debug

Browser Debugging with PinchTab

AI-optimized browser automation for visual debugging. Token-efficient text extraction, persistent profiles, and stealth mode.

Commands

# Navigate to a URL
pinchtab nav http://localhost:3000

# Token-efficient page text (~800 tokens — preferred first step)
pinchtab text

# Take screenshot
pinchtab screenshot

# Get interactive compact accessibility snapshot
pinchtab snap -i -c

# Click element by ref
pinchtab click e5

# Fill input (clear + set)
pinchtab fill e3 "search query"

# Type keystrokes
pinchtab type e3 "search query"

# Press keyboard keys
pinchtab press Enter
pinchtab press Tab
pinchtab press Escape

# Hover over element
pinchtab hover e5

# Scroll page
pinchtab scroll down
pinchtab scroll up

# Select dropdown option
pinchtab select e7 "Option text"

# Semantic element discovery
pinchtab find "search button"

# Execute JavaScript
pinchtab eval "document.title"

# Health check
pinchtab health

Workflow

1. Navigate to the target URL
2. Text to get token-efficient page content (~800 tokens)
3. Screenshot if visual inspection needed
4. Snap to get accessibility tree with element refs
5. Interact using element refs (e5, e12, etc.)
6. Screenshot again to verify changes

Element References

The accessibility snapshot gives each element a unique ref:

e1: button "Submit"
e2: textbox "Email"
e3: link "Home"

Use these refs for reliable element targeting. No @ prefix needed.

Common Debugging Tasks

Visual Bug

pinchtab nav http://localhost:3000/broken-page
pinchtab text        # Quick content check first
pinchtab screenshot  # Visual inspection

Interactive Testing

pinchtab nav http://localhost:3000/form
pinchtab snap -i -c
pinchtab fill e2 "test@example.com"
pinchtab press Tab
pinchtab fill e3 "password123"
pinchtab click e5
pinchtab screenshot

Layout Inspection

pinchtab nav http://localhost:3000
pinchtab snap -i -c
# Analyze accessibility tree for structure

Prerequisites

Requires pinchtab (installed by setup.sh).

Output

Return findings:

• Visual state: What the page looks like
• Issues found: Layout problems, missing elements
• Accessibility tree: Key element structure
• Recommendations: How to fix issues