Recording Terminal & CLI Demos
The HowdyGo terminal recorder is a command-line tool that captures a terminal session and turns it into an interactive HowdyGo demo. Use it to document a command-line tool, an MCP server, or any developer workflow that runs in a shell rather than a browser. It produces the same kind of demo as the Chrome extension, captured from your terminal instead of a web page.
Each command you run becomes a step, with an annotation generated automatically. Once uploaded, the recording behaves like any other demo: you can edit the steps, add chapters, personalize it, and share or embed it.
Install
The recorder runs on Node (version 20 or newer) and installs from npm. This gives
you the howdygo command:
npm install -g @howdygo/terminal-captureThen confirm it’s ready:
howdygo --helpRecording is supported out of the box on macOS and Windows. On Linux the
recorder builds a small native component during install, which needs
python3 and a C/C++ toolchain present. Publishing already-saved recordings
works everywhere regardless.
Sign in
Sign in once so your recordings upload to your HowdyGo account:
howdygo loginThis opens your browser and shows a short code to approve. Because it’s a
device-code login, it also works over SSH and on headless machines. If the
browser can’t open automatically, howdygo prints the URL and code for you to
visit manually.
You can check your status any time with howdygo auth, and sign out with
howdygo logout. If you record before signing in, your recording is still saved
locally and you can upload it later.
Record a session
Just run the recorder:
howdygoThis drops you straight into your normal shell, with a HowdyGo status bar along the bottom. Use your terminal exactly as you usually would. There are two keys to remember:
- Ctrl+H is the express key. While idle it starts recording; while recording it stops and uploads straight away.
- Ctrl+O opens the options menu, where you can resume, cancel and discard a recording, or quit.
The status bar keeps you informed as you go. It shows whether you’re recording, how long you’ve been going, how many commands you’ve captured, and whether you’re signed in:
HowdyGo ●REC 00:42 3 cmds ✓ you@example.com Ctrl+H: Stop & Upload · Ctrl+O: optionsEvery command you run becomes a step in the finished demo. Don’t worry about typos or false starts. Like the Chrome extension, this isn’t a video, so you can clean up or delete steps in the editor afterwards.
Running an interactive tool like a claude session inside the recorder? Each
prompt you submit is captured as its own step by default, so AI sessions
document themselves as you go.
Stop and upload
When you’re done, press Ctrl+H to stop and upload (or open the menu with Ctrl+O and choose Stop & Upload to HowdyGo). The recorder builds your session and uploads it, then you can open it in the HowdyGo editor to refine and share it.
A copy of every recording is also saved locally, so nothing is lost if you
weren’t signed in or the upload didn’t go through. To upload a saved recording
later, point howdygo publish at its folder:
howdygo publish ./out/<recording-id>The typical workflow is howdygo, record, then Ctrl+H to publish. The uploaded
recording appears with your other demos, ready to
edit and distribute.