Pantograph help

How do I install Pantograph?

On its Chrome Web Store page, click Add to Chrome. Then pin it to the toolbar: click the puzzle-piece icon next to the address bar, then the pin next to Pantograph. Nothing is asked at install. A welcome page opens, where you can set up your microphone and camera now, or later in Settings › Microphone and camera.

How do I record a tab?

Open the tab, click the Pantograph icon, keep This tab selected and click Record this tab (or press Alt+Shift+R). The toolbar badge counts 3, 2, 1, then shows REC for as long as the tab is recorded. Click Stop and save in the popup (or press Alt+Shift+R again): the editor opens on your recording.

The first time, Pantograph asks to "Read and change all your data on all websites". Why?

That is how Chrome words the tab-recording permission. Pantograph uses it only to record the tab you start it on, only while the badge shows REC; it reads no page content and uploads nothing. You can refuse: choose Pick a tab instead and select the tab in Chrome's own window (Chrome then asks you each time).

I clicked "Allow tab recording" and the popup says "Tab recording is allowed".

Chrome lets an extension record a tab only after a click on its icon on that tab, and it counts the permissions the extension had at the moment of that click. Right after you allow tab recording, click the Pantograph icon once more and record: from then on, one click is enough.

How do I record my screen or a window?

Choose Screen or window, click Record screen or window, then choose the screen, window or tab in Chrome's window. To include sound, turn on audio sharing in that window (Chrome offers it for tabs, and for the whole screen on some systems). Closing that window without choosing cancels: nothing is saved.

How do I add my voice or my camera?

Set them up once: onboarding step 2, or Settings › Microphone and camera → Allow microphone / Allow camera, and accept Chrome's prompt. Test microphone shows a live level meter and Show preview shows the camera. Then switch Microphone or Camera on in the popup (it has a Test microphone button too). The camera appears as a round bubble drawn into the video: choose its corner and size in the popup. Camera mode records the camera alone.

When does Pantograph use my microphone and camera?

While you record, and while you test them (the level meter in the popup or Settings, the camera preview in Settings or onboarding). Opening the popup or Settings does not turn them on.

The popup says "Your microphone is not set up yet".

Pantograph never records silently with the microphone switched on. Click Set up microphone and allow it, or Record without microphone for this recording. If Chrome blocked it, open Settings › Microphone and camera → Open Chrome's settings for Pantograph and allow the microphone there. In Camera mode, the popup asks the same for the camera (Set up camera) before you can record.

"Your microphone was silent."

Nothing was heard from the microphone during the recording. Test it in Settings, check the device chosen, and that the microphone is not muted on your computer or headset.

How do I pause?

Click Pause in the popup or press Alt+Shift+P. The badge shows a pause mark; paused time is not in the video. Resume carries on in the same file.

How do I change the shortcuts?

Settings › Keyboard shortcuts › Change shortcuts opens Chrome's shortcut page (chrome://extensions/shortcuts).

"Chrome did not let Pantograph record this tab."

Click the Pantograph icon on the tab and try again. Chrome does not let extensions record some pages at all (its own settings pages, the Chrome Web Store, other extensions): for those, choose Screen or window.

Where are my recordings?

In Pantograph's private storage in Chrome, on this computer: click the library icon in the popup. They are never uploaded. Recordings are kept in this browser only. Uninstalling Pantograph deletes them: download the ones you want to keep.

How do I trim?

In the editor, drag the In and Out handles of the timeline, or play the video to the right moment and click Set in at playhead / Set out at playhead. While the video or the timeline has the focus, I and O do the same and K plays or pauses; arrow keys move a focused handle by one key frame, Shift+arrow by 10 seconds. Edits land on the nearest key frame (about one per second), so nothing is re-encoded and the length written on the line is the length of the file. Download saves the kept part.

What file do I get?

A WebM video (VP9 and Opus) that shows its length and seeks in any modern player and browser. Where this computer lets Chrome record MP4, Settings › File format offers MP4 (beta). For an MP4 file for email or chat, use Pro's sized exports.

My recording was interrupted (Chrome closed, the computer slept or crashed).

Pantograph writes the recording to disk every second. Open the popup: A recording was interrupted → Recover recording rebuilds a playable video from what was written. If it cannot be rebuilt right away (for example, the disk is full), it is kept: free some space and try again, or Discard it. Delete all recordings in Settings deletes it too.

Closing the tab or clicking "Stop sharing"

stops and saves the recording. So does a full disk ("Your disk is full. Free some space, then recover the recording."). If there is not enough space to start, Pantograph says so and records nothing.

What does Pro add?

Exports that fit: Email (under 25 MB), Chat (under 10 MB) or Custom size, re-encoded on your computer (MP4 where it can encode it, WebM otherwise); Cut out a section in the middle; camera layouts (rounded, side by side, camera only, custom position and size); 1440p and 60 fps; Save as… to a folder. Free installs can try the sized exports 3 times.

How do I get and activate Pro?

Pantograph Pro costs $39 paid once (a one-time purchase) or $5.99 a month (a monthly subscription, cancel anytime), including any VAT or sales tax, for one person on up to 5 Chrome installations at the same time. After purchase you receive a license key by email: Settings › License, paste the key, Activate. Pro checks your license about once a day when you use Pantograph online and keeps working offline for up to 30 days after the last successful check; after that, Pro features pause until the next successful check. Your recordings and the free recorder are not affected.

How does the monthly subscription work, and how do I cancel it?

Pantograph Pro is also sold as a monthly subscription: $5.99 a month, including any VAT or sales tax, with no commitment and no free trial. It renews every month until you cancel it. To cancel, open Settings → License → Manage billing (the Lemon Squeezy customer portal; the same link is in your receipt e-mail and on the Support page of our website, and it stays there even when Pro is not active in this browser) and cancel the subscription there; the portal also changes your payment method and has your invoices. Pro stays on until the end of the month you already paid for; after that, Pantograph works as its free version, and you can buy Pro again at any time. Removing the extension does not cancel the subscription. Monthly payments are not refunded (except when an update removes a Pro feature: see section 6 of the terms of sale), but the 14-day money-back guarantee covers your first purchase of Pantograph Pro, one-time or monthly. The one-time purchase costs the same as six and a half months of the subscription.

How do I move Pro to another browser?

In the browser you no longer want to use, open Settings › License and click Remove license from this browser, then activate the same key in the other browser. The key works on up to 5 Chrome installations at the same time; if Pantograph says the key is already active on the maximum number of browsers, remove it from one of them first. If you can no longer open the old browser (Pantograph uninstalled, computer lost), write to us from the support page and we will free that installation.

Can I get a refund?

Yes. If Pro is not right for you, ask within 14 days of your first purchase of Pantograph Pro, without giving a reason: use the link in your Lemon Squeezy receipt or write to us. The money goes back to your original payment method. A refunded license stops working, and Pantograph carries on as the free version with your recordings. Details are in the terms of sale. For a monthly subscription, the 14 days count from your first payment; later monthly payments are not refunded (except when an update removes a Pro feature: see section 6 of the terms of sale), but you can cancel at any time so that the next one is not taken.

"This recording is too long for 10 MB."

A file that small can only hold so much video at a watchable quality. Trim it, cut sections out, or choose a larger size.

Recording other people?

Tell them before you start and get their consent where the law requires it. In a video call, the others cannot see Pantograph's REC badge. For children, consent comes from their parents or guardians. At work, your organization may have to inform callers at the start of the call. Pantograph shows this before your first recording.

Protected videos.

Protected videos may record as a black image. Only record content you have the right to record.

Privacy.

Pantograph records only what you choose. Recordings stay on your device; the only network request is the license check if you activate Pro. See the privacy policy.

Open-source software.

Pantograph includes mediabunny (Mozilla Public License 2.0). The licenses of every open-source component, and where mediabunny's source code is, are in Settings › Open-source software.