Screen recording · checked 2026-10-13Can I vibecode Scribe?
YES· one-shottable
Scribe's core is a browser extension that screenshots the tab on every click, names the step after the element you clicked and lays the result out as an editable guide. An agent builds that, plus blur boxes and Markdown, HTML and PDF export, in one sitting. A home build won't have desktop-app capture, share links that track views, a team library or enterprise redaction. If the recorder is all you need, the open-source Mimik extension already does it for free.
$35/moprice per seat
$420you'd save a year
one sittingbuild time
—people replaced it
What you need on hand.
DifficultyIntermediate · Some system setup or keys.
TimeAbout an hour for the recorder and the editor
- Claude Code, Codex or CursorAny of them can run the prompt.
- Node.js 22sharp downloads a prebuilt image library on install; no compiler needed on most machines.
- Chrome, Edge or BraveTurn on Developer mode in the extensions page to load the unpacked extension.
- An OpenAI or Anthropic API key (optional)Only for rewriting step titles; templates work without it.
Before you buildScribe Basic is free for web capture with unlimited guides, and the open-source Mimik extension already records, blurs and exports locally. Try both before building.
- 1. Install one agent: Claude Code, Codex, Cursor.
- 2. Make an empty folder and open it in the agent.
- 3. Paste the prompt below, press enter, and answer its questions as it builds.
The prompt
Build me a browser step recorder to replace Scribe. Requirements: - Node.js 22 + TypeScript in one repo: a Chrome extension (Manifest V3, built with Vite) and a Fastify server on http://127.0.0.1:4700. - Recording: a toolbar button starts and stops a session. A content script catches clicks on pointerdown in the capture phase and records the element's label (aria-label, text, placeholder or title, max 60 chars), the URL and the click position; the service worker takes a captureVisibleTab screenshot and posts both to the server. A changed text field becomes a "Type ... into <field>" step; never store what is typed into password fields. - Storage: one folder per guide in ~/Guides/YYYY-MM-DD-title/ with guide.json and step-01.png, step-02.png and so on. The server draws a red ring at the click point with sharp and keeps the raw screenshot alongside. - Editor on the same port: list guides; per guide, drag to reorder steps, edit titles and notes, delete or merge steps, crop, and draw blur boxes over private data (applied to exported copies, originals kept). - Export: guide.md with relative image links, one self-contained HTML file with base64 images, and PDF through a print stylesheet. - If OPENAI_API_KEY or ANTHROPIC_API_KEY is set in .env, a button rewrites step titles as plain instructions; without a key, use templates like Click "Save". - No accounts, no telemetry, local-first; the server listens on 127.0.0.1 only. - Honest limits: Chrome allows about two captureVisibleTab calls per second, so merge clicks less than 600 ms apart; the extension can't see other apps. - Out of scope: desktop app capture, share links and team workspaces. - README: build and load the unpacked extension, start the server, where the guides live and how to back them up.
Opens your agent with the prompt filled in, you press enter. Or copy it and paste it into an empty folder.
Then keep going
Next prompts, same folder.
The first prompt builds the core. Run these one at a time in the same folder to grow it into your own Scribe.
Add automatic redaction to the step recorder in this folder. Requirements: - After each capture, run OCR on the screenshot with tesseract.js and find email addresses, phone numbers, IBANs and card-like numbers with regular expressions. - Put a blur box over each match, marked "auto" in guide.json, so I can remove it in the editor. - A per-guide toggle turns auto-blur off; the raw screenshot is never changed. - Exports refuse to run while a guide has unreviewed auto boxes, until I tick "reviewed". - Update the README with what the OCR catches and what it misses.
Add read-only share links to the step recorder in this folder. Requirements: - A Share button creates a random 24-character token per guide; /s/:token serves the guide as HTML with blur applied, and nothing else. - Share routes run on a second port (SHARE_PORT in .env) that I can expose through a Cloudflare Tunnel; the editor port stays on 127.0.0.1. - Revoke a link from the editor; count views per link (time only, no IPs). - Out of scope: comments and accounts. - Update the README with the cloudflared commands.
Add an importer for Scribe exports to the step recorder in this folder. Requirements: - Accept a folder of Scribe Markdown or HTML exports (Share > Export, Pro plan). - For each file, create a guide in ~/Guides/ with one step per numbered step, downloading every screenshot it links to into the guide folder. - If the export links images instead of embedding them, those links may expire: run right after exporting and list every image that failed. - Skip guides that already exist, so a second run is safe. - Update the README with the export and import steps.
Add a guided replay mode to the step recorder in this folder. Requirements: - From now on, store a CSS selector per step at capture time (prefer id, then data-testid, then aria-label). - From the extension popup, pick a guide and start replay on the current tab: the content script highlights each step's element with the step text beside it. - Next and Back buttons; if an element can't be found, show the screenshot. - Replay only points: never click or type for me. - Update the README.
What you lose
- Capture in desktop and mobile apps
- Share links, view counts and a shared team library
- Automatic redaction of personal and health data
- AI-written guides and process insights from Autocapture
- Comments, roles, SSO and admin controls
Why people still pay
Teams pay because anyone can document a process in minutes without thinking about tools, and every guide lives in one shared, branded place with links that always show the latest version. Larger companies add redaction, SSO and governance on top, which a home-made extension won't give them.
Scribe or your own copy?
Seats
Over
Your usage
3h ×$/h
Scribe, 1 yr$420
Your own copy, 1 yr$11running + build session
You keep$409pays for itself in the first month
Estimate · Runs on your own machine. Optional AI title rewrites cost a fraction of a cent per guide; the build is token usage on your agent plan.
Take your data, then cancel.
1 · Take your data out of Scribe
- 1Open a Scribe, click Share and go to the Export tab; pick PDF, HTML, Markdown or Word. File export is on Pro and Enterprise only.
- 2Exports go one guide at a time; the help center describes no bulk export.
- 3Pages (Scribe's multi-guide documents) can't be exported, only individual Scribes.
2 · Cancel Scribe
- 1Open scribehow.com/settings, or choose Settings from the workspace menu, and scroll to Plans & Billing.
- 2Open Subscription Plans and click Cancel Pro Plan, then confirm Cancel Subscription.
- 3Fill in or skip the exit survey; a confirmation screen and an email follow.
- Export while you still have Pro: after the downgrade, PDF, HTML and Markdown export are gone.
- Pro stays active until the end of the paid period, and you can only reactivate before it ends.
- Your guides survive the downgrade, but only the first 10 by creation date stay shared; the rest turn private.
- Custom branding needs an active subscription and disappears after the downgrade.
- To delete the account, cancel Pro first.
The escape hatch
Don't feel like building it? These are already free.
MimikOpen sourceExtension for Chrome, Firefox and Edge that records clicks into a guide with highlighted screenshots, blur and several export formats; no account and nothing leaves the device.★ 1.5k · active Oct 2026 · one-click install
browserVisit ↗OpenStepsOpen sourceEarly-beta Windows recorder that captures desktop clicks into an editable guide and exports Markdown or HTML.★ 89 · active Jun 2026 · one-click install
WindowsVisit ↗FolgeFreeDesktop guide builder that keeps everything on your machine; the free version covers 5 guides with PDF export, and a one-time licence lifts the limits.one-click install
macOS, WindowsVisit ↗
browserVisit ↗OpenStepsOpen sourceEarly-beta Windows recorder that captures desktop clicks into an editable guide and exports Markdown or HTML.★ 89 · active Jun 2026 · one-click install
WindowsVisit ↗FolgeFreeDesktop guide builder that keeps everything on your machine; the free version covers 5 guides with PDF export, and a one-time licence lifts the limits.one-click install
macOS, WindowsVisit ↗
The numbers
Scribe pricing
| Plan | Monthly | Annual, per month | What you get |
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic | $0 | $0 | Web apps only, through the Chrome or Edge extension; up to 10 guides shared at once; no desktop capture, no PDF, HTML or Markdown export. |
| Pro Personal | $35 | $25 | Starts at 1 seat. Desktop and mobile app capture, company branding, screenshot editing and redaction, export to PDF, HTML, Markdown and Word. |
| Pro Team | $29 | $23 | Minimum 5 seats. Everything in Pro Personal plus comments. |
| Enterprise | custom | — | Automatic PII and PHI redaction, SAML SSO, SCIM, roles, multi-team governance, translations. |
- Free tier
- Web capture only; 10 shared guides at a time (the rest turn private); no desktop capture and no file exports.
- Billing
- Monthly or yearly (the page says save 20%; Pro Personal works out 29% cheaper yearly); per seat; everyone on a team must be on the same tier.
- Hidden costs
- Pro Team needs 5 seats, so a team of two or three pays for five. Upgrading a team to Pro upgrades every member. Custom branding switches off when the subscription ends. Sales tax may be added.
- Source
- scribe.com
Also on the list
Related apps
Basic is free: capture web apps through the browser extension and make unlimited guides, but only 10 can be shared at a time and there is no file export.
Yes. An AI coding agent such as Claude Code, Codex or Cursor can build a usable personal version in one session with the prompt on this page, running on your own machine.
About $35 a month on the Pro Personal plan per seat, $420 a year (checked 2026-10-13).
Capture in desktop and mobile apps; Share links, view counts and a shared team library; Automatic redaction of personal and health data; AI-written guides and process insights from Autocapture; Comments, roles, SSO and admin controls. If any of those matter to you, keep paying.
Yes: Mimik (open source), OpenSteps (open source), Folge (free).