Did you know you could easily take a snapshot of your current computer screen and then store it on your clipboard for further use? It is called Print screen, and often abbreviated Prt Scr, Print Scrn, Prt Scn, or Prnt Scrn on most PC keyboards. It is typically situated in the same section as the break key and scroll lock key.  The function of this key is to take a snapshot of your current computer screen, and then you can paste it wherever you want.

In order to take a snapshot of your current computer screen:

Open the screen that you want to copy.

• Press the print screen key (‘PrtScn’) and the mirror image of that screen will be stored on your desktop.
• Open an image editing application ( i.e. Microsoft Paint, Microsoft Word, Microsoft Publisher)
• Paste the screenshot either by pressing Control+V, or by going to the Edit menu and then selecting Paste.
• Enlarge or crop the image as you may see fit.

 Note: You can press ALT + PrtScn to copy a screenshot of a selected window on your screen, instead of the entire screen itself.

Do you need something with more options in your imaging capturing? Then you need to buy a special program. Check out the “2013 Best Screen Capture Software Comparisons and Reviews” at:

http://screen-capture-software-review.toptenreviews.com/

Save a picture or take a picture the question that will come up is whether to save it as a png, jpeg, gif or tiff. The choice can be difficult to make to the untrained hand. Today we are going to be help get our readers trained in the art of decision making when it comes to this issue. All four have specific purposes and uses depending on what the image is going to be needed for.

GIF

GIF stands for Graphics Interchange Format.  The color system for GIF images are based on a 24-bit RGB color system and a palette of up to 256 distinct colors. It is most useful for simple images such as graphics or logos with solid areas of color. The GIF format is great for geometric line based drawings, and cartoons. Gif images also support animation.

PNG

PNG is a universal format recognized by the World Wide Web consortium, and is supported by modern web browsers. PNG format allows for a wider range of transparency options than GIF images. There is a less limited color range as well. If you must convert a png format to a gif you will lose image quality. PNG supports animation only via unofficial extensions.

TIFF

TIFF stands for Tagged Image File Format and is a popular file format for storing images. The tiff format is especially useful when you are in need of saving multi-page documents to a single file rather than a series of files for each scanned page. It is a useful format for creating image archives as it uses lossless compression and may be edited and re-saved without losing image quality.

JPEG

JPEG is an abbreviation for “Joint Photographic Experts Group,” the name of the committee that developed the format. It is the most common image format used on the web. JPEG actually compresses either full-color or grayscale images, and works well for photographs and artwork.  JPEG is also the most common format saved by digital cameras. JPEG format is not a good choice for files that will undergo multiple edits, as the image itself will lose more of its quality each time the image is decompressed and recompressed.

A storage area network (SAN) is a high-speed special-purpose network that interconnects different kinds of data storage devices with associated data servers. This highly developed network is used to make storage devices, such as disk arrays accessible to servers so that the devices appears locally attached to the operating system. A SAN also typically has its own network of storage devices that are generally not accessible through the local area network by other devices.

Security and SAN

SAN offers block level operations. It also offers a place to created shared file systems. Someone must be allowed to have access to the SAN to access any files that are a part of it. If kept secure it is a good central place to maintain important information in one place.

The Benefits of SAN

SAN offers the ability of easy storage replication. SANs support backup and restores, archival/retrieval of archived data and data migration from one storage device to another. Depending on the amount of data to be stored, the number of users and security protocols put in place there are a myriad of uses. A SAN can also be allowed as an extension over IP networks.

You can see a detail list of SAN devices available at:

http://san-storage.findthebest.com/

Did know that ….. SANs  allow servers to boot from the SAN itself. It allows faulty servers to be easily replaced and can be reconfigured so that the replacement server instead of the main faulty server.