Kwout is a free bookmarklet and Chrome or Firefox extension that allows you to ‘quote’ any part of your browser screen, and upload it to any of a number of social sites. It is super easy to install and use, and makes your social quips and posts more interesting, and quite possibly more understandable.
Many people enjoy posting about things they find on the web, via social sites like Twitter, Facebook, etc. One of the things that I have noticed, however, is that a lot of those people have trouble describing what it is that they think was so awesome or amusing about the page they were looking at. Some of them will post screen shots, if they happen to know how, but even then it can be a pain in the neck to load a whole screen shot just for one little portion.
Trying to find what little button they are talking about or what icon can be annoying or, in some cases, impossible. Not to mention the fact that it takes slightly longer and slightly more bandwidth to load an image that has a lot of blank space. I have been known to post some of those myself, though I am trying to get away from it.
Kwout is a great way to avoid this particular issue. It’s a Chrome extension that allows you to take a snapshot, or small screen shot, of one portion of your browser screen. You can select what portion you want to be in the image with a handy little drag box, and after you take the shot you will then have options to upload it to a social media site with your comments or other text. Another nice feature is that, once you have logged into the Kwout home page, all your snap shots (or ‘kwouts’ as they are called) are recorded as a history in your Kwout account so you can review or share them later, even if you didn’t upload them to Flickr or Facebook or whatnot.
It’s pretty darn simple to use, but still has a number of options that make it more than a simple curiosity. When you find something on the page you want to ‘kwout’ you just click the [k] button on your browser bar (upper left corner) and you will then be given a dotted line ‘drag box’ that shows you how many pixels it currently is, as well as a cancel and an upload button at the bottom. When you have selected the portion of the screen you want to capture, just click the upload button and you will be taken to the Kwout menu that will let you upload it, email it, make video comments, etc.
Kwout is simple in concept, powerful in function, and completely free. It doesn’t bombard you with ads or suggestions of what you should be reading or viewing, so there’s no clutter to wade through. Because it is set up to immediately upload to social sites, too, it saves time and headaches. I would recommend it to anyone who wants to expand their posts or just want to be able to easily email a screen shot to a friend. Until next time, my friends!
Visit the Kwout website to get the bookmarklet. Or ou can get the Chrome extension or Firefox add-on.
