The humble screenshot might be the key to great AI assistants

The humble screenshot might be the key to great AI assistants, as it allows for universal capture and sharing of digital information.
Screenshots are a portable data format that can be easily saved and shared across devices, apps, and people, making them a valuable tool for capturing digital information.
A screenshot contains a wealth of information, including its source, contents, and timestamp, which can provide context and meaning to the captured image.
By taking screenshots, individuals can send a signal that they care about certain pieces of information, which is particularly important in an era where AI tools are increasingly trying to watch and understand our lives.
The author suggests developing the habit of taking lots of screenshots as a way to make the most out of AI tools and to capture valuable digital information in a portable and shareable format.

If you want to make the most out of a world increasingly filled with AI tools, here’s a habit to develop: start taking screenshots. Lots of screenshots. Of anything and everything. Because for all the talk of voice modes, omnipresent cameras, and the multimodal future of everything, there might be no more valuable digital behavior than to press the buttons and save what you’re looking at.

Screenshots are the most universal method of capturing digital information. You can capture anything – well, almost anything, thanks a lot, Netflix! – with a few clicks, and save and share it to almost any device, app, or person. “It’s this portable data format,” says Johnny Bree, the founder of the digital storage app Fabric. “There’s nothing else that’s quite so portable that you can move between any piece of software.”

A screenshot contains a lot of information, like its source, contents, and even the time of the day in the corner of the screen. Most of all, it sends a crucial and complex signal; it says I care about this. We have countless new AI tools that aim to watch the world, our lives, and everything, and try to make sense of it all for us. These tools are mostl …

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Q. Why is taking screenshots considered valuable for making the most out of AI tools?

A. Taking screenshots is considered valuable because it allows you to capture and save digital information, which can be easily shared or moved between different devices, apps, or people.

Q. What makes screenshots a universal method of capturing digital information?

A. Screenshots are the most universal method of capturing digital information because they can be captured with just a few clicks and saved in a portable format that can be moved between any piece of software.

Q. Can you capture anything with a screenshot, or is there an exception?

A. Almost anything can be captured with a screenshot, except for Netflix content due to copyright restrictions.

Q. What does a screenshot contain besides its source and contents?

A. A screenshot also contains the time of day in the corner of the screen.

Q. What signal do screenshots send when taken?

A. Screenshots send the crucial and complex signal that says “I care about this.”

Q. How many new AI tools aim to watch the world, our lives, and everything for us?

A. There are countless new AI tools that aim to watch the world, our lives, and everything.

Q. What is the founder of Fabric, a digital storage app, saying about screenshots?

A. Johnny Bree, the founder of Fabric, says that screenshots are “this portable data format” that can be moved between any piece of software.

Q. Why is it important to take multiple screenshots?

A. Taking multiple screenshots is recommended because it allows you to capture and save a lot of information at once.

Q. What does taking screenshots say about the person who takes them?

A. Taking screenshots says that the person cares about the digital information they are capturing, which can be an important aspect of interacting with AI tools.