounds like you're talking of the table editor itself & not the actual blueprint?

 

[Patch]

if you're having problems cropping ...
you need to single click on blank canvas area
after using move tool, & before you drag those corner/mid points (of canvas) in

 

[sleepy]

GIMP is totally safe, though it has a learning curve. I know I had to read in order to get the best experience, but it's worth it.

Go here:

http://gimp-win.sourceforge.net/stable.html

 

[sleepy]

You can enlarge an area in Paint. Do what Patch said and then Paste the cropped area. Then at the top click Image > Stretch/Skew and use the Stretch number box to enlarge the clip. You can also enlarge whole pictures with this option.

 

[sleepy]

Better yet, use the EDIT rectangle tool in Paint to surround the area and then Copy it. Click File > New to open a clear screen, or try Image > Clear Screen AFTER you copy the area. Click the Image > Stretch/Skew and reduce the screen to 10% so that when you then Paste the copied area,the canvas is only the size of the intended copy with no extra empty space around it.

 

[GSGregg]

Thanks for the prompt response, Patch; sorry I'm not equally prompt, but I'm a lousy typist, a slow composer, an obsessive proofreader and spellchecker, and.....did I mention lousy typist? (I'm an excellent speller---trust me---but incorrect keys keep getting hit.)

Edit: Another Aaargh---I just checked and found another post from you, and one from sleepy, both of which came while I was trying to type this.

.....use that move tool & drag image up & left to the section of SS you want to keep

So, I don't scroll to move the image? I can't find a 'Move Tool'---oh, hell! that's because I'm still in the Editor. (I just checked in Paint; by 'move tool', are you referring to the Select goodie that plots a dotted-line square or rectangle as you click and drag?

then crop the bottom & right side, by dragging the corner or middle extreme points up & inwards.

Don't recall what 'extreme' points are, but I have cropped images before, so I must have used the points without memorizing their correct name/s.

No need to enlarge if you had the table magnified in the editor when SS was taken

Aaargh! I forgot about the Magnify button in the editor. Apparently it doubles(?) with each click and is not adjustable, but I suppose I can live with that. (Whoops! I just checked in Paint again, and there's a Magnify button there, too.)

Sounds like you're talking of the table editor itself & not the actual blueprint?

Not sure what you're asking here; the image in the editor IS the 'actual' blueprint, is it not?

So I guess the bottom line is that Paint will do the job. Thanks, Patch.

sleepy; thanks for the link. If I decide to go that route, I'll definitely use it.

Gregg (Beers for all!)
Another Edit: Finally got posted, and found two more from sleepy. Did I mention I'm SSLLOOWW?

 

[sleepy]

Naw. I was cheating.
I was writing in the background with no chance for a reply.

 

[GSGregg]

Hey! sleepy; just 'carousel'ed another DiGiorno Rising Crust Supreme to see me through Sunday's late-night CSI Miami repeat. Whazzup on your end?

 

[Patch]

you'll have that move tool (NSEW arrows )when SS is pasted in, you don't have to find it in Paint
& yes, use it to drag the whole image (left click mouse, hold down while dragging)
then single click on blank canvas
then you can scroll to the right & bottom end points of the canvas
you need to find those points at the ends of the canvas & left click/drag on those points, up/inwards, to crop right/bottom side of image ...

 

[Patch]

Haha ... yes ... Paint will do the job
didn't think you'd need Photoshop or Gimp just yet
for the sake of a screenshot.
... but I do use Gimp, I really don't know how it compares with Photoshop tho'

 

[Patch]

you see the layout in the editor, but the blueprint is the exportable layout

 

[Patch]

Any success, either which way, to report ? :)

 

[GSGregg]

Not yet, Patch; I've spent the last hour-plus gorging on pizza and watching TV (I know how to throw a party, eh?).

I haven't gone back to Paint yet, but what you described as NSEW arrows finally wormed its way back into my memory.....I suppose that more things I use too seldom to be retained sharply will 'come back' to me as well. As I said, I have cropped images before, and combined two, three, and maybe more (yes; I remember four) into a single shot, but it's been quite a while since, and the old memory is just that.....(old).

I have not previously dealt with magnification / enlargement, however, and for some reason thought I had heard or read that other software was needed. (Oh, what the heck; I just remembered that I still have the evidence of my former 'prowess', from over 21 months ago:)

vgasave-regedit-8-7-11.JPG

Lots of cutting, etc., but no enlarging. (heh heh) Maybe I'll get to my issue (only one of three locked balls stays where they should on Black Knight 2000 VP8 by Black (the Future Pinball guy) again within the next couple of days.

Thanks again for the help and the interest.

Gregg

 

[sleepy]

I'm screwing around in the kitchen.

 

[GSGregg]

So---a conversation with an hour or so between bursts.....timerinterval3600000?

 

[faralos]

Screenshot Studio also lets one take a pic of a screen
and then crop it to ones liking and it too is safe freeware
http://screenshot-program.com/
I tend to use both SS and MS paint depending on what I need done
I also use Gimp but that is far more intensive a program than MS paint
or SS
Gimp is more for enlarging, cropping,layering for pin plastics, etc.
than just to capture a screen image

 

[sleepy]

The main advantages of using GIMP are better editing tools and access to image transparency, and the very easy ability to create banner Logos on the fly. I did this Logo in under 5 minutes, and 5 minutes ago. It helps to have a Good Font also.

 

[sleepy]

I used GIMP 2.8 File > Create > Logos > Starburst
and I set the background to a rich gold color. When the Starburst feature draws the logo, it lightens the background color, so you want to use a darker, richer background color to good effect.

For the font, I used the poke font, which is the attachment below. Unzip it and put it in the Windows\Fonts folder so that GIMP can find it.

 

[Patch]

That reminds me ... been meaning to look at this Gimp tutorial
- how to make text follow a curve ...

Gimp Tutorial: Text to Path - YouTube

 

[sleepy]

Here is the manual version of Paths to Text:

http://docs.gimp.org/2.8/en/gimp-using-paths-and-text.html

And this is the GIMP Manual Index page:

http://docs.gimp.org/2.8/en/

 

[faralos]

wow an actual manual for gimp!
thanks Sleepy for finding it for us!
this will help plenty!!