Install and permissions
Download the package for your system from the download page. Every build there states its real version, checksum and signature status; opening that page never starts a download by itself.
Both packages published so far are internal test builds, not public releases. Read the checksum and signature rows as the current status, not as a release announcement.
On macOS, open the .dmg, drag SnipPin to Applications and open it from there. This build is ad-hoc signed and not notarized, so Gatekeeper may refuse to open it. Do not turn Gatekeeper off and do not work around the signature; keep the build closed until a signed release is published.
On Windows, run the .exe from the installer. This build is unsigned, so SmartScreen may warn. Do not disable SmartScreen or bypass signing; keep the build closed until a signed release is published.
Permissions stay in your hands. Screen recording is required to capture anything; on macOS, accessibility is required for window snapping; microphone is required for sound in recordings. SnipPin never bypasses a system prompt. Without microphone access, recording still captures the picture without sound.
- Download only from the download page, and keep the file until its checksum matches the value shown for your system.
- If a warning appears, leave the build closed instead of weakening system protection.
- After installing, grant screen recording on first capture; the system may ask you to restart the app.
Check the SHA-256
Open the download page next to this guide and copy the SHA-256 shown on your system's card. Compare it with the file you downloaded; the values must match exactly.
- macOS: in Terminal, run `shasum -a 256 <file>`.
- Windows: in PowerShell, run `Get-FileHash <file> -Algorithm SHA256`.
- A matching checksum proves the file is the one described on the download page. It does not prove who built it.
- The current macOS build is ad-hoc signed, not notarized, and its signature verification is marked rejected; the current Windows build is not signed. A matching checksum is not a trusted publisher.
If the download fails
No package downloads automatically. If a route does not start or stops early, use the manual route area on the download page; it checks the address format only and never starts a download by itself.
- Open the download page and pick your system's card; the manual route area sits under the checksum and signature rows.
- If the browser blocks copying the checksum, the value stays selected — press ⌘ + C.
- If your system is not recognised, both packages are listed; choose the card you need.
- macOS saying the app is damaged or from an unidentified developer, and Windows SmartScreen blocking the installer, are the current unsigned status — not a broken download. Wait for a signed build; this guide does not ask you to bypass any warning.
Desktop baseline: Website addition per design-spec /guide/ and tech-spec 5.10.65; signature status mirrors the download manifest, permission wording follows the bundled guide (Settings).
Capture
Click the SnipPin icon in the menu bar and choose Capture, or press the Capture shortcut (⌥ + A by default). Capture runs on this Mac, and the free path never uploads the picture.
- Drag to select an area, or move the pointer over a window to snap to it.
- Hold ⇧ while dragging a rectangle or ellipse to keep it square or round.
- Scroll or press Tab to step the highlighted window outward or inward; hold ⇧ to lock onto it.
- Press Enter to copy the selection and finish, or Esc to close without copying.
Desktop baseline: Bundled guide: Capture (English) / 截图 (Chinese); keys from platform.ts.
Pin
Pin from Clipboard (⌥ + W by default) turns the clipboard image into a floating pin, and the Pin button in the capture window pins what you just selected.
The pin floats above other windows, so it stays in sight while you work underneath it.
- Drag the pin to move it; scroll over it to zoom; hold ⌘ and scroll to change the opacity.
- Double-click well inside a pin to go back to 100%.
- Double-click near an edge to tuck the pin to that edge.
- Right-click a pin for flip, rotate, straighten and close.
- F4 turns click-through on and off while the pointer is over a pin; the small tab stays clickable.
- Esc closes the pin that has the keyboard.
Desktop baseline: Bundled guide: Pin (English) / 贴图 (Chinese); keys from platform.ts.
Mark up
The capture window carries the markup tools: Rectangle, Ellipse, Pen, Line and arrow, Step, Text, Mosaic and Eraser, with Undo and Redo next to them.
A new mark covers the ones drawn before it. Marks travel with the image you export and still stay on this machine.
- ⌘ + Z undoes, ⇧ + ⌘ + Z or ⌘ + Y redoes, and ⌫ deletes the selected mark.
- While drawing a line: Enter or a double-click finishes it, ⌫ removes the last point, Esc drops it, and ⇧ snaps to 45° steps.
- Right-click finishes typing; C copies the picked color value and ⇧ + C changes its format.
- Enter copies the marked-up image and finishes; Esc closes without copying.
Desktop baseline: Bundled guide: Mark up (English) / 标注 (Chinese); keys from platform.ts.
Text recognition
The Recognize text button reads the text in the selection on this Mac and shows it on the capture. Nothing is sent anywhere.
Quick mode shows the text in place; precise mode opens a panel with the text in a box you can select and edit.
- ⌘ + C copies the selected text, or all of it when nothing is selected.
- ⌘ + A selects all of the recognized text in quick mode.
- ⌘ + X cuts the selected text in the precise panel's text box.
- Esc steps back: it closes the magnifier first, then leaves recognition.
- Which languages are recognised depends on the recognition languages installed on your system; a missing language is not recognised.
Desktop baseline: Bundled guide: Text recognition (English) / 文字识别 (Chinese); keys from platform.ts.
Long capture
The Long screenshot button stitches a scrolling page into one image. Set the area first, then keep scrolling. Stitching stays on this machine and never uploads the page.
- Scroll, or use the arrow keys, to stitch the next frame.
- Enter or Esc pauses and resumes auto scroll.
- Enter copies the stitched image and finishes; Esc cancels the long capture.
Desktop baseline: Bundled guide: Long capture (English) / 长截图 (Chinese).
Recording
The Record button records the selected area to a video. Both the picture and the sound stay on this Mac, and the free path uploads neither.
When the recording stops, the capture window shows the take with its trimming controls. Esc closes the window and discards the take.
- Pause and resume while recording, and retake the recording if the take is not what you wanted.
- In the processing window, type a second in a trim field and press Enter to jump there.
- Save writes the file where you choose and keeps it; Copy puts it on the clipboard; deleting only affects this session.
- The format menu offers MP4, GIF and WebM.
- Recording depends on this device and on screen recording and microphone permission; without microphone permission the picture is still recorded, with no sound.
Desktop baseline: Bundled guide: Recording (English) / 录屏 (Chinese); permission notes from the Chinese baseline.
Settings and shortcuts
Settings… in the menu bar opens the settings window. Esc and the × close it; the app keeps running.
- System: Launch at login, Screenshot copy format (PNG, JPEG or WebP), the text layout and punctuation used when copying recognized text, the automatic update check and the manual Check for Updates, plus the Language row.
- Shortcuts: the six global shortcuts. Click a key capsule to record a new combination, Esc cancels and keeps the old one, and the × clears it. A combination that is already used or kept by macOS is refused and the old one stays.
- Shortcut Reference: a read-only list of the keys used across the app, grouped by what they do.
- About: the app name, its real version and a one-line description.
- The menu bar also holds Restore Last Pin, Hide All Pins / Show All Pins and Close All Pins, plus Disable Global Shortcuts and Quit SnipPin.
Desktop baseline: Bundled guide: Settings and shortcuts (English) / 设置与快捷键 (Chinese); keys from platform.ts.