Using the Windows 10 'Print Screen' Function
At times, you may wish to save a copy of what you see on your computer screen. For instance, you may have a strange message on your screen you want to keep. Or, perhaps, you were visiting a website on the internet that had no way to save or print a really important piece of information (to you) that you can see on your computer screen. Most Windows operating systems had the capability I am about to show you. For a version or two Microsoft dropped it in favor of an application, but with Windows 10 it is back. The illustrations used in this document are from Windows 10.
As with many personal computer functions, the actual use of it is quick, once you learn how to do it. So, while the following explanation is lengthy, application of the idea will be quick.
The idea is relatively simple. You are looking at something on your screen you want to capture. You poke a key combination on your keyboard that will copy the screen to the computer's clip board. You then open a graphic application and paste the screen copy to the application. Now you can save it or print it.
The hard part is determining which key or keys you need to use. So, let's find the key(s). Laptop keyboards are somewhat variable, so you need to examine your keyboard carefully. You may find a flashlight useful. The key you are looking for is usually (but not always!) in the row of 'function' keys, the row furthest from you, sometimes refered to as the 'top' row. It will have a label with the phrase Print Screen or an abbreviation such as PRTSC.
Once you find the print screen key, you need to determine if you need to hold down a special key when you poke the print screen key. There are usually two functions on a function key. You activate one of the functions by just poking the key. The second function requires you hold down a special key (on a laptop usually labeled 'Fn') located at the left of the space bar. Sometimes the print screen key AND the Fn key labels are colored to indicate when you need to use the Fn key. Later you can verify that you have the correct keystroke combination.
What you can expect to see when you poke the keyboard combo, is...nothing! The function is one of the invisible ones. When you copy ANYTHNG to the clipboard, you see no change! You will see what you actually captured when you paste the clipboard to an application.
We usually make use of the clipboard when we are editing text. The functions of copy, cut and paste all make use of the clipboard. In this case, when we poke the print screen combo, we have copied what is on the screen to the clipboard. Effectively, it is a photo. To save or print a photo, we need a graphic application. The simple graphic application that is included with Windows 10 is: Paint. If you don't remember how to start an application in Windows 10, check out the Tip:A Quick way to Find and Start an Application.
Test your screen grab ability now by poking the print screen key(s) on your keyboard, then open the Paint application. Use the keyboard CTRL+V combo to paste the screen grab to the Paint application.
OR:
If you feel you MUST click something, see the illustration to help find the paste icon, and select (click) it.
If a copy of the full screen appears in the Paint application, you have successfully used the print screen function.
Once you have the screen grab in the Paint application, you can print it, or name it and save it as one of several different photo file types.
Grab the Full Screen, or just a Window
When you have successfully followed the instructions to this point; you know how to capture (grab) the entire screen. A variation of the key(s) to poke will capture just the active window or dialog box (the one that appears to be in front of any other window on the screen).
For a window grab, you must add one more key to the combo you hold down before you poke the print screen key; the ALT key.
I would like to suggest you write down YOUR key combo(s) and keep it handy. It will be slightly different for different computers, so asking another person what combo they use may not work for you.