Spectacle is KDE’s utility for capturing desktop screenshots and recording video. It is integrated with the Plasma desktop and provides a convenient way to capture an entire screen, an individual window or a selected region.
The application offers more than basic image capture. Screenshots can be annotated before saving or sharing, while its recording facilities can capture desktop activity on Wayland, making it useful for creating demonstrations and tutorials.
Spectacle can be operated through its graphical interface, keyboard shortcuts or command-line options. Its integration with Plasma makes it particularly convenient for everyday use, although it can also be launched independently.
This is free and open source software.
Key Features
- Capture the entire desktop across multiple monitors or an individual monitor.
- Take screenshots of the active window or the window beneath the mouse pointer.
- Select a rectangular region of the screen, with keyboard controls for precise adjustments.
- Take screenshots after a configurable delay or following a mouse click.
- Optionally include the mouse pointer, window decorations and shadows.
- Annotation tools include arrows, shapes, freehand drawing, text, numbered markers and highlighting.
- Apply blur, grayscale, borders and shadow effects to annotations.
- Record the entire screen, an individual window or a selected region on Wayland.
- Record microphone audio, system audio or both alongside desktop video.
- Copy screenshots or their saved file paths to the clipboard.
- Configure the default save directory, filename pattern and image compression quality.
- Print screenshots or open them directly in other applications for further editing.
- Keyboard shortcuts for capturing screenshots and starting screen recordings.
- Command-line options for automated captures, background operation and saving to a specified file.
- Remember the previously selected capture region and display a magnifier for precise selection.
Website: invent.kde.org/plasma/spectacle
Support:
Developer: Boudhayan Gupta and other KDE contributors
License: GNU General Public License v2.0
Spectacle is written in C++. Learn C++ with our recommended free books and free tutorials.
Related Software
| Screen Capture Tools | |
|---|---|
| Spectacle | Simple KDE application for capturing desktop screenshots |
| Ksnip | Qt-based cross-platform tool that provides many annotation features |
| flameshot | Complete screen capture and snipping tool with unique features |
| Shutter | Feature-rich screenshot program |
| ScreenGrab | Competent Qt-based tool |
| Satty | Modern screenshot annotation utility with a clean interface |
| swappy | Wayland native snapshot editing tool |
| CoreShot | Simple lightweight screen capture utility for C-Suite |
| gscreenshot | Graphical interface and command line frontend for multiple backends |
| GIMP | The GNU Image Manipulation Program |
| shotman | Lightweight screenshot tool designed for Wayland desktops |
| GNOME Screenshot | Screen capture tool for GNOME |
| xfce4-screenshooter | Flexible screenshot utility for the Xfce desktop environment |
| wayscrollshot | Scrolling screenshot tool for Wayland |
| SnipText | Screen capture OCR tool |
| Perl Screenshot Tool | Works best on X11. It also supports Gnome Wayland |
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