Capture 5.0 does not take Region captures as expected

[sarah_downing]

I just downloaded Capture 5.0 and am trying to take screen captures on a Windows 7 machine. When I use the Region capture option, I get weird results. I line up the red crosshairs so that the area I want is selected and click OK. Capture takes a screenshot of a completely different area of the screen. Do I have a setting enabled that causes this? Does anyone have any ideas? I would appreciate any help as I do not currently have a workaround (Fullshot isn't working with the combination of Windows 7 - Flare - my company's product)!! Thanks!!

[SteveS]

I just checked and Capture 5 does take a region under W7...

Have you tried a reboot? Sometimes programs get 'muddled' and rebooting can help.

Have you checked for updates/ patches, particularly to the .Net frameworks?

HTH

[sarah_downing]

I tried rebooting the machine and checking that the latest updates (including .net ones) were installed, but Capture still won't take the Region screenshots correctly. Is it possible that I'm taking the shots horribly wrong??? I focus on the part of the screen I want and I draw the red box around it...

Thanks!

[SteveS]

Taking the screnshot is just as you described, but make sure the process you are trying to capture has focus. Try minimising capture and work in the application you are documenting. Then use the keyboard shortcuts (try [print screen] button) to see if that works.

Are you using a virtual machine perchance?

[sarah_downing]

Nope, I am not using a virtual machine. I tried uninstalling and reinstalling Capture and I still get the same results. Plus, I discovered that the same kind of thing happens when I try any other type of capture as well (window, UI element, etc). To make the problem even more baffling, I asked my coworker to test on his machine and it works fine for him!

[LTinker68]

Is your monitor set to normal resolution (96 dpi)? I'm wondering if when the monitor is set to something other than normal then perhaps Capture can't orient to the screen properly? Just a wild guess (I don't use Capture hardly at all).

[sarah_downing]

You're right - it was the resolution that was causing the problem - which adds to the growing list of issues I've had with different types of software not working at certain resolutions with Windows 7. Capture seems to work at both 100% and 125%. Unfortunately, a 100% resolution is WAY too tiny on my screen (and if I try to increase the monitor resolution, the screen gets distorted) and Flare does not work correctly at 125% (confirmed with MadCap support). I'll summarize my issues with screen resolution here in an effort to save anyone the headaches that I've experienced working with Windows 7, MadCap products, and some commonly used screen capture tools:

100% resolution: Flare works, Capture works, and Fullshot works - the screen (at least on my machine) is ridiculously small however.

125% resolution: Flare does not work (pdfs do not output correctly, confirmed with MadCap support), Capture works, Fullshot works, and SnagIt works

150% resolution: Flare works, Capture does not work (see problems I described in previous posts), Fullshot does not work (confirmed with Inbit support), SnagIt works

Thanks for all your replies!

[SteveS]

Thanks for the feedback!

What happens if you change the monitor resolution? It sounds as if you would prefer a lower resolution (for example 1600 x 900 rather than 1920 x 1080) and that would make everything larger on the screen without resorting to software zoom.

[sarah_downing]

I tried adjusting the monitor resolution, but to no avail.

[SteveS]

...was worth a try...

[Andrew]

Resolution independence cannot get here fast enough.

[benpal]

Same problem, but at 100% screen resolution (which suits my eyes).
In fact, when capturing a region, the cursor is offset from the cross-hair (simulation, the arrow denotes the position of the mouse pointer):

capture1.png

To capture a region, you have to rely on the pointer, not the cross-hair, to delimit the region.

The same offset appears when capturing a UI.

Windows 7, 64 Bit
Capture v5


Update and solution:
The problem is linked to the position of the Windows taskbar. I have set the taskbar to the left of the screen (default is bottom) and not automatically hiding. The offset corresponds to the width of the taskbar.
Another undesired effect of this disposition is that I cannot capture a region: as soon as I click on the target region to fix the first corner of the region rectangle, the function stops and returns me to Capture without taking a screenshot. No way to draw a rectangle.

These anomalies are cured by auto-hiding the windows taskbar or by placing it at the bottom of the screen.

[kowalskila]

Thanks Ben!!

I was having such freakish results with the rectangle just disappearing upon click, and was completely mystified until I found your explanation about the taskbar. I have my taskbar at the top of my screen. Now I know how to address this, yay!

[RamonS]

Ben, please file a bug report.

[benpal]

Thanks, Ramon. I submitted the bug.