Screenshots Preference Pane 1.0 — Don’t get PNG’d, you have a choice

reviewed by Harry {doc} Babad

Introduction

Many other third party applications, gives one the ability to set the graphics format for a screen shot. Neither the screen capture shortcuts in Tiger or in Apple’s Grab application allow such selection. I’ve reviewed Screenshot Plus 1.1.6, now 1.3, (May 2005 macC), and SnapNDrag 1.5.2, now 2.0.1, (February 2005 macC) which do, but I’d like a more automatic means to do so – I’m since lazy. I am also licensed for Ambrosia Software’s Snapz Pro, now version 2.0.2. I found that this, the gold standard for screen capture, is too powerful (and a bit complex) for my routine needs.

Therefore, I use the familiar Command-Shift 4 to grab all or a part of a static image for use in reviews or decorating recipes. The default for such screen-captured images is PNG, a lossless image format that replaced the older graphics Interface format [GIF] format. There are no simple preference panes to change this format, changing image format takes using an additional application.

When taking pictures of a screen with a pulled down menu, I use Apple’s Grab application working with the timed screen grab function. Grab is hidden in the Applications folder > Utilities > Grab. Once again a limitation, the default format for grab is a TIFF graphic file. Your captured images can later be converted to JPEG by using Apple’s Preview application. [For that task, I prefer to use GraphicConverter not only for cropping captured images, but also to translate images into my preferred graphics format.]

Are you getting the message? Getting to the image format, if it’s not PNG or TIFF with Apple provided tools, takes more than one-step or switching to third party software. What I needed for day-to-day use, was a one step, set it and forget it, means of capturing screen shots with Apples shortcuts, to JPEG format. On special occasions creating a PDF is also a necessity, especially for use in emails. Therefore when I found Screenshots Preference Pane 1.0 mentioned in an article by Dan Frakes of Macworld fame, I grabbed the chance to review it. [I know mother, I promised no puns before breakfast.]

Developer Description

“The Macintosh has always had the ability to take high-quality screenshots without the need of any additional third-party software. However, Apple has long controlled the format of the resulting picture, along with where it ends up on disk. This has meant that, when Apple decided to change any of these settings, there wasn't much that could be done about it.

“Fortunately, Apple has finally given us a way, in the form of a .plist file, to change these settings. Unfortunately, taking advantage of this has meant a trip to the terminal every time you wanted to alter either setting.

“Our Screenshots Preference Pane was written to make these Terminal sessions unnecessary. It allows you to change both the file format of your screenshots as well as where they end up on disk, with just a few clicks of the mouse.”

Working With Screenshots Preference Pane

“To install the Screenshots Preference Pane, just open the disk image it came on, and double-click the "Screenshots.prefPane" file. The System Preferences utility will start and you will be asked if you want to install the new Preference Pane for all users or just yourself. Pick one or the other and click OK.

“If you are installing a new version of the Screenshots Preference Pane, be sure to first quit the System Preferences application if it is open. Double-click the new version and you will be asked if you want to replace the existing version.

“After the Preference Pane is copied, System Preferences will open it and you'll see a screen similar to this (if you see the Help screen instead, simply click the "Screenshots" tab.)

“Select the format, in the preference pane, in which you’ll most likely want screen shots captured. Screenshots Preference Pane also lets you change the default location to which screenshots are saved. Click the Select button and then navigate to your preferred folder.” (Since I’m working on reviews when I capture images, I use the default setting, which is my desktop.

That’s all folks! You’re done, unless you want to switch default image type formats.

Oh, most unusually, the software provides both complete deinstall (why should I do that?) and adding new graphics file formats to the application. Its all-available, common knowledge, when you “readme”.

Image Format Expandability – “The file formats available to Mac OS X's built-in screenshot capability rely on the file formats that QuickTime can save. The eleven file formats shown in the "Available Formats" list are the ones that we have been able to test and verify. Future versions of QuickTime may provide access to more file formats (or perhaps we simply missed one or two), so the Screenshots Preference Pane was designed to be easily modifiable to take advantage of any new formats.”

To read more about screen shots and their setting read Dan Frakes’ Mac Gems article in Macworld. http://www.macworld.com/weblogs/macgems/2005/09/tigerscreenshots/index.php

Discomforts — A Single Gripe

When reaching the screen where I can select the image output format, the choices are accurate named, followed by the extension (or if you like abbreviation) of that format’s name. Now I didn’t know that JPEG means Joint Photographic Expert Group or TIFF means Tagged Image Format; I didn’t. hmm!

Conclusions

What can I say, the software works, flawlessly. Installation is a no-brainer and using the new default image capture format is as easy as command-shift 4, or 3 or… whatever. I rate this product 5.0 macCs.

Wishes - Now Steven, if you could only patch Grab.