Do you work in a serene, interruption-free environment? Didn't think so. If you're like me, you're forced to multi-task. A lot.

Here's good news for busy people: we just launched a brand new version of SnagIt. And it has loads of new features to help you and me work (and play!) in a world full of interruptions and distractions.

See what's new in SnagIt 9  |  Upgrade now

With the new SnagIt you can work with multiple captures at once. Or start a new project before finishing the last one (if you happen to get interrupted). And SnagIt now keeps track of all your past captures, so you won't lose anything...or even have to remember where you put it!

Huzzah for smart tools that help us rock, even in the midst of chaos.

Want to see how SnagIt 9 does it? Check out this short movie that tells the story...

Daniel Foster
Newsletter Editor

With version 9, SnagIt has taken a quantum leap forward. We've built features in direct response to your requests. And we've added some surprises that we think will delight and amaze. (Full details of SnagIt 9 here...)

After spending a few months with the SnagIt 9 beta, our team of volunteer beta users reported back on how they're using SnagIt in surprising, new ways.

Here's just one example. This is from Jennifer Springer, a corporate trainer:

"The new tagging, thumbnail and sorting features have transformed SnagIt from a capture and editing tool for work to a personal diary, task list, to do list, and historical archive."

If it sounds like SnagIt 9 is a whole new kind of helpful...that's because it is!

So...what about all the new stuff?
 

The new Open Captures Tray displays all your recent captures as thumbnails at the bottom of the window, so you can get back to them quickly. As mentioned above, you can also work with multiple captures in any order. And drag-and-drop to combine two or more images into one.	Drag images from the Open Captures Tray

Find captures quickly: Visual Search Pane

SnagIt now auto-stores every capture along with helpful details like where and when you snagged it...so you get a complete (and useful!) archive of things you've clipped or worked on. You can also tag and flag captures to organize them by project, keywords, category...however your brain works best.

As if that weren't enough...version 9 even adds value to existing features. How? By making SnagIt's many tools easier to discover and quicker to use, thanks to the new menus and quick styles. So don't be surprised if you discover some new favorite features that aren't new at all.

Do you wait to hear "the water's great; come on in!" before you leap? Well, here's a quick sampling of initial reactions to SnagIt 9 since Tuesday. (Summary: people love it...especially the auto-store and multi-image features.)

"...a familiar, intuitive, and much more varnished capture utility whose image editor has finally come of age." –Jessica Dolcourt, C|NET Download.com

"I've only used it for a couple of hours but I'm already finding the most useful new feature is how it auto-saves captures and allows you to retrieve them from the...panel on the right...in a click. Combined with the new 'multi-capture' feature—work on or combine several snags at once—it greatly simplifies working on more complex composite images." –Robin Capper, RobiNZ CAD Blog

"...Now that SnagIt 9 lets you grab multiple screenshots at once and work with them together, this great utility has become the perfect utility." –Joel Spolsky, Founder and CEO of Fog Creek Software, Inc.

"The new multiple image capabilities and auto-storing of captures is going to save me huge amounts of time. Now I'll be able to take several variations of screen shots and decide later which ones works best for the final product." –Sue Chastain, About.com Guide to Graphics Software

"...this app is sexy! At least that is the first comment that came out of my mouth when the SnagIt Editor started up." –Jeff Julian, founder of Geekswithblogs.net

"Snagit was a great product, now it's even better. I wonder if Snagit will marry me?" –Thomas Lee, Under the Stairs blog

Yep, lots of love. But don't take their word for it. Try out SnagIt 9, then blog about it...or simply tell us about your favorite feature! We'll do another round-up next month...

Betsy Weber, TechSmith's chief evangelist, is hosting a series of interviews on The Visual Lounge blog that give a "behind the scenes" look at the SnagIt 9 release. Here's an excerpt from the interview with Paul Middlin, SnagIt lead developer...

We spent a lot of time exploring and brainstorming ways to really make "multi image" happen. We could have just said "hey, let's throw some tabs in there." We could have just introduced the "Open Captures Tray" and left it at that...but then you'd have a toolbar on the top, a pane on the right, a pane on the left, a tray on the bottom...and a pain in your...well, you get the gist. There would be no room left! A full rehaul of the Editor was in order. Continue >>
 

Have you ever moved to a new house in the same town...and then found yourself mindlessly driving to the old house one day after work? Getting adjusted to a new version of familiar software can be like that. It takes a little while to retrain your muscle memory. That's why we created a video introducing SnagIt 9 to existing users...to help you develop a mental map of where things are in the new version and, hopefully, ease your transition to version 9.

Intro to SnagIt 9 for existing users

(If you're new to SnagIt, you may want to watch the Intro for New Users instead...)

Here's a written guide that answers common questions about the new Open Captures Tray, with tips for customizing it.

And don't miss Chris's video tutorial showing how to use some of those multi-image features everybody's raving about.

It's actually quite easy, but you'll come off looking like an expert!