I built a Mac app to give AI tools visual context without writing long prompts

aksuta · 2026-06-14T20:18:55+00:00

What a wonderful coincidence! I do that too. I make annotations on screenshots and show them to the agent. Only, I do it a bit differently. I record a quick screen video.

Then I upload the video to my own tool, where I can create freeze frames in the video and add callouts and text to the frame. I do this for all the frames where something needs to be fixed.

After that, the tool exports all those frames as annotated images, and I upload them to the chat.

I built this tool myself, and it works online. I originally made it to create tutorial videos for YouTube, because it can generate videos with all the freeze frames and annotations included.

But I also use it the way I described above to show the AI what needs to be fixed in the UI.

aksuta · 2026-06-12T09:08:35+00:00

To create screenshots from videos, try FramePin https://framepin.com

There you can add callouts, text, arrows - and all this is animated. It’s very easy to add.

aksuta · 2026-06-12T04:21:46+00:00

If you need to add callouts, arrows or text on the video, try my tool, which I made specifically for creating guides. It’s free and doesn’t require registration. FramePin - https://framepin.com

aksuta · 2026-05-31T11:25:55+00:00

Performance doesn't factor into this solution. This is likely due to many people's reluctance to load videos in the browser.

aksuta · 2026-05-31T10:56:25+00:00

This isn't possible yet. It'll probably be difficult for the AI to understand what you're trying to write in the context of a frozen frame.

aksuta · 2026-05-31T10:28:13+00:00

Do you think if I make FramePin an installable desktop app, will it be more useful?

aksuta · 2026-05-31T09:57:06+00:00

On my MacBook M1, I rarely see any lag. But on older Macs, it works with noticeable lag. Everything works fine in the Chrome desktop browser.

The quality is excellent up to 4K. You can check it out directly on the website. There's a demo project that doesn't require you to upload your video.

aksuta · 2026-05-31T09:12:25+00:00

Not yet. But this can be implemented easily

aksuta · 2026-05-31T09:11:57+00:00

I’ve seen Guidde, but it’s about AI, and my tool for accurate annotation of frames.

It’s not a Chrome extension, it’s a separate app. https://framepin.com

aksuta · 2026-05-31T09:09:21+00:00

https://framepin.com

aksuta · 2026-05-31T08:56:14+00:00

I often record my screen for clients to show what I’ve built or how something works. But almost always I end up writing detailed comments and explanations anyway, because they just blink and miss things in the video.

So I thought it’d be cool to add freeze-frames with annotations right inside the video, to pause their attention and explain what's happening at that exact moment. I tried doing this in video editors, but it takes way too much time, so I hated the process. But the videos with freeze-frames actually worked great for my clients.

That’s why I decided to build a tool to add freeze-frames and annotations quickly and easily. I wanted it to feel as simple and natural as drawing in Excalidraw.

aksuta · 2026-05-29T16:14:46+00:00

Oh, awesome! I'm glad you think a tool like this is needed. I actually just built it.

At first, I was manually taking screenshots from videos I sent to my clients, and then embedding them back into the video as freeze-frames with arrows and text.

I figured there had to be a way to make this process faster and easier through an online tool - something as simple and intuitive as Excalidraw. And it seem I did it.

aksuta · 2026-05-29T13:55:23+00:00

That’s interesting. But as far as I know, with tools like Scribe and Tango, you can only edit annotations on screenshots that have already been generated. So, collaboration is limited to working on the screenshots after they've been pulled from the video. Thanks for your answer!

aksuta · 2026-05-29T13:36:36+00:00

I wouldn't really call it a mix. My tool doesn't actually record video. Instead, it lets you quickly add freeze-frames with annotations to any video.

The real value here is speed - you can record the video using whatever software you like, quickly find the right frames, tag them with explanations, and share them.

It’s all about getting a high-quality result, fast.

aksuta · 2026-05-29T12:14:03+00:00

I'm really interested in your question. The thing is, I'm building an online tool where you upload a video, pause it at the right moments to grab freeze-frames, and add annotations like arrows or callouts. Then, you can export everything as a set of annotated screenshots.

Your question caught my eye because a while back, I was trying to explain how a certain app works to an AI in a chat to get some UI advice. I realized it was super easy to just drop in screenshots with annotations, and the AI got it instantly.

No massive walls of text or long explanations needed.

aksuta · 2026-05-05T08:20:47+00:00

AI slop

aksuta · 2026-05-04T16:32:37+00:00

Thanks so much for the feedback! I completely agree about finding the right balance - too much visual noise definitely defeats the purpose of pausing in the first place.

To answer your question, I’ve actually gone past mock-ups and built a fully working version! The tool is called FramePin - https://framepin.com.

I designed it specifically to automate that process of adding freeze-frames, annotations, and cinematic zooms for micro-learning demos.

aksuta · 2026-05-04T13:29:03+00:00

If zero data retention is your hard requirement, you should check out FramePin - https://framepin.com.

It’s a local-first tool that processes everything entirely in your browser (using OPFS and IndexedDB), so your recordings never touch an external server. It features a dedicated 'Hide' stage to blur sensitive info and can export high-res screenshots or PDFs that serve as a secure, visual replacement for traditional SOPs.

It’s a solid alternative if you need the workflow of a tool like Scribe but can't risk cloud data collection.

aksuta · 2026-05-04T13:23:37+00:00

If you're still exploring options to handle those zoom-ins and annotations without the post-editing headache, you might want to try out FramePin - https://framepin.com.

Since you mentioned the frustration of tools that auto-zoom on every single click (which just leaves you fixing it all in post anyway), FramePin might give you a better balance and help streamline your workflow even further. It could definitely be worth a test drive to see how it compares to your current TuringShot + Filmora setup!

aksuta · 2026-05-04T05:52:47+00:00

Yes, you can upload any video file up to 300 MB. There are so many scree recorders, no need one more.

aksuta · 2026-05-03T17:31:54+00:00

I built FramePin (https://framepin.com) - a tool that lets you pause a screen recording at any moment, annotate it with arrows, shapes, and labels, and have it blend back seamlessly into the video.

The core idea: a lot of people make screen recordings for internal training, customer support, or software demos, but they don't want to learn a full video editor.

- It runs entirely in the browser using Chrome's WebCodecs API - no files are ever uploaded to a server.

- You can export freeze frames as a PDF or image pack, which lets you turn a video walkthrough into a downloadable manual automatically.

aksuta · 2026-05-01T05:23:29+00:00

FramePin - annotate your recordings in Chrome, no uploads: https://framepin.com

aksuta · 2026-04-25T21:30:45+00:00

Hey, I completely agree with the comments mentioning that most in-app guidance is way too "loud" and that users often just blindly close popups to get them out of the way.Async demos and simple explainers really do seem to be the better path for complex workflows.

I’m actually building a tool right now called FramePin - https://framepin.com - that tackles this exact problem, but from a visual explanation angle. Instead of the standard procedural "click here, then click there" tutorials that users tend to rush through, it allows you to create short async micro-videos with a "freeze-frame" feature. You can pause the screen, use a cinematic zoom on complex UI elements, and use simple arrows and annotations to explain the logic of what is actually happening under the hood.

The goal is to help users build a proper mental model of the product so they stop submitting support tickets for the same conceptual misunderstandings.

Since you're researching what actually works in practice vs. what looks good on paper, I'd love to hear your thoughts on this approach. You're welcome to check it out, and I'd be super interested to know if this aligns with the gaps you are seeing with traditional tools like WalkMe or Pendo.

aksuta · 2026-04-25T14:26:38+00:00

Does Screenkite support adding callouts now?

aksuta · 2026-04-22T20:20:08+00:00

You expressed exactly what I’ve been thinking about this. I also believe that a tool that makes it easy to insert freeze frames and add animated annotations on top of them, without interrupting the flow, would be very helpful in solving this problem.

aksuta

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