How it works
The screenshot system operates through a multi-stage pipeline:Capture
When you press
Cmd/Ctrl+H, Cluely temporarily hides its window, captures your entire screen, and stores the image in your app data directory.Queue management
Screenshots are automatically added to a queue (max 5 images). When the queue is full, the oldest screenshot is removed to make room for new captures.
AI analysis
Press
Cmd/Ctrl+Enter to process screenshots. The AI analyzes the image content using vision models to extract problems, code, or questions.Screenshot capture
Automatic window hiding
Before capturing a screenshot, Cluely automatically hides its main window to ensure a clean capture:Storage locations
Screenshots are stored in two separate directories:- Queue screenshots:
userData/screenshots/- Main analysis queue - Debug screenshots:
userData/extra_screenshots/- Additional context for debugging
Queue management
Maximum queue size
The screenshot queue maintains a fixed size limit:When the queue reaches 5 screenshots, the oldest image is automatically deleted both from memory and disk to prevent storage buildup.
Clearing queues
You can clear all screenshots at once usingCmd/Ctrl+R:
- Cancels ongoing API requests
- Deletes all queued screenshots from disk
- Resets the view to the queue state
- Clears both main and debug screenshot queues
AI vision analysis
Content detection
The AI automatically detects the type of content in your screenshot:- Coding/programming questions - Provides optimized and brute force solutions
- Code snippets with bugs - Identifies and fixes issues with minimal changes
- Aptitude/reasoning questions - Shows step-by-step solutions
- Theoretical/conceptual questions - Gives clear explanations
- Technical interview questions - Structured answers with examples
- Multiple choice questions - Identifies correct answer with reasoning
Analysis workflow
When you process screenshots (electron/ProcessingHelper.ts:55):Adding context to screenshots
You can attach a question or context to any screenshot to guide the AI analysis:Debug mode
After receiving an initial solution, you can capture additional screenshots to debug or refine the answer:Best practices
Capture clear screenshots
Capture clear screenshots
- Ensure text is readable and not blurred
- Include all relevant context in a single capture when possible
- Avoid capturing with overlapping windows
Use the queue strategically
Use the queue strategically
- Capture up to 5 related screenshots for comprehensive context
- Clear the queue (
Cmd/Ctrl+R) before starting a new problem - Add questions to screenshots for more precise AI responses
Leverage debug mode
Leverage debug mode
- After getting an initial solution, capture error messages or test results
- Use debug screenshots to show the AI what’s not working
- Process debug images to get refined solutions
Keyboard shortcuts
| Shortcut | Action |
|---|---|
Cmd/Ctrl+H | Take screenshot and auto-process |
Cmd/Ctrl+Enter | Process queued screenshots |
Cmd/Ctrl+R | Clear queues and reset view |
Screenshots are automatically processed when captured with
Cmd/Ctrl+H, so you’ll get instant AI analysis without needing to press Enter separately.