Windows only 
Coming across a good free screenshot application is a rarity these days. I used to be a big fan of FastStone Capture, but once they went from free to paid it felt like my money would be better spent on SnagIt (in the event I decided to purchase an app). The free Windows program PicPick, however, is a pretty sweet mix of screenshot and web developer utilities all rolled up into a single no-install-needed package.
What's nice is that the image editor that accompanies the app is actually really nice, and when it comes down to a program like this it's the editor that will make it or break it. It's similar to Microsoft Paint in Windows 7 in terms of the interface, but it adds a little bit on top of it (yep, tabs is one of the bonus features). As you can see in the screenshot the app resembles Office 2010 with the ribbon design which may or may not be something you're fond of. You can also apply affects (like blurring) to either the entire screenshot or just a portion of it, and then spruce up the final result with a drop shadow or other colorful border.
There are a few other free screenshot programs out there that have more features, but none assemble them in such a fluid and easy to navigate interface. And I can't forget to mention the fact that this does more than just take screenshots:
- Captures
- Full Screen (Support for Dual Monitors)
- Active Window
- Window Control (Scroll a page automatically)
- Region, Fixed Region
- FreeHand
- Repeat Last Capture
- Image Editor
- It's very similar to Microsoft Paint, but you can do more.
- It provides an effect like selection opacity, blur, sharpen, brightness, contrast, hue, saturation, flip, rotate and etc.
- Color Picker
- Color Palette
- Magnifier
- Pixel Ruler
- Protractor
- Crosshair
- Whiteboard
Give PicPick a whirl if you've been looking for a better screenshot utility that doesn't make you open your wallet.
PicPick Homepage [Windows only; freeware]
via Digital Inspiration
thanks for the tip, going to check it out…
I’m still with FastStone’s last freeware version and it’s doing fine. PicPick may have extra features, but I like the simplicity of FastStone better.
Honestly; if the screen cap tool doesn’t do scrolling webpages or windows (which FastStone – even the free one – does, this would be a waste – anyhow the FastStone editor is pretty good.
As capture editors go the Snagit editor is truly exceptional – has some really clever tools not available anywhere else.
PicPick is a great tool I have used for quite some time. Being able to use it in portable mode is a great added bonus. However I sometimes have trouble with it wanting to print to A4 European format. If I can ever find a fix for this quirk I would use it exclusively.
I found this tool by searching for a portable color picker and have been using it for the past couple of weeks. The fact that the program is portable is what sold it. I also like the option to choose between a traditional file menu and a ribbon. I have not run into any issues with the many features that this tool offers.
The only download I can find from PicPick’s webpage links to Softpedia and is an installable version. I’ve installed it and assume that I can just copy the files to a USB drive, but is there another portable version linked to from the homepage that I’m missing?
I think the portable version was removed from their site for some reason.
I found that downloading the install and opening it as an archive allowed me to extract the executable and related files. I can now run it without installing it.