# windowsXP screen shot

**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windowsxp-screen-shot/138786
**Category:** Factual Questions
**Created:** [November 25, 2002, 11:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windowsxp-screen-shot/138786 "2002-11-25T23:55:11Z")
**Posts on this page:** 11
**Page:** 1

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### Author: ![jb\_farley](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9d8465/32.png) [@jb\_farley](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jb_farley)
#### Post date: [November 25, 2002, 11:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windowsxp-screen-shot/138786/1 "2002-11-25T23:55:11Z")

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how does one take a screen shot in windowsxp? i don’t know.

thanks,

jb

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### Author: ![Pencil\_Pusher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/b38774/32.png) [@Pencil\_Pusher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pencil_Pusher)
#### Post date: [November 26, 2002, 12:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windowsxp-screen-shot/138786/2 "2002-11-26T00:26:55Z")

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Not sure if this answers your question, but in Win98 I press “CTRL-PRTSCN” and then open up paint & paste the clipboard.

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### Author: ![lno](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/a8b319/32.png) [@lno](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lno)
#### Post date: [November 26, 2002, 12:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windowsxp-screen-shot/138786/3 "2002-11-26T00:36:20Z")

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Printscreen by itself will save a screenshot to my clipboard. I’m using XP Professional.

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### Author: ![DarkScooterPie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b3f665/32.png) [@DarkScooterPie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DarkScooterPie)
#### Post date: [November 26, 2002, 12:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windowsxp-screen-shot/138786/4 "2002-11-26T00:40:29Z")

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Press “Print Screen”. Open Word. Paste or Ctrl+V.  
Jim

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### Author: ![jb\_farley](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9d8465/32.png) [@jb\_farley](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jb_farley)
#### Post date: [November 26, 2002, 12:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windowsxp-screen-shot/138786/5 "2002-11-26T00:45:16Z")

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wow. thanks very much, especially **Pencil Pusher** , who gets the grape for answering first.

mucho helpfulo.

thanks,

jb

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### Author: ![Number](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/number/32/242_2.png) [@Number](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Number)
#### Post date: [November 26, 2002, 1:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windowsxp-screen-shot/138786/6 "2002-11-26T01:40:45Z")

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Print Scrn will capture the entire screen. Alt-Print Scrn captures just the active window.

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### Author: ![SlickRoenick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e68b1a/32.png) [@SlickRoenick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SlickRoenick)
#### Post date: [November 26, 2002, 3:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windowsxp-screen-shot/138786/7 "2002-11-26T03:14:08Z")

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[hijack]  
What does the “SysRq” do that’s printed on the same button?  
[/hijack]

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### Author: ![Urban\_Ranger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/e9c0ed/32.png) [@Urban\_Ranger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Urban_Ranger)
#### Post date: [November 26, 2002, 3:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windowsxp-screen-shot/138786/8 "2002-11-26T03:41:12Z")

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Not a thing.

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### Author: ![dylan\_73](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ecccb3/32.png) [@dylan\_73](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dylan_73)
#### Post date: [November 26, 2002, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windowsxp-screen-shot/138786/9 "2002-11-26T15:21:46Z")

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Hmm…not a _standard_ thing you mean.

[What it does.](http://www.faqs.org/faqs/msdos-programmer-faq/part2/section-20.html)

[What you might use it for.](http://www.linuxgazette.com/issue81/vikas.html)

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### Author: ![SlickRoenick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e68b1a/32.png) [@SlickRoenick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SlickRoenick)
#### Post date: [November 27, 2002, 12:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windowsxp-screen-shot/138786/10 "2002-11-27T00:45:03Z")

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So it doesn’t do anything that Windows has a use for?

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### Author: ![dylan\_73](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ecccb3/32.png) [@dylan\_73](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dylan_73)
#### Post date: [November 27, 2002, 10:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windowsxp-screen-shot/138786/11 "2002-11-27T10:27:18Z")

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Correct. Windows doesn’t use it.