Continue to Site

Welcome to MCAD Central

Join our MCAD Central community forums, the largest resource for MCAD (Mechanical Computer-Aided Design) professionals, including files, forums, jobs, articles, calendar, and more.

Register Log in

You're all pro's so lend a hand on this request...

N

Nose Bleed

New member
Okay - All of you have seen my lousy screen shots. Might I ask how in the world all of you put such nice screen shots (under 50KB) without losing clarity in the picture?



It seems that as much as I tone down the number of colors, crop as much as I can, remove pixels - I can just barely get my screen shots below 50 KB... In jpg - or gif format.... And, when I do, the pictures look LOUSY!!!



help!!
 
I'm using Microsoft Photo Editor - when I change the image size, clarity gets lost as well...



I'm downloading irfan view to see if it has better options...
 
Yup!! Reducing your image size does wonders. Also, you usually don't need really big images to prove your point. If you've got a small notch you wish to highlight then focus on that portion only.

I suppose this is the best method available yet.... Any comments?
 
I use PaintShopPro



free download at: http://www.jasc.com/download_4.asp?



Here are my tips for images:



1) Grab a screen capture by hitting:

Ctrl-PrintScreen = Capture entire screen

Alt-PrintScreen = Capture only active window



2) Ctrl-V to paste screen capture into PSP



3) Resize image to ~ 400-500 pixels wide max

( Image / Resize)



4) When resizing images, make sure color depth is at maximum (e.g. 16 million) instead of 256. This will prevent the 'jaggies' and will make image smoother. After resizing, you can set your color depth back to 256 if you want. The color depth should automatically be downgraded when you save the image as a JPEG or GIF anyway.



5) For images like sketcher, you may want to use the Dilate filter (Image / Other / Dilate) to thicken all lines (pixels actually) in the image. Click here for an example of a dilated sketcher image: http://www.proecentral.com/uploads/images/trim(1).gif .



6) Use a solid background before taking your screen-capture... it will reduce your file size and make your model easier to see.



7) Gifs generally do a better job at showing large patches of solid color (like screenshots of Pro/E with a solid background). Jpegs are generally better at images with a lot of variation in them (like photographs or blended backgrounds).



8) If image is still too large (>50k), try reduce the image size, or the amount of compression (if Jpeg)... Although increasing compression can lead to 'lousy' images as you've noted above.





-Brian Adkins
 
I thought 50 KB was reasonable and would help the web page load fast. However, if it's unreasonable, I can bump the max. size up a little. Is anyone else having problems or going through too much trouble to reduce the filesize?
 
When you do the screen shot (save as JPEG) set the image size to Variable. I find 4 wide by 3 tall. I find this with 200 or 300 dpi gives a reasonable result. Running it through the standard Imaging program that ships with Windows 2000 and upping the compression will shrink it enough if it happens to be over the download limit.



BTW, Wildfire does something different with the colors so I find I've got to load the JPEG into Imaging and then save with the Use standard Internet RGB colors checked to get the images to display correctly in my browser. With ProE 2001 the images show correctly in the browser but come out a washed out pink in Imaging.



-Bernie-
 
The best screen capture tools by far are by www.techsmith.com .

Try Snagit you can save as any format and any size and the scaling feature can take a huge image and make it small with little or no loss.
 
all of your methods are prob better than mine.... i just use paint cuz it serves the purpose. either that or gimp cuz it's free. i just shrink my images and then save as jpeg. =)
 
Try using professional programs like Photoshop which is created for photomontage, editing and similar things in case of pictures - Ok



Speling
 
I know not everybody has Photoshop, but there is a function in there called Save for the Web. I save a screenshot in Techsmith's Snagit (the best), then do a Save for the Web optimization in Photoshop. That really shrinks it down, and you don't have to have alot of talent to do it. Good Luck.
 
I use the save as jpeg in WF to take a full screen picture at 300 DPI. Then use Irfan View (free on dell computers & web download. I bring up the jpeg and then choose image size from tools menu. Select the button double and then save the new file. It will shrink the file size 2X and not sacrifice image quality.



Eric..
 
Lesley: No disrescpect but I would never recomend installing any software off the internet comes from a .../warez.html URL.
 
Aandersen:



No offence taken! Thanks for telling me. It was recomended by our IT Admin to send her shots of screens if we had problems. We've been using it for quite a while with no problems, but if there is a risk I'll let her know.



I only do what I'm told! :0)



Lesley
 
Here's an alternative: I've been using ScreenHunter, a FREE screen capture utility. It uses minimal resources and can be instantly activated with a hotkey. You can capture a rectangular area you specify, the active window, or full screen. It automatically names and saves your screen shot in a folder you choose.



http://www.wisdom-soft.com/products/screenhunter_free.htm
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Sponsor

Articles From 3DCAD World

Back
Top