I just downloaded a copy of the Skitch beta and wow, I’m already impressed. On their website they describe themselves as “fast and fun image sharing.” I love any company that knows how to explain their product in five words. And the crispness in that message is reflected in the app itself.
See this photo here? It’s a screenshot of my blog taken with Skitch. Hit Command+Shift+5 to do a crosshair snapshot and select the area you want to capture. Skitch opens up a small app that shows the screenshot and allows you to manipulate it in a variety of ways: resize, rotate, annotate, etc. It’s ridiculously easy and lightweight, yet incredibly robust (in terms of quality of functionality, not necessarily breadth of functionality — it’s no Photoshop). It might be the most fluid annotation software I’ve ever seen.
When you’re ready to share your image with the world, save it to your computer, drag it into an e-mail, or post it onto Skitch’s website — where you can copy a direct URL or code to embed it in your blog, like this. It’s 100% free, at least for now.
This is what the app looks like with my screenshot in it:
It’s not just the app that’s good. It’s the way the user is introduced to it. When you launch Skitch for the first time, you’re presented with a small video window that says, “Heya, learn Skitch in 3 minutes flat.” Who wouldn’t want to master a new tool in three minutes? And not have to read a manual or page through the help documentation. I couldn’t have been more excited.
I include the video for you here, so that you too can learn how to use Skitch in three minutes. Maybe it will be the impetus you need to go download it and try it out for yourself. I’d love to hear your impressions. As I begin to use it more, I’ll be sure to update you with any usability flaws or flourishes that I find.
The British accent doesn’t hurt.
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Hey Whitney,
Thanks and glad you like it!
Do you find yourself using Skitch to describe, annotate and document UX work you do?
I haven’t had a chance to yet, but I definitely plan on it!
Those British accents eh? ;-)
(He's Australian).