I'm still interested in knowing about my initial question. Any path to overriding the truncated System Preferences so I can install apps of my choice? [One more reason for sticking with a Mac running El Capitan.]
I guess I don't understand where you're getting hung up on that point... Rifght clicking on the App & choosing Open doesn't work?
How to Change the Default Screenshot Save Location in macOS High Sierra or Earlier
- Open Terminal. You can find the Terminal app in the Utilities folder.
- Type the following command, followed by a space:
defaults write com.apple.screencapture location
- Note: Make sure to put a space after the word location, otherwise the command won’t work.
- Drag the folder you want to save to into the Terminal command box. You will see that the file path will now be inserted as another command line in Terminal.
- Press Enter on your keyboard.
- Then type the following command:
killall SystemUIServer
- Press Enter or Return. The next time you take a screenshot, it will be saved to the new folder you have created instead of the desktop.
How to Change a Screenshot to JPG and Other File Formats
By default, Macs save screenshots as PNG files, which are usually larger than JPG files. Both can be used for social media, but JPGs are more universally accepted. To save a screenshot as a JPG, use the Terminal to override the default format setting.
- Open Terminal.
- Type the following command, followed by a space:
defaults write com.apple.screencapture type jpg
You can also choose to save your screenshots as other formats by default. You can save them as PDF files if you want to edit or open the image in Adobe. You can save them as TIFF files if you want to retain their original image data even after manipulating the image. Or you can save them as GIF files if you want the image to load quickly on the web. Just choose any of the following commands, followed by a space:defaults write com.apple.screencapture type pdf
defaults write com.apple.screencapture type tiff
defaults write com.apple.screencapture type gif
- Note: Make sure to put a space after the file type, otherwise the command won’t work.
- Hit Enter. The command will be saved to Terminal.
- Test to see if the default option has been changed. Take a screenshot then right-click on the image. Choose Get Info from the contextual menu, then check what is written under “Kind” in the General section.
Once you know how to change the default screenshot settings on your Mac, you’ll be able to customize and improve the way you work with screenshots. Taking a screenshot on a Mac also takes some getting used to, especially for Windows users who are used to hitting the Print Screen key. If you need to improve your screenshot skills, check out our article about how to take a screenshot on a Mac.
How to Change Where Screenshots Are Saved on Mac : HelloTech How
