Getting started
Welcome to Enpose! Here you can find out exactly how to use Enpose to capture screenshots. If you don't yet have an account, you can start a free trial now!
Enpose doesn't require you to make typical API requests to capture screenshots. You simply add a special URL to your website wherever you want the screenshot to be displayed, and we'll put one there
Registering sites
In order to prevent other people using your Enpose account, we need you to add any sites you wish to screenshot to your Dashboard. This means that even if somebody were to run off with your API key and start taking screenshots, they'd only be able to screenshot your site.
Here's how to add a site:
- Go to your Dashboard
- Under "My sites", click the "Add a site" button
- Enter a website and hit enter!
Generating links
All you need to capture a screenshot is your unique API key and a URL to screenshot! Here's an example...
http://e.enpose.co/?key=your key&url=page to screenshot
There are of course heaps of other options you can use. We have a handy Link Generator tool which you can use to easily control all link options.
Try the Link Generator
If you want you can also create links manually using the information we have here in the docs.
The url you screenshot must be from one of the domains you've got registered on your dashboard (see Registering Sites for more details)
Capturing/displaying screenshots
All you need to do to capture a screenshot is enter the link wherever you want it displayed on your website, like this...
<img src="http://e.enpose.co/?key=your key&url=page to screenshot" />
You could display it with CSS...
.myElement {
background-image: url(http://e.enpose.co/?key=your key&url=page to screenshot);
}
Or try using it as an Open Graph image...
<meta property="og:image" content="http://e.enpose.co/?key=your key&url=page to screenshot" />
The possibilities are virtually endless .
Understanding caching
Enpose automatically stores the screenshots you capture, then reuses them whenever it can. If possible, Enpose will always display a cached screenshot, but if it detects it's more than a certain age, it'll refresh the image for next time (you can prevent this if you want — read about disabling auto refresh).
All plans have unlimited requests meaning you can fetch as many screenshots from the cache as you like. You're only limited on how many new captures you make.
If you want to force a screenshot to be updated, you can use the force capture option, but use it carefully as overuse could result in your app running slowly and will also use more of the screenshots available on your plan.
On the Basic plan, screenshots will be automatically refreshed after 24 hours. On the Professional plan, they refresh after 6 hours. See more about the differences between Enpose's plans on the Pricing page.
Advanced
Screenshot any site
If you'd prefer not to have to register every site you wish to screenshot beforehand, you can use your secret key to authorise screenshots. Here's an example...
http://e.enpose.co/?key=This is your public key
&secret=<?php echo md5('This is your secret key
'.'page to screenshot'); ?>&url=page to screenshot
When Enpose detects you've used the MD5 of your secret key and the URL it will allow you to screenshot ANY website, regardless of whether you have it registered in the dashboard or not.
In the code above is your account's secret key. Never share your secret key with anyone, or display it publically. If your secret key is found to be being used inappropriately your account may be disabled.
You must always use the MD5 of your secret key and the site you wish to screenshot. See how to do this in PHP
Checking your usage
If you want to check your usage via the API, head to the following URL...
http://e.enpose.co/usage/?key=
Open link
The page will return some JSON with details on how much of your available screenshots you've used and when your allowance will reset.
You can always check your usage on your dashboard if you prefer a more human-friendly interface.
Tech specs
Enpose's screenshot engine uses PhantomJS. It's currently hosted on a DreamHost VPS (we're migrating to AWS soon). The majority of the application is built with PHP.
Have a question or suggestion? We'd love to hear from you!