Frequently Asked Questions
Short answers about capture, comparison, monitoring, and the API. Product behaviour stays as implemented — Coming Soon means it is not live.
- What does ANEARST render?
- A real browser opens a public URL and returns a screenshot, PDF, or short MP4 scroll preview — plus a render report.
- Can I use ANEARST from CI?
- Yes. Configure the capture in Studio, copy the request, and POST /api/v1/capture with an API key.
- How does visual comparison work?
- Capture twice. Review Before, After, Overlay, and a difference map with pixel difference, changed regions, and a pass or change-detected status.
- What URLs are supported?
- Public http and https pages. Localhost, private networks, metadata hosts, and URLs with embedded credentials are blocked.
- How does AI Capture work?
- Type an instruction. ANEARST maps it to capture settings with a rules-based parser. It is not a hosted language model.
- Do failed captures consume credits?
- No. One successful still uses one credit. A successful PDF uses two. A successful MP4 uses five credits and one monthly video slot. Failed renders do not consume credits.
- How does the free limit work without an account?
- You get 15 successful credits and 2 videos per month without signing in. Cookies stay in one browser — Chrome does not send them to Firefox, Edge, or your phone. The 15 still follows you on the same Wi‑Fi or office network because the server also keys the monthly ledger to a hashed public IP. Another browser or phone on that network shares the same 15. Mobile data or a VPN is a different network, so it can start a new 15 unless you sign in. A hard refresh never resets the count. Sign up for 150 credits on your own account, which follows you on every device.
- How does website monitoring work?
- Create a monitor with a URL and frequency. ANEARST captures a baseline immediately, then scheduled checks compare the next still and store the visual difference. Email is sent only when the server has mail configured. Webhooks are Coming Soon.
- Are webhooks and email notifications live?
- Webhooks are Coming Soon — do not configure a webhook URL expecting live events. Email notifications are attempted after a change when SMTP or Resend is configured on the server; otherwise the change is stored on the monitor only.
- Is card checkout live?
- No. Card checkout is Coming Soon. Paid plans are confirmed by email. Yearly billing is not offered.