Skip to main content
  1. Blog
  2. Article

Canonical
on 21 September 2010


While browsing Ubuntu Software Center, have you ever wondered:

  • how it displays screenshots?
  • who uploads the screenshots?
  • why some of the screenshots are totally outdated?

Ubuntu Software Center pulls these screenshots from screenshots.debian.net. Anyone can upload screenshots to this site.

Keeping up with software that changes in almost every release is not an easy task. Often new screenshots are not uploaded, hence the outdated screenshots.

Want to help fix this?

Fire up your favorite application, and take a screenshot of it in action. (Screenshots must be in PNG format.) If necessary, crop the image  to display only the program. Then upload it. (No login or e-mail address is required, no strings attached!)

Once uploaded, wait for the wonderful Debian admins to review your screenshots and publish it for the whole world to enjoy.

What about fonts?

There are over 200 font packages available, but hardly any of them have screenshots. You can do the same as above for each font package, too.

Or you could even write a script that generates a screenshot for every font package. Anyone up for the challenge?

Related posts


Miguel Divo
22 May 2026

Decoding design: How design and engineering thrive together in open source

Design Design

Open source thrives on engineering-driven processes. Fast feedback loops, terminal tools, Git workflows: they’re the lifeblood of how we build software in the open. But for software to truly excel, we need to create user experiences that empower people to use them. I wanted to bring this conversation into the spotlight as part of Canonica ...


Johann Wolf
27 April 2026

Why Web Engineering is great

Ubuntu Article

Like many software engineers, one of my first software development experiences started with creating my own web page. Since that time 20+ years ago, a lot has changed in the web landscape. Having worked a lot in web since then, I’d like to take a moment to reflect on what I think makes web great! ...


Canonical
23 April 2026

Canonical releases Ubuntu 26.04 LTS Resolute Raccoon

Canonical announcements Article

The 11th long-term supported release of Ubuntu delivers deep silicon optimization and state-of-the-art security for enterprise workloads. ...