5 ways to print the screen on a laptop

This wikiHow teaches you how to capture what your laptop screen is currently displaying and send it to the printer. The latest versions of Windows and macOS come with modern tools that support different types of screenshots. If you use an old laptop, you can still easily take screenshots and send them to the printer with a few simple key combinations.

Steps

Method 1 of 5: Windows 10 (Crop and Annotate)

Step 1. Open Clip and Annotate

Currently (January 2020), most versions of Windows 10 include Snip and Annotate, a screenshot application designed as a replacement for the old Snipping Tool. Follow these steps to open the application:

Click on the Windows search bar and type trim and annotate.
Click on Trim and annotate in the search results. If you can't find "Crop and Annotate" then click Snipping Tool and follow the onscreen instructions to update the tool to "Crop and Annotate".
If you can't install Clip and Annotate, read the PrintScreen shortcut method.

Step 2. Click New

It's a button in the upper-left corner of the tool. Clicking on it will bring up the capture controls across the top of the screen.

Step 3. Select a screenshot option

Each button on the control bar activates a different type of capture. Hover over each icon to see the type of capture it represents. Here's a little help:

Rectangular cutout, the first icon, allows you to click and drag a box around the part of the screen you want to capture. As soon as you finish drawing the box, a screenshot of the selected area will appear as a preview.
Freeform clipping, the second icon, allows you to draw any figure (freehand) around the part of the screen that you want to capture. As soon as you finish drawing the shape, a screenshot of the selected area will appear as a preview.
Window cutout, the third icon, allows you to capture the content of an open window (only one). After clicking on this option, you must click on the window you want to capture and then a preview will appear.
Full screen cropping, the fourth icon, takes a screenshot of the entire desktop and displays a preview.

Step 4. Click on the floppy disk to save the image

You'll find it in the upper right corner of the preview. Doing so will open the "Save As" dialog.

Step 5. Select a destination location and click Save

The capture will be saved as an image file on your laptop.

Step 6. Print the capture

Follow these steps if you want to send the capture to the printer:

Click on the menu ••• in the upper right corner of the app.
Click on To print.
Select your printer if it is not already selected.
Click on To print.

Method 2 of 5: Windows (using the PrintScreen shortcut)

Step 1. Press ⊞ Win + ImprPant on the keyboard

The screen will dim for a moment indicating that a snapshot is being taken. Once the capture is ready, it will be saved in a subfolder of the folder Images call Screenshots.

Step 2. Click the icon of the

File Browser.

It's in the bar that is usually located at the bottom of the screen.

Step 3. Open the Pictures folder

It's usually under "This Computer" in the left pane of File Explorer.

Step 4. Double click on the Screenshots folder

It's in the right panel. All the snapshots you have taken will appear.

Step 5. Double click on the screenshot

It is the most recent file. Now the capture will open.

Step 6. Print the capture

Follow these steps if you want to send the capture to the printer:

Press Ctrl + P to open the print dialog.
Select your printer if it is not already selected.
Click on To print.

Method 3 of 5: macOS

Step 1. Press Shift + Command + 5 on the keyboard

Capture controls appear at the bottom of the screen.

If you are using High Sierra (10.13) or earlier, then press Shift + Command + 3 to capture the screen

Step 2. Click the Capture Full Screen icon

It is the first button on the capture controls. Its icon looks like a macOS desktop. Clicking on it will change the mouse pointer to a small camera.

If you want to capture only a part of the screen, such as a menu or a window, you can use some of the other options in this toolbar, for example:
- Capture the selected window- The second icon, which looks like an application window, allows you to capture one of the open windows on the screen (only one).
- Capture the selected portion- The third icon, which looks like a square with a dotted line, allows you to click and drag a box around the part of the screen to be captured.

Step 3. Click on the screen to capture

In the lower right corner you will see a thumbnail view that will confirm that the screen has been captured. The capture will now have been saved to the desktop as an image file.

If you have selected the "Capture selected window" option, instead of clicking on the screen, click inside the window you want to capture.
If you have selected the "Capture selected portion" option, then drag the mouse to draw the area of the screen to capture. Then click Capture on the screen toolbar.

Step 4. Print the capture

Follow these steps if you want to send the capture to the printer:

Double-click the screenshot on the desktop to open it. Your name will be something similar to Screenshot date and time.png.
Press Command + P to open the print dialog.
Select your printer from the drop-down menu in the lower left corner of the window.
Click on To print.

Method 4 of 5: Windows (using Microsoft Paint)

Step 1. Press the PrintScreen key on the keyboard

It is usually found on the first row of keys. Doing so will take a screenshot of the entire screen and copy it to the clipboard.

If you're using Windows XP, read the method for Windows XP.
On some laptops, the key for the PrintScreen function is shared with that of another function, for example, one of the F keys. In these cases you usually have to press another key called Fn while pressing PrintScreen.