Capture with the extension
Install ShowPilot Capture in Chrome, choose a capture type and a destination, and click or record through your app to make the screens every tour is built from.
A tour is only as convincing as the screens in it, so ShowPilot builds tours from your real product. The ShowPilot Capture extension for Chrome records your app while you use it: in a click session every click saves a screen, and in a video session it records a take. When you finish, ShowPilot files the screens in your library and can turn the session straight into a tour.
You're in the right place when you want to capture new screens, record a video take, or find out what the extension records about each screen.
What do you need before you capture?
| You need | Why |
|---|---|
| Chrome on a desktop computer | The extension runs in Chrome. |
| The ShowPilot Capture extension | If you don't have the install link, ask your ShowPilot contact. |
| A ShowPilot account in the workspace you want the screens in | Screens save to the workspace you're signed in to. |
| Your app, signed in and ready | The extension captures what's on screen. Set up the account, sample data and starting page you want viewers to see before you start. |
| A page served over https | The extension runs on https pages. It can't run on plain http pages or on Chrome's own pages, such as the new-tab page or settings. |
How do you install and sign in?
Add the extension and pin it
Add ShowPilot Capture to Chrome, then pin it from Chrome's extensions menu so its icon stays in your toolbar.
Open the panel on your app
Go to your app and select the ShowPilot icon in the toolbar. A dark panel opens on the page.
Sign in
Select Sign in to ShowPilot. The extension opens the ShowPilot sign-in page in a new tab and shows "Complete sign-in in the opened tab" while it waits. Sign in there, then come back to your app. The panel switches to Capture settings.
The extension never asks for your password itself. Signing in always happens on the ShowPilot sign-in page.
To switch accounts, select Sign out at the bottom of the Capture settings panel and sign in again.
Which capture type should you choose?
The Capture type row has three options. HTML and Image both run a click session, where every click saves a screen. Video records a continuous take.
HTML freezes the live page at every click, so each screen stays a working copy of your app rather than a picture of it. This is the default and the best choice for most tours.
With HTML screens you can:
- Attach steps to real elements. Tooltips point at the exact button or row.
- Edit any text on the screen, and hide, blur or remove elements such as customer names.
- Use the AI tools on the screen, such as rewriting copy, anonymizing data or refreshing dates.
HTML screens take a little longer to save than images, because the extension copies the page's styles along with it. On a heavy page, the counter may show a few shots still saving while you keep clicking.
Where do the screens go?
The Add to list sets the destination before you start. Pick one row:
| Destination | What happens when you finish |
|---|---|
| New tour | ShowPilot opens, collects your shots, assembles them into a new tour in click order and starts writing it. This is the default. |
| Library only | The screens are filed under Tours → Captures as a new collection. Nothing is built, and no tab opens. |
| Any existing tour, by name | The new screens are added to the end of that tour. ShowPilot opens and shows the tour being assembled. |
Every capture lands in your library whichever destination you pick. A tour holds its own copy of each screen, so the same capture can serve many tours.
How do you run a click session?
Start capturing
Choose HTML or Image, pick a destination under Add to, and select Start capturing. The panel closes and a dark capture bar appears on the page.
Click through your app
Click through your product the way you'd show it to a prospect. Before the first shot, the bar reads "Click through your app — every click is a capture". After that it counts your shots and shows how many have saved.
The session follows you as you move between pages of your app, so you can click links and change pages freely.
Use the bar's controls as you go
| Control | What it does |
|---|---|
| Pause | Stops capturing so you can move around, open a menu or fix the page without saving screens. The same button then reads Resume capturing. |
| ⇧S (snap) | Saves the screen as it is right now, without a click. Use it for a hover state, an open dropdown or a tooltip that disappears when you click. Snap is off while the session is paused. |
| Finish | Takes one final shot and ends the session. It shows Saving… while the last shots upload. |
| X (close) | Stops the session without assembling anything. Screens that already saved stay in your library. |
| Drag handle | Moves the bar out of the way. |
Finish
Select Finish. What happens next depends on the destination:
- New tour: ShowPilot opens and asks What kind of tour is this? Pick an audience, add an optional brief, and select Build the tour ✦. See Create a tour.
- An existing tour: ShowPilot opens and adds the screens to that tour.
- Library only: no tab opens. The screens are waiting in Tours → Captures.
How do you record a video take?
Choose Video and start
Choose Video under Capture type, pick a destination, and select Start capturing. The capture bar shows two choices:
- This tab records the current browser tab.
- Screen records a window or your entire screen. Chrome asks which one to share.
Select Start recording. For This tab, recording starts after a 3-2-1 countdown, so the countdown never appears in the take. Click the countdown or press Esc to cancel it. For Screen, Chrome's own picker is the starting gate, and recording begins as soon as you choose.
Record with the HUD
A small recording window stays on top of your other windows while you record. If your version of Chrome can't keep a window on top, it opens as a separate popup window instead. It shows a status chip (Ready before the take rolls, Live while recording, Paused when paused), a timer and these controls:
| Control | What it does |
|---|---|
| Pause recording / Resume recording | Pauses the take. Nothing you do while paused is recorded. |
| Mute microphone / Unmute microphone | Turns your microphone off or on. The page audio keeps recording. |
| Retake | Scratches the last 5 seconds and keeps recording from there. Tap it again to go back further. A chip shows the time you rewound to. |
| Discard | Asks Discard take? Select it again within a few seconds to delete the take and stop. |
| Stop | Stops and finishes the recording. |
While a take is running, selecting the ShowPilot icon in Chrome's toolbar also shows the recording state with Pause, Mute and Stop Recording buttons.
Save the take
When you stop, the take opens in a preview tab. Give it a Name, pick a Tour to add it to (or leave it on Library only) and select Save to ShowPilot. You can also select Download to keep a copy on your computer, or Open in new tab to watch it full size.
Record another shot, or finish
After the take saves you get two choices:
- Record another shot keeps the session going. The next take joins the same storyboard, so a multi-part walkthrough stays together.
- Done — open in ShowPilot ends the session and opens the take's page in ShowPilot, where you can watch it being processed.
A video session ends when you select Done — open in ShowPilot, or after 6 hours with no new takes. The next take after that starts a new session.
Can you start a capture from ShowPilot instead?
Yes, and it's often faster. Several places in ShowPilot hand the capture straight to the extension:
- Tours → New tour, then Taking new captures or Recording a video. See Create a tour.
- Tours → Captures → New collection with an App URL.
- A collection's Add to collection → Start capturing.
ShowPilot opens your app in a new tab with the extension already running, set to the right capture type and destination. Finish brings you back to the hub or collection you started from.
If the extension doesn't answer within a couple of seconds, ShowPilot opens your app in a new tab anyway and shows a Capture with the extension message: open the extension in that tab and start capturing, and the shots still file into the right place. The message also says why the handoff didn't work, such as the extension not being installed or not enabled for the site.
What does the extension record about each screen?
Along with the screen itself, the extension records a few facts that help ShowPilot write the tour and help your agent present it. None of this needs any setup.
| What's recorded | What it's used for |
|---|---|
| The landmarks on the page | The position of navigation, headings, buttons, tables and charts on each HTML shot. ShowPilot uses these to describe the screen, frame camera moves and place tooltips exactly. |
| Your click trail | During a video take, the clicks, drags, scrolls, hovers and page changes you made, stamped against the recording's timer. ShowPilot cuts scenes on your clicks and places tooltips where you clicked, instead of guessing. |
| The click that made each shot | In a click session, where you clicked. The builder anchors a step on each click when it assembles the tour. |
What the extension never records:
- Form values. Landmarks take their names from labels and headings, never from what's typed in a field.
- What you type. The click trail stores how many characters you typed, never the characters themselves.
- Its own controls. The capture bar and recording window are left out of every shot.
Test it
Your capture worked when:
- You go to Tours → Captures in ShowPilot.
- Your new screens appear under All captures, and the session appears as a collection under Collections.
- For a video take, the take's page shows Uploaded, and the later processing stages tick over as you refresh.
Troubleshooting
| Issue | What to check |
|---|---|
| Nothing happens when you select the icon | Reload the tab, then select the icon again. The extension can't run on Chrome's own pages or on plain http pages. |
| The panel says it couldn't load tours | Check your connection and reopen the panel. If you were signed out, sign in again. |
| ShowPilot says the extension didn't pick up the capture | Check the extension is installed and enabled, reload your app's tab, then open the extension there and start capturing. If you just updated or reloaded the extension, reload the ShowPilot tab too. |
| The bar shows some shots failed | Check your connection and capture those screens again. Shots that saved are safe. |
| A hover menu or tooltip is missing from a shot | Clicking closes it. Hover to open it, then press ⇧S to snap the screen without clicking. |
| Snap does nothing | The session is paused. Select Resume capturing, then snap. |
| Finish seems slow | On heavy pages, HTML shots can take a moment to save. ShowPilot waits for the last shot before it builds. |
| A video take has a mistake near the end | Select Retake during the recording to scratch the last 5 seconds, or Discard and record again. |
FAQ
Which capture type should I choose?
HTML, unless you have a reason not to. It keeps every element live, so you can attach steps to real elements, edit text and use the AI tools. Image screens are only pixels. Choose Video when motion or narration matters.
How do I capture a menu that closes when I click?
Hover or open the menu, then press ⇧S while the capture bar is showing. It saves the screen as it is, without a click.
Can I capture screens without building a tour?
Yes. Under Add to, choose Library only. The screens stay in Tours → Captures, grouped as a collection you can build from later.
Can I add new screens to a tour I already have?
Yes. Under Add to, pick the tour by name before you start capturing. The new screens are added to the end of it.
Does the extension see what I type into forms?
No. It never reads form values, and the click trail only records how many characters were typed.
Are there keyboard shortcuts?
⇧S snaps a screen during a click session, and Esc cancels the video countdown. The extension doesn't add any Chrome-wide shortcuts.