How to use Cheetah 101

Five minutes to read, for kids and for the grown-ups helping them.

Open the app. It asks for an email: a parent's is best. We send a six-digit code; type it into the app and you are in. No password. The same email works on this website, where your account shows how many hints were used and which Macs are signed in.

The three buttons

Whole screen: Cheetah takes one screenshot of the screen and looks for the task on it. Good when the task fills the screen.
Select area: The screen dims. Drag a box around one problem and let go; press Esc to cancel. Cheetah only sees what is inside the box, so the hints get sharper. This is the best way to use it.
Hide hints / Show hints: Clears the arrows from the screen, and brings the same arrows back. Nothing is sent anywhere.

While Cheetah looks at the task, the button you pressed runs diagonal stripes. It usually takes 5 to 15 seconds.

What the arrows mean

1. Take this number Steps come numbered, in the order to do them.
2. Divide it by this one Each arrow lands on the exact number, word or box it is about.
Check this step again Red means something already on the screen looks wrong. It never says the right value.
3. Write your answer here The last step usually points at where the answer goes.

The small panel also shows a sentence about what to do next, and a word of praise when something is done right. Clicking an arrow or its sign removes it. When the step is done, press a button again: Cheetah compares the new screen with its last hints and moves on to the next step.

Tips for parents

Select one task at a time. A box around a single problem gives better hints than a busy screen.
Any subject, any language. Hints come in the language of the task: a Russian worksheet gets Russian hints.
It will not give answers. Not even if asked nicely. If your kid needs the answer, that is a conversation for you or the teacher.
Tests switch it off. If the screen looks like an exam or a proctored test, Cheetah says hints are off.
80 hints a day. That is the fair-use limit while Cheetah is free. It resets at midnight UTC.

What is sent, what is kept

A screenshot leaves the Mac only when a button is pressed. It goes to our server and on to the AI that writes the hints, and it is not saved anywhere. We keep your email, the devices you signed in on, and counters (when a hint was made, how long it took, how many steps). The full list is in the privacy policy.

If something goes wrong

No arrows, or the screenshot is empty: macOS has not allowed screen recording yet. Open System Settings → Privacy & Security → Screen & System Audio Recording, switch on Cheetah 101, then quit and reopen the app.
macOS asks if Cheetah 101 may “bypass the system private window picker”: That is macOS double-checking an app that takes screenshots by itself. Press Allow; it asks only once. Cheetah still looks at the screen only when a button is pressed.
The code email does not arrive: Look in Spam and Promotions, then ask for a new code. If the sign-in page shows a red banner about mail, our mail server is having trouble; try again in a few minutes.
The arrows point a bit off: Use Select area around the task, and keep the window still until the arrows appear.
“That's 80 hints today”: The daily limit is reached. Hints come back tomorrow.

Anything else: hello@cheetah101.com. We read every email.