49 lines
2.7 KiB
Markdown
49 lines
2.7 KiB
Markdown
# Screenshots, UI Captures, and Documentation Images
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## Capture and Export Rules
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- Capture from the real rendered interface, not from a scaled preview inside a design tool or browser zoom guess.
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- Use PNG or lossless WebP for screenshots, UI captures, terminal images, and annotated docs unless there is a strong reason not to.
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- Keep a clean master before adding arrows, callouts, blurs, or frames.
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- If a screenshot is evidence or documentation, do not crop away the context that proves what the user should see.
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## Redaction and Privacy
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- Check for tokens, emails, names, avatars, tabs, URLs, timestamps, and notifications before sharing.
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- Blur, mask, or replace sensitive data deliberately; do not rely on tiny text being unreadable.
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- Redaction must be irreversible in the exported asset, not just hidden behind a translucent layer in the editor.
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## Annotation Rules
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- Add arrows, highlights, and callouts sparingly and keep them high contrast.
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- Do not let annotations cover the thing they are trying to explain.
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- If multiple steps are shown, use consistent numbering and visual language across the set.
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- For bug reports or release notes, the annotation should point at the defect or change without forcing the reader to hunt for it.
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## Consistency for Series and Comparisons
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- Before/after comparisons should use the same zoom, theme, device class, and crop.
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- Tutorial step images should keep consistent window chrome, spacing, and annotation style.
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- If one screenshot is dark mode and the next is light mode, that difference should be intentional and labeled.
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## Marketing and Device Frames
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- Keep an unframed master and export device-framed marketing variants separately.
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- Device frames are for presentation, not for core source control of the screenshot.
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- Reflections, shadows, and perspective mockups should not hide the actual UI.
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- If the product is mobile-first, validate that tiny UI text still reads after the frame and background treatment.
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## Documentation and OCR Safety
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- Screenshots that contain code, logs, or settings should keep text readable enough for OCR and human scanning.
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- Avoid aggressive compression on terminal captures and code screenshots.
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- If the user needs the content to be searchable or screen-reader-friendly, duplicate the important text in surrounding copy rather than relying on the screenshot alone.
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## Common Screenshot Traps
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- Exporting screenshots as JPEG and blurring small text.
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- Sharing unstable UI elements like toasts, timestamps, or notifications that make the docs age badly.
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- Leaving secrets in browser tabs, URLs, or side panels.
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- Comparing two UI states with different crops, zoom levels, or themes and calling it a fair comparison.
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- Over-annotating until the screenshot becomes harder to parse than the original screen.
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