I continue to be amazed by the depth of tools created by Sysinternals even after all the tools I have used over years. Zoomit is certainly one of them.

Now, how many times have you wondered about making things a weebit exciting by drawing something on the screen while you are presenting stuff. Not taking screenshots and pasting in other programs, not using Powerpoint tools and not using video tools - just plain old do things live and switch context, quickly.

Enter Zoomit, a lightweight gem that allows users to effortlessly zoom in, annotate, and draw on their screens, bringing presentations to life.

• light-weight program, super performant
• requires less context switching & shuffling windows
• no additional devices needed - all you need is a keyboard & mouse
• free

ZoomIt’s superpower is its ability to annotate anything on your screen with ease. Whether you’re giving a coding demo, dissecting complex diagrams, or discussing intricate details, you can effortlessly highlight and explain concepts.

Just hit the shortcut Ctrl + 2 and you can -

• draw lines, shapes, & arrows
• Zoom to pointer
• write directly on your slides or other applications in real-time
• save a screenshot / recording with all the annotations

Hit Esc and you can continue the amazing thing that you were doing.

Of course, you take more time when you get started since there is no window to interact with (except for the icon in the system tray). Once you get over that bump, you are going to be as productive as one can be.

See more / download Zoomit from Microsoft site.

Annoyances -

1. Initial curve may put off people
2. Getting over the muscle memory of using Ctrl+1 / Ctrl+2 / etc. in many programs (especially tabs in browsers or in VSCode)

Alternatives -

• Epic Pen has a free version & looks great. You need a pro version for something basic like drawing rectangles
• Microsoft Snip & Sketch: Comes with windows, or download from Appstore. Free, but the experience is not as pleasant - opens up a new window

You can also choose to use Ink tools from Microsoft on supported devices.