Where can you find a pith helmet, a seesaw, and a lion in the same place? And much, much more on my computer desktop. Recently, in a fit of cleaning frenzy I perused my recent screenshots as an informal measure of what I had been working. thinking, and learning about for several weeks.
Increasingly, I am using screen shots as a handy way to save information that I need for a short period of time. No need to save to a file or catalogue for later use. Let’s take a look at what my screenshots say about my work and leisure.
Here is one I would rather forget…this weather map showing snow in Maine in mid-April. 
I must have taken this screen shot to impress others not having to deal with snow in April, but I definitely did not send it to my son who lives in Minnesota where they were still getting snow in early May.
Ditto for the seven-minute workout with neatly illustrated pictures of each exercise. Seven minutes isn’t a lot so the concept is inviting, but also still untested by me! Honestly, as soon as I finish this post I will do the computer and desk stretches guaranteed to make be feel better after long periods of sitting and working. Really I will! That is why screenshots are so helpful.
Another day when I should have been working, I copied this recipe for cranberry quesadillas. Doesn’t it make your mouth water just looking at it? In fact, this may be tonight’s supper. See how helpful screenshots can be? I also found a screenshot of nutritional information for the new burger place in town. I needed to show my wife that we should try out this new restaurant; a curious choice since we eat almost no red meat. It was, however, nice to dream.
Other screenshots—$40 rebate for four new tires; a recipe for banana bread; instructions for replacing a low-beam bulb on my Subaru; instructions for re-gluing bar stools (that DIY try cost me $50 when my attempts to re-glue two stools didn’t exactly work out and I had to pay someone else to finish them); several reviews from TripAdvisor on restaurants to try out, and; a picture of a life-size replica of mother and baby elephants. This last one intrigues me because I have no idea why I took that screenshot. Was I going to use it in a blog post? Not sure I remember my line of thinking, relating elephants to the technology and learning topics I typically blog about? It must have been a good idea when I did it.
Of course, a number of screenshots are work related, tech hints, like the one that explains how to add animations in Google presentations, or how to use new apps, or how to scan photos. This last I sent to a friend in my recent attempt to encourage my less tech-savvy friends to solve their own tech-related questions by looking for assistance online. After all, I am extra busy taking these screenshots.
Did you see the recent article with the infographic of the U.S showing that university football and basketball coaches were the highest-paid public employees in 41 different states? Not sure where I was going with that, but take a look and see what you think.
What kind of screenshots do you take? What do they say about you?
Infographic via Reuben Fischer-Baum at Deadspin