Image Pasting Issue

[JeremyWW]

Hi,

I may be missing a trick, but if I use a screen capture app to capture a screen-shot of an area of the desktop (say), although I can view the screen-shot in the main CH&S window at full size, when I paste into an e-mail (say) I get a tiny, almost thumbnail image as a result. Sure I can use the grab handles to increase the size and I find that the image is at the correct resolution but I just wondered why CH&S doesn't paste a screen-shot at the 'captured size' by default.

Thanks.

[mouser]

I wonder about this as well -- it's come up before -- it has to be something about the default DPI assumed when pasting.  Anyone have any ideas about this?

Do most apps copy images to the clipboard that get pasted in your email at the correct size?

[JeremyWW]

I wonder about this as well -- it's come up before -- it has to be something about the default DPI assumed when pasting.  Anyone have any ideas about this?

Do most apps copy images to the clipboard that get pasted in your email at the correct size?

In my experience (and I've used a few) - yes, they do.

[wjamoe]

by unchecking PNG image optimization the image stays the same size.

you can find this option here:
View>Options>Image Capture> [ ] Save as PNG not BMP (same quality, much less disk space)

[JeremyWW]

by unchecking PNG image optimization the image stays the same size.

you can find this option here:
View>Options>Image Capture> [ ] Save as PNG not BMP (same quality, much less disk space)

I'm afraid it doesn't. I've just tried that, even tried exiting and restarting CH&S. I still get a pasted image that's significantly smaller than the captured image, and if repeat the capture with CH&S closed, and then paste - no problem, the full size image clip is pasted.

[mouser]

it has to be something related to how CHS puts bitmaps on the clipboard and not putting dpi information with it.. probably something very simple.

[JeremyWW]

it has to be something related to how CHS puts bitmaps on the clipboard and not putting dpi information with it.. probably something very simple.

Something like that. The screen-shot programme I use has a specific option to preserve the original dpi which is ticked in it's settings. Undoubtedly that's happening when I paste without CH&S in the way, so the dpi information is being lost...

EDIT: Although when I drag the image out it looks OK in terms of resolution. Is that the same as the X / Y (image size) data? It's the physical size that seems to be wrong.

[mouser]

Can you tell me some example programs where pasting it results in this small size.  You say email but you dont say what email client, etc.  I need to reproduce the problem before I can solve it.

What may be happening is that the default way to copy an image to the clipboard is to copy it as a bitmap, which does not have any DPI information. And when that is done, your email client is assuming its a small physical size image and displaying it as such.

But that when you copy the original image to the clipboard using some other tool, it's saving it to the clipboard in multiple formats, including some image formats that include dpi information which the email client can use.

But I'm still curious about how you are pasting the image into your email client when you do and do not use CHS.

When you paste the image into your email client not using CHS, and it looks fine, you are using CTRL+V to paste it into your email, and it's pasting it directly right, not as an explicit file attachment.

And when you paste using CHS, you are using CTRL+V again?

[JeremyWW]

Can you tell me some example programs where pasting it results in this small size.  You say email but you dont say what email client, etc.  I need to reproduce the problem before I can solve it.

Outlook, Word & PowerPoint 2010. All with the same result.

[mouser]

Ok, will try there.
Here's something you could do for me.

Run this program "c:\windows\system32\clipbrd.exe" which should be installed on your pc by default; it reports on the format in the clipbard.  Well it doesnt really report on it but in the VIEW menu you can see info about what format the data is in.

What I'd like to know is what the View menu says when you are not using CHS to paste the image into the program, vs what it says when CHS is controlling the image.  When CHS is doing it, the View menu should just show two formats at the bottom (DIB, Bitmap).

[JeremyWW]

Ok, will try there.
Here's something you could do for me.

Run this program "c:\windows\system32\clipbrd.exe" which should be installed on your pc by default; it reports on the format in the clipbard.  Well it doesnt really report on it but in the VIEW menu you can see info about what format the data is in.

What I'd like to know is what the View menu says when you are not using CHS to paste the image into the program, vs what it says when CHS is controlling the image.  When CHS is doing it, the View menu should just show two formats at the bottom (DIB, Bitmap).

I have no such file on this machine. Searched Drive C: for it. Win 7 Pro.

EDIT: Just found a post on sevenforums: clipbrd.exe doesn't exist on Win 7.

[JeremyWW]

Ok, will try there.
Here's something you could do for me.

Run this program "c:\windows\system32\clipbrd.exe" which should be installed on your pc by default; it reports on the format in the clipbard.  Well it doesnt really report on it but in the VIEW menu you can see info about what format the data is in.

What I'd like to know is what the View menu says when you are not using CHS to paste the image into the program, vs what it says when CHS is controlling the image.  When CHS is doing it, the View menu should just show two formats at the bottom (DIB, Bitmap).

I have no such file on this machine. Searched Drive C: for it. Win 7 Pro.

EDIT: Just found a post on sevenforums: clipbrd.exe doesn't exist on Win 7.

OK, I downloaded clipbrd.exe from a forum and tested capturing / pasting a screen clip to an Outlook e-mail, with and without CH&S. No difference at all on the View menu in Clipbook Viewer. It has 'DIB Bitmap' and 'Bitmap' at the bottom of the View menu for both scenarios.

[mouser]

and yet the pastes result in different sized images?
now that is surprising and interesting.

[mouser]

Thank you for your testing and reporting -- that gave me the piece of the puzzle I needed.

I see I can in fact control the DPI of a bitmap file placed on clipboard, so essentially i now know how to solve this.

I will add an option in the CHS options to set the DPI of pasted images; that should solve your problem.  I may try to upload a test version in the next 30 minutes so stay tuned.

[JeremyWW]

This is what I get: With CH&S and then without it. Same object pasted into a blank e-mail.



Uploaded with ImageShack.us

[mouser]

Ok, that was quite a bit more work than I expected, but try this alpha version:

http://www.donationcoder.com/Software/Mouser/clipboardhelpandspell/downloads/alpha/ClipboardHelpAndSpell.zip

Please note, this is only a replacement exe not a setup file, so you need to exit CHS, overwrite your old ClipboardHelpAndSpell.exe with the one in the zip, and then restart.


There are TWO improvements in this version:

First, CHS should now hopefully successfully grab the DPI information from image clips it finds on the clipboard, and preserve them when saving image files and pasting images.  This should solve your problem and any problems relating to CHS *changing* the DPI of images on the clipboard that already have good DPI information in them.

Second, there is a new optional option in CHS Image Capture tab, that allows you to FORCE the dpi when pasting images.. This could be useful in cases where you are copying clips to the clipboard that do not have DPI information and you want the DPI to be forced when you paste the images.  You should *not* need to mess with this new option because your explanation make clear that the images on the clipboard have good DPI info.

Let me know if this solves your problem.

[IainB]

Not sure if this is the same thing, but I have been seeing a "small image" effect for ages - but it is not an issue for me.
Explanation:

• Occurrence is consistently repeatable.
• Take a screen clip using OneNote screen clipping tool. The image is auto-saved by default to OneNote on a new page in the "Unfiled Notes" section, and is also retained in the Clipboard and CHS database.
  The image in the OneNote Unfiled Notes" page is as large as you would probably expect it to be, but if you want to change its shape, then it is draggable to shrink/enlarge it (aspect ratios are maintained when you do this).
  You get the same-sized image if you paste it from the Clipboard.
• However, if you subsequently paste the image from CHS (not Clipboard), then you get a smaller-sized result, but if you want to change its shape, then it is draggable to shrink/enlarge it (aspect ratios are maintained when you do this).

Example:

[attach]

[mouser]

Yep, this is the same problem.

Now, the new version is likely to "fix" this problem for you that you may not want fixed.  Thankfully if that's the case just go to the Image Capture tab option and set CHS to "Force DPI" to 300.  That will get you back to old behavior.

[JeremyWW]

Yep, this is the same problem.

Now, the new version is likely to "fix" this problem for you that you may not want fixed.  Thankfully if that's the case just go to the Image Capture tab option and set CHS to "Force DPI" to 300.  That will get you back to old behavior.

Your new version works perfectly, and IMO as it should work. You've now provided default behaviour that 'mimicks' normal use of the Windows clipboard but allows maximum flexibility by choosing to manually resize the image to make it smaller if you wish (exactly what IainB is doing but 'in reverse' so to speak), and / or forcing a different size on the pasted image if this is the way you work on a particular project / job. Importantly, CH&S pastes an image in the same way that any other clipboard extender does. So I'm happy. Thanks.

[mouser]

And thank you for helping me solve a long standing bug! 

New official version will be posted later this week for all.

[JeremyWW]

And thank you for helping me solve a long standing bug! 

New official version will be posted later this week for all.

With double click to paste from the main window and the pop-up working?  (See my other post this morning)

[IainB]

Thanks @mouser. The new version of this image-paste behaviour in CHS probably won't cause me any problems, just as the old behaviour didn't, but if it does, then it looks as though I can always use the option to restore the "previous" behaviour.
I think what you've done will be an improvement. The old behaviour always necessitated a slight extra but repetitive task of dragging the tiddly little pasted images to a larger size. Anything that reduces repetitive tasks is a good thing IMHO, and it looks as though your update should achieve that.

[JeremyWW]

And thank you for helping me solve a long standing bug! 

New official version will be posted later this week for all.

With double click to paste from the main window and the pop-up working?  (See my other post this morning)

Duh...as per my other thread / post, I can see double click to paste is working in this version. Should have checked...sorry.

[JeremyWW]

New official version will be posted later this week for all.

Just wondered on progress with the new official version as per your post above

[mouser]

I just want to add a couple more features before posting an official new release