1. Press the "Prnt Scrn" button.
   



2. Open Microsoft Paint. To do this, click Start > All Programs > Accessories > Paint. Click inside the white part of the screen.
   



3. Go to the Edit menu and click Paste or you can press and hold "Ctrl" and tap V.
   



4. Click File > Save As. In the box that pops up, change the "Save As Type" to PNG or JPG. Type in a filename for your image. Choose a place to save, like the Desktop, and click save.
   



5. You have now successfully taken a screenshot! If you want to send your image to somebody, simply attach the .png file that you just saved to an email and send it along. Alternatively, you can upload it onto the internet by visiting a site like TinyPic.com and uploading it.

1. In Vista (except in Home Basic), there is a tool called the Snipping Tool.
2. To open it, click on the start menu, type 'snip', then hit enter.
3. The Snipping Tool opens, and a white mask is applied on the screen. In the drop-down menu for the 'New' button, choose from a free-from snip, rectangular snip, window snip, or full-screen snip.
4. In free-form snip mode, draw around the area you want to be captured. Drag a rectangle in rectangular snip mode. For window snip mode, select the window you want to capture. In full-screen mode, just selecting it from the drop-down menu makes the capture.
5. The snipped image is then opened within the Snipping Tool, but is also copied to the Windows clipboard for use in other applications.

Note: Many laptops, to conserve keyboard space, have mapped the "PrtSc" key as a primary or secondary function on a shared key. To take a screenshot with "PrtSc" mapped to a key as a secondary function, you will need to locate your notebook's function key (usu. labeled "Fn" and located along the bottom row) and engage it before touching "PrtSc."

Tip: If your computer locks up (freezes up) frequently while you are running a program, take a screenshot, save it, then crash your computer. Paint is a program quite critical to taking screenshots, so you will need to add it to your Microsoft Office shortcut bar. This is at the top right part of your screen, beside the program title bar (unless you have unchecked the "fit to title bar area" option on "customize"). To learn how to add Paint to this shortcut box, please enter that search in the search box.