computer science

Print Screen

Print Screen is a computer science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Print Screen rather than just read about it. In short: Print Screen (often abbreviated PrtSc, Print Scrn, Prnt Scrn, Prnt Scr, Prt Scrn, Prt Scn, Prt Scr, Pr Sc, or PS) is a key present on most PC keyboards. It is typically situated in the same section as the break key and scroll lock key.

Key takeaways

Print Screen belongs to computer science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Print Screen to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Print Screen from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Print Screen (often abbreviated PrtSc, Print Scrn, Prnt Scrn, Prnt Scr, Prt Scrn, Prt Scn, Prt Scr, Pr Sc, or PS) is a key present on most PC keyboards. It is typically situated in the same section as the break key and scroll lock key. The print screen may share the same key as system request.

Original use Under command-line based operating systems such as MS-DOS, this key causes the contents of the current text mode screen memory buffer to be copied to the standard printer port, usually LPT1. In essence, whatever is currently on the screen when the key is pressed will be printed. Pressing the Ctrl key in combination with PrtSc turns on and off the "printer echo" feature. When echo is in effect, any conventional text output to the screen will be copied ("echoed") to the printer. There is also a Unicode character for print screen, U+2399 ⎙ PRINT SCREEN SYMBOL.

Modern use Newer-generation operating systems using a graphical interface tend to save a bitmap image of the current screen, or screenshot, to their clipboard or comparable storage area. Some shells allow modification of the exact behavior using modifier keys such as the control key. Traditionally, in Microsoft Windows, pressing PrtSc will capture the entire screen, while pressing the Alt key in combination with PrtSc will capture the currently selected window. The captured image can then be pasted into an editing program such as a graphics program or even a word processor. Pressing PrtSc with both the left Alt key and left ⇧ Shift pressed turns on a high contrast mode (this keyboard shortcut can be turned off by the user). Since Windows 8, pressing the ⊞ Win key in combination with PrtSc (and optionally in addition to the Alt key) will save the captured image to disk (the default pictures location). This behavior is therefore backward compatible with users who learned Print Screen actions under operating systems such as MS-DOS. In Windows 10, the PrtSc key can be configured to open the 'New' function of the Snip & Sketch tool. This allows the user to take a full screen, specific window, or defined area screenshot and copy it to clipboard. This behaviour can be enabled by going to Snip & Sketch, accessing Settings via the menu and enabling the 'Use the PrtScn button to open screen snipping'. In Windows 11, the behaviour of pressing the PrtSc key is now pre-configured to open the 'New' function of the Snipping Tool as of 2023. In KDE and GNOME, very similar shortcuts are available, which open a screenshot tool (Spectacle or GNOME Screenshot respectively), giving options to save the screenshot, plus more options like manually picking a specific window, screen area, using a timeout, etc. Sending the image to many services (KDE), or even screen recording (GNOME), is built-in too. Macintosh does not use a print screen key; instead, key combinations are used that start with ⌘ Cmd+⇧ Shift. These key combinations are used to provide more functionality including the ability to select screen objects. ⌘ Cmd+⇧ Shift+3 captures the whole screen, while ⌘ Cmd+⇧ Shift+4 allows for part of the screen to be selected. The standard print screen functions described above save the image to the desktop. However, using any of the key sequences described above, but additionally pressing the Ctrl will modify the behavior to copy the image to the system clipboard instead.

Notable keyboards On the IBM Model F XT keyboard, the key is labeled PrtSc and is located under ↵ Enter. On the IBM Model M, it is located next to F12 and is labeled Print Screen.

References

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Print Screen

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Print Screen claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In computer science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Print Screen before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Print Screen ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Print Screen

In research: Print Screen appears in computer science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Print Screen in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Print Screen is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Computer keys, Computing terminology, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Print Screen outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Print Screen in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Print Screen means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Print Screen out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Print Screen in simple terms?

Why does Print Screen matter?

Because it connects several computer science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Print Screen?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Print Screen.