Snagit 9.0 Best Screen Capture Tool

star3Say goodbye to Print Screen, for the Screen Capture Tools are here. Snagit 9.0 was just voted Best Screen Capture Tool in LifeHacker’s poll for best screen capture tool.

To celebrate this win for Snagit we have set up a coupon together with SoftwareCasa so you can get $10.00 off the suggested retail price. See the end of this post for information on how to get the discount.

With screen capture applications, taking screenshots has never been that awesome. Many people have been drawn to using and taking advantage of the wonders this has brought them.

Since they are a lot of screen capture software that are popular these days, we sometimes wonder, which one is really the best. To end this wondering, LifeHacker launched a competition for Best Screen Capture Tool last April 16, 2009.

With thousands of voters, and lots of Screen Capture Tools to choose from, finally yesterday, April 21, 2009, the polls have been closed, votes were counted and the verdict was made. Among all the outstanding screen capture tools known to every screenshot-taker, Snagit bagged the No.1 spot as the Greatest Screen Capture Tool. See the complete list of contenders here.

Below are the next in line of the top five contenders, chosen by the hundreds of voters themselves.

    Second Place: Skitch

    Third Place: Jing

    Fourth Place: FastStone Capture

    Fifth Place: Snipping Tool

To celebrate Snagit’s first position we are offering it to a special price only valid today and tomorrow (ends at midnight Thursday April 23rd). You can get it for $39.95 instead of the suggested price $49.95.


How to redeem your Snagit Coupon – Your Price $39.95!

1. Go to the Snagit page (opens in a new window so you can have this information handy)

2. Click on “Order Now”

3. Click on “Checkout” enter your personal information and click “Continue”

4. Once on this page click on “have code”

5. Enter your Discount Coupon Code : SNAGHACKER

4. Click on “Checkout” and your discount will be reflected.

Enjoy ;-)

Peter – Your Snagit Guide

Snagit First Time User Review

Trying out Snagit

I recently got a new associate, Laurie. She’s a skilled computer user but has never used Snagit (if you can believe that), so I wanted to conduct a little experiment on her. To get a fresh view on Snagit I gave her a copy to install and asked her to tell me what she really liked about Snagit. She came away with some really interesting observations.

(Please don’t hesitate to use the comment area below to tell us about your Snagit observations.)

Take it away Laurie…

1. Convert Images

First thing that caught my eye apart from the basic capturing capability of Snagit is the Convert Images option located on the Related Tasks pane. (See image below)

convert-images-locationI thought I’ll need a converter to convert images in different formats, yet when I found out how the Convert images works, right then and there I told myself, “What do I need an image converter for when I have SnagIt? ”

Here’s what makes it coolest, not only can I convert my selected images to different formats, I can also edit them like in Photoshop! Super Cool!

2. Special Effects to Captured Images

Just before I take a shot on the area I want, I can already add an effect prior to capturing the image and even during editing. With a lot of effects I can choose from and just a few clicks, I’m so glad they have this feature. See images below.

special-effects-location_2

special-effects-location

3. Send Capture using Instant Messenger

Directly sending an image without going through saving the image and attaching file to the conversation, I can do this directly with Snagit. As long as I’m signed in to my Windows Messenger, I’ll just have to select a contact and voila! The image is attached to my contact’s window, waiting for acceptance. That fast and easy!

4. Stamps

The Stamps tool in Snagit 9 is really cool. Want to know why? It’s because aside from the designs that I can add to my graphic, with the available tutorials, I can create artworks out of using these magnificent stamps, Image Masking, 3D Portrait, Layered Look, Collage Art, just to name a few. What’s more is, I can download different stamp styles online. Only proves that with SnagIt, your marketing skills are improved, so as your artistic side. (See image below). I also like the professional Snagit Stamps SuperStamps.

stamp

5. Tag: Flags

Using this one is just like responding to emails or in forums, you know, flagging which ones are Important, Personal, Cool, etc. So easy and useful in managing my graphic files. The flags can be seen on the thumbnail of the graphic file displayed at the bottom or via the Library. (See images below.)

flag-thumbnail

flags

6. Tag: Keywords

Another tagging feature provided by Snagit which I also like is the Keywords. Obviously, adding keyword to the captures I made, makes it easier for me in searching them for future use.

7. Search Pane

With the search pane easy to access, searching for graphic files has never been this easy for me.

search-pane-library8. Library

Having the Library makes it easier and faster for me to locate, open and manage the captures I made and the graphic files I have in my computer. It’s like I went to Windows Explorer with no effort made. See image on the left.

9. SnagIt beneath SnagIt

Another thing I love about SnagIt is you can capture it by using SnagIt itself! Find it confusing? Don’t be, it’s easy, really! I’ll tell you how: Go to Tools> Program References > Program Options > Uncheck Hide SnagIt before capturing.

Amazing huh! Saved me time from downloading & installing another software to do the simple trick.

10. New Interface

capture-screenYou see, I love black! A lot! So basically, the new interface of the SnagIt 9 suits perfectly to me. Apart from the fact that its my favorite color, it gives any user the impression of a modernized and “techie” look compared to the previous interfaces. Big change! Cool Features! Great Benefit! Love it!

Thanks Laurie, what a nice fresh perspective on Snagit. If You have other impressions, please do share them in the comment area below.

If you (as Laurie) is new to this software go here: Read more about Snagit 9.0

If you already are a Snagit user but want to upgrade to the latest version you can do that here: Upgrade to Snagit 9.0

Until next time ;-)

Peter – Your Snagit Guide