Record the desktop and take screenshots

One of Powerpoint 2016’s little-known features lets you record what you do on your PC as a video and take screenshots.

To record the activity on your screen, click the Insert tab, then Screen Recording at the top right. Your screen will be greyed out and you’ll see a pop-up menu with five options (see screenshot).

By default, your cursor movements and any audio won’t be recorded, so select those options from the pop-up menu if you want them included. Next, click the Select Area button, then click and drag your cursor to select the area of your screen that you want to record.

When you’re ready click the Record button. Alternatively, you can press the Windows key+shift+q to start, pause and resume your recording. Click the Stop button to finish recording.

To save your video to your PC, rightclick its tile in Powerpoint, then ‘Save Media as’, name your file, choose where you want to save it, then click Save.

To capture and save screenshots, click the Insert tab, the Screenshot dropdown menu, then click Screen Clipping. Your screen will be greyed out. Click and drag your cursor to select the area of your screen you want to take a screenshot of.

To save this to your PC, right-click your screenshot in Powerpoint, then click Save As Picture. Now choose your save location, rename your file, change the file format dropdown menu at the bottom to PNG, then click Save.