VMware Communities: "Capture Screen" only allows BMP.

Up to Discussions in Product and Feature Suggestions Archives

1 2 Previous Next

15 Replies Last post: Nov 29, 2005 5:13 AM by djc49939

"Capture Screen" only allows BMP.

Nov 17, 2005 1:49 PM

CarstenSchuette 14 posts since
Nov 13, 2005

Hi,

can you please add the JPG image format to the "capture screen" feature in VMware for windows? Thank you.

Carsten

Re: "Capture Screen" only allows BMP. Nov 17, 2005 2:41 PM

magi 2,091 posts since
Aug 8, 2003 VMware

Actually, PNG would be better than JPEG for screenshots (and we are working on this).

Re: "Capture Screen" only allows BMP. Nov 17, 2005 5:47 PM

in response to: magi

djc49939 1,509 posts since
Jan 26, 2005

perhaps, but I too prefer JPG

Re: "Capture Screen" only allows BMP. Nov 17, 2005 5:53 PM

in response to: djc49939

magi 2,091 posts since
Aug 8, 2003 VMware

Why? It's lossy, and doesn't handle abrupt color boundaries well (in terms of both quality and encoding efficiency). What do you prefer about JPEG?

Re: "Capture Screen" only allows BMP. Nov 17, 2005 6:00 PM

in response to: magi

djc49939 1,509 posts since
Jan 26, 2005

old dog new tricks... what can I say. besides, it's just a screen shot... not a digital pic or anything.

Re: "Capture Screen" only allows BMP. Nov 17, 2005 6:06 PM

in response to: djc49939

magi 2,091 posts since
Aug 8, 2003 VMware

That's the point -- JPEG is better for digital pictures, PNG is better for screen shots. (JPEG is good when there are many shades of similar color with gradual transitions; PNG is better when there are large blocks of exactly the same color, like a typical computer UI.)

Re: "Capture Screen" only allows BMP. Nov 17, 2005 6:58 PM

in response to: djc49939

jameslin 1,045 posts since
Jan 31, 2005 VMware

To re-emphasize magi's point, PNG will look better and often compresses better for non-photo-like images, especially if there's text involved.

Re: "Capture Screen" only allows BMP. Nov 18, 2005 4:59 AM

in response to: jameslin

djc49939 1,509 posts since
Jan 26, 2005

this is a feature request board...

I have always used JPG for every graphic I store on my PC... I like it that way. Not arguing the merits of PNG... I just personally don't use them.

Re: "Capture Screen" only allows BMP. Nov 18, 2005 10:53 AM

in response to: djc49939

devzero 2,679 posts since
Dec 27, 2004

hey ,
why not installing xnview/nconvert and writing a batch for conversion and being happy with this?

(sorry to be harsh - but i think vmware developers shouldn't spend their precious time on implementing bitmap conversion/filter algorithms for every sorts of screen capture formats)

regards
roland

Re: "Capture Screen" only allows BMP. Nov 18, 2005 10:59 AM

in response to: devzero

djc49939 1,509 posts since
Jan 26, 2005

this is a feature request forum.

personally, I have never done a screen capture at all, but I like the idea of having a few options when I want to do it, without takign extra steps. I don't get what all the criticism and avoidance is about. I didn't realize you had to defend a feature request. I think having multiple choices for screen shots would add value.

Re: "Capture Screen" only allows BMP. Nov 18, 2005 11:59 AM

in response to: djc49939

magi 2,091 posts since
Aug 8, 2003 VMware

Hey, don't feel attacked, this is a feature request forum, but it's also "request" which means we have to understand what you want and why.

I'll note that while you personally want JPEG, the title of this thread is "capture screen only allows BMP" which opens it up to talking about what we should be doing other than BMP. I still think that PNG is a better choice than JPEG for screenshots, and we are in the business of providing the best thing for all users.

And hey, of course you have to defend a feature request!

I mean, we can only do so many things at once, so any proposed feature has to fight for developer time to do it...

Re: "Capture Screen" only allows BMP. Nov 19, 2005 2:05 AM

in response to: magi

devzero 2,679 posts since
Dec 27, 2004

I didn't realize you had to defend a feature request.

hey - my posting/answer wasn't meant to offend you - it`s just my personal opinion (which is: bmp format seems quite enough, because you can convert that to any other format) and my posting was primary meant to show, that it is quite easy, to convert to bitmap to any other format.
got the following idea:
instead of writing code to support other graphic formats, what about adding an option to integrate a 3rd party bitmap converter that "postprocesses" the save action?

roland

ps:

I still think that PNG is a better choice than
JPEG for screenshots

I agree with magi: for screenshots, png is the better format.

Re: "Capture Screen" only allows BMP. Nov 20, 2005 7:44 AM

in response to: devzero

bblnews@hotmail.com 106 posts since
Dec 26, 2003

Let's hope VMware will allow PNG again. VMware 4 created PNG "screenshot" file when suspending a machine (on Win32 host), in VMware 5 this was removed.

BMP seems to be the standard, but PNG (compact) and TXT (Bochs allows this for example, very usefull when booting DOS) would also be very nice.

Additionally, a "take screenshot and send to new email message" and "take screenshot and upload to FTP location" perhaps.

Hope some of it ends up in Vmware 5.5, but as that's already RC-status, I doubt it.

Re: "Capture Screen" only allows BMP. Nov 20, 2005 9:00 AM

in response to: bblnews@hotmail.com

petr 7,218 posts since
Jul 10, 2003 VMware

VMware5 still creates PNG on suspend. Just now it is embedded into *.vmss/*.vmsn file. It is not that hard to extract it...

Re: "Capture Screen" only allows BMP. Nov 29, 2005 2:36 AM

in response to: petr

STS 535 posts since
Apr 2, 2004

I think a choice would be good, all depends on what software you have installed to view and JPG would be my first choice. But PNG, BMP,PSD whatever just some choice.

1 2 Previous Next

Actions

View as PDF

Up to Discussions in Product and Feature Suggestions Archives