I used to use the SNAGIT software tool periodically the past 3 - 5 years when doing software development and needing to leverage an existing image on the web. When I was doing web work, I tended to do a cut/paste and then manipulate and work within the Macromedia Fireworks.
Now that I am doing a mix of software development, web development, and presentation creation, I find myself using SNAGIT more and more for productivity. It’s ability to “understand” application destination sources and targets ( like Internet Explorer, MS Outlook, Word, Powerpoint, … ), I find it taking 10% of the time it used too when I want to “mashup” and/or manipulate content ( a portion of a powerpoint slide, an image, … combining pieces into a new content item ). I believe this is the first blog entry I’v done on a product since starting to Blog in 2004, but SNAGIT saved me so much time today ( and made the results better )
How many times do “less time” and “better quality” come together? With SNAGIT, it does. If you have not tried an image / content capture utility, I recommend giving SNAGIT at try. I believe I bought mine at $39.95, I see it is $49.95 presently. Perhaps I got it on special? Either way, the productivity to me just today makes makes it worth that much to me when I was writing some new Business Processes using BPEL Process Manager, and then documenting ( in Word and Powerpoint ) what they does. I now find myself using it at least weekly, usually several times a week.
I recommend the investment. You can check SNAGIT out here. It’s available as a free 30 day trial download. The usability on it has increased so much through these “source” / “target” application adapter like architecture, that I bought it earlier this year, and have been more productive since.
FWIW – your mileage may vary – but this one is one of those tools that ( to me ) falls in the “jewel” category.