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When I insert a screen shot image into an HTML email it's too big, and when I view someone else's screen shots, they are too big.

For example

The first image below is a screen shot from my 20-inch monitor, inserted into a new Email Message. By default the image is added at the original size of my screen 11.25 inches x 20 inches. Of course, I can use the Picture Format feature to scale the image or use the image handles to change it's size, but it's unnecessary work. It is absolutely the case I never want to send an email with an image that's 20 inches wide.

The second image is an email I've received. The screen shot is scaled to a higher than original size (I'm sure it's the same resolution, and likely 96DPI or greater). Its maddening to need to scroll the screen to view the message. Meanwhile the text is normal size, and difficult to read as it zooms past while scrolling.

I have worked extensively with digital images in desktop publishing and web publishing, and I'm familiar with the properties of images (size & DPI/PPI), and lossy and lossless manipulation of images. I understand there are trade-offs, but email's priority must be readability. If you need to send large images, send as attachments. Images in email should illustrate and support the text, not make the message a horror to read.

Does MSO have some hidden feature to help either of these cases? Can I do something to make these large images scale automatically to fit the display window or at least have a sensible default?? (6-8 inches; I say inches because that's what MSO uses)

Version: Microsoft Outlook® for Microsoft 365 MSO (Version 2211 Build 16.0.15831.20098) 32-bit

Here is an example of an email I received from a vendor explaining how to use their webapp. Every. Time. I receive an email from them, its unreadable.

Insert image in email message. Large monitor screenshot is sized at original resolution

When I insert a large screen shot I experience the same behavior with Outlook. The image is inserted as if 100%, so only 25% of the image is visible while composing. I need to use Picture Format to resize. Every. Time.

Received email with screenshot is displayed at original screen resolution which is ginormus; on screen button is double-plus size; terrible reading experience

UPDATE

Here is another example of how the way MSO treats images. If I paste the screen capture and then right click, I get this easy way to resize the image. Here, I scaled the full-screen capture to 25% of it's original size. Notice the "original size" of the image is recognized as 19" x 11". That's fine, but it's bananas to put a 19" image at full size by default.

Context/right click image in new email gives you popup with image resizing options; size of the original image is represented in text as 11 inches by 19 inches (not pixels)

MSO uses Word? Funny if that was true, because inserting the 11x19 screenshot in a blank Word document has the desired UX

Insert 11x19 image in Word does not display beyond the page representation

xtian
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  • Inches wide? Pixels wide. – Blind Spots Jan 02 '23 at 22:19
  • @Blind Spots, LOL. as I mentioned in the OP, "inches" is what Outlook uses. Look at the second image. The file menu option "Picture Format" points to the dimensions of the inserted image. And right there you see double quote, or inch marks. MSO communicates the size of images in inches. – xtian Jan 04 '23 at 02:11
  • Outlook must be using Word to edit their 'html'. I'll try ty o see what's up but on the road on mobile so can't check for a bit. – Blind Spots Jan 07 '23 at 00:59
  • @Blind Spots Ironic if that's true. Inserted screenshot of 11x19 "inches" image is not added at full size, but shrinks to fit the margins. (see my new screen shot added in original post). *This is the desired User Experience I want in MSO.* Default should be scale to fit. Most of the time I create screenshots which are cropped to the relevant image. If I want the whole screen, I typically want it as a thumbnail view. If I need it ginormus, only then should I need to use scale tools. – xtian Jan 08 '23 at 00:58

1 Answers1

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Please try the following, as mentioned in this thread:

change the Windows screen DPI setting. Rigt-click on the screen. Select 'personalize'. Click on 'Display', then select 'smaller 100%' and click on 'Apply'. Log-off windows and log back on. Now image pastes correctly into Outlook.

Christy
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  • First, I don't use MSO on my home computer; this problem is on my remote headless Win 10 box. I think the Display setting you're referring to is not available for remote session. There is "Advanced scaling settings" which have similar features (and require logout). But this was not the problem; however, my settings are already 100%. I was hoping MSO would have a preference to resize to the composing window's size, or default to a specified width. – xtian Jan 05 '23 at 02:58
  • If so, in terms of Outlook, we can only reduce the size of pictures and attachments in Outlook email messages(https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/office/reduce-the-size-of-pictures-and-attachments-in-outlook-email-messages-d0b6b6bf-3b08-4dad-a01c-533719d1c005) when you insert an image. – Christy Jan 18 '23 at 06:44
  • Other than my aggravation having to do this every time I include a screen shot (when ever do you want a screen shot to scroll to the right?), I also have this problem with other people's emails. MS Outlook also displays emails from some senders with 4x side scrolling. – xtian Jan 19 '23 at 01:32