Setup Help API

How each tool works

What it does, and how to use it

Most tools need nothing installed. Serial on Firefox or Safari is the exception: a small local helper.

Serial Talk to a USB UART from the browser. Needs a port or Demo UART

ESP32, Arduino, GPS, Cisco consoles, 3D printers, or a fake Demo UART that works on every browser including phones.

  1. Open Serial from Tools.
  2. Under How to reach the wire pick Demo UART, Web Serial, Local helper, or Host ports.
  3. Set a profile or baud, then press Connect.
  4. Type in the glass. Use Pulse DTR or Guess baud if the board is quiet.

Chrome or Edge. No download. The browser asks for the port once.

Firefox or Safari. Download the helper, run it, then open its own address. An HTTPS page cannot talk to localhost.

Any browser, no cable. Pick Demo UART and type AT or HELP.

Open Serial USB setup and helper Download server.py Python 3 if you need it
View Paste a log and get the colors back. No download

Paste or drop a CI log, installer dump, or TUI capture. The glass paints colors, cursor motion, and progress bars the way the author saw them. Nothing is sent to the server.

  1. Open View.
  2. Paste text or drop a .log or .txt file.
  3. Press Paint for the finished frame, or Replay to watch it type.
  4. Use Find, Strip ANSI, or Copy share hash if you want a fragment link that stays in the URL.

No helper. Works in Firefox, Safari, Chrome, and Edge.

Open View
Lab Compose CSI and watch the glass. No download

The cookbook covers reset, color leak, clear, hide cursor, alt screen, bell, and a progress bar. The termios board shows echo, line mode, and Ctrl C.

  1. Open Lab.
  2. Click a cookbook chip, or type ESC[31m in the box and press Send.
  3. Open the termios lens and type in the demo field to feel line mode versus raw.

No helper. Built for people who write CLIs.

Open Lab
Explain Name what a dump is saying. No download

Local rules read the current capture and name rustc, gcc, Python, npm, Kubernetes, SSH, kernel oops, and more. No API key. No upload.

  1. Capture bytes in Serial, or paste a dump in View first.
  2. Open Explain and press Explain this buffer, or paste into the box.
  3. Click a finding to copy the next command it suggests.

No helper. Deterministic patterns, not a language model.

Open Explain
RTT Typed conversation, GA and SK. No download

Typed conversation in the TTY sense. GA hands the turn. SK ends. XXX marks a mistake. Practice both sides here, or paste a WebRTC offer to talk to someone else. This is not a 711 relay.

  1. Open RTT.
  2. Stay on Practice to type both You and Far, or switch to Peer and create an offer.
  3. Use the GA, SK, and XXX buttons. Download the transcript when you are done.

No helper. Peer mode uses a copy paste handshake. tty000 never sees the text.

Open RTT
Diff Compare two dumps and extra CSI. No download

Paste an older dump and a newer dump. Changed lines and extra CSI show in the lens.

  1. Open Diff.
  2. Paste before and after.
  3. Press Compare.
Open Diff
Cast Replay an asciinema recording. No download

Replay an asciinema v2 recording in the glass.

  1. Open Cast.
  2. Choose a .cast file.
  3. Press Replay.
Open Cast
Term What a TERM name actually promises. No download

What names like xterm 256color actually promise: colors, alternate screen, mouse, OSC title.

  1. Open Term.
  2. Pick a terminal type.
  3. Read the capability list.
Open Term
Baud Bit time, bytes per second, cable budget. No download

Bit time, bits per character, bytes per second, and a rough cable length budget for 8N1 and friends.

  1. Open Baud.
  2. Set baud, data bits, parity, and stop bits.
  3. Read the summary. Serial also has Guess baud when a helper is running.
Open Baud
Museum Ten characters a second on paper. No download

Uppercase fold, bell, optional key clicks. Reprint whatever is already in the session so a modern log becomes a lesson in why Unix is terse.

  1. Open Museum.
  2. Type, or press Reprint session to play the current capture onto the paper.
  3. Toggle speed, uppercase, and bell. New page clears the roll.

No helper. Sound may wait for a click in some browsers.

Open Museum
Detect Name the device on the wire. No download

Device Detective reads the current capture and scores line endings, protocol, and device family: ESP32, Arduino, STM32, U-Boot, Linux, NMEA, AT, Cisco, Marlin, MicroPython. Then it offers diagnostic commands.

  1. Connect in Serial or Workbench, or paste a boot log in View.
  2. Open Detect and press Detect.
  3. Apply the guessed profile, then send a suggested command.

No helper. Rules stay in this tab.

Open Detect
Record Save the investigation as .tty000. No download

Records TX, RX, connect and disconnect, timestamps, port settings, and the last Detect report. Replay with a timeline. The file never leaves this computer unless you save it.

  1. Press Record on Serial, Workbench, or Record.
  2. Use the glass as usual.
  3. Stop, then Save .tty000. Open the file later and Replay.
Open Record
Workbench Detect, record, explain, and commands together. No download

One pane for the wire, the glass, live Explain, Device Detective, Record, and suggested tests. This is the path: connect, detect, watch, explain, command, record.

  1. Open Workbench and connect. Demo UART works with no cable.
  2. Press Detect. Send I2C on the demo to see a live I2C ACK timeout.
  3. Record the session, then save a .tty000 file.
Open Workbench