Observation

Observe page elements with smart filtering, incremental diffs, response tiers, and accessibility snapshots.

Observation

Commands for understanding what is on the page before interacting.

observe

AI-optimized page observation. Returns interactive elements with stable refs that you can pass to action commands.

Default (max 50 elements)

bap observe

Flags

--full · flag

Return the full accessibility tree instead of just interactive elements.

--forms · flag

Return only form-related elements (textboxes, selects, checkboxes, etc.).

--navigation · flag

Return only navigation elements (links, nav items).

--max · number · default: "50"

Maximum number of elements to return.

--diff · flag

Incremental observation. Returns only changes since the last observation: elements added, updated, or removed.

--tier · string · default: "full"

Response tier controlling how much data is returned.

Response Tiers

Tier	What is included	When to use
full	All fields, metadata, screenshots	First page load, debugging
interactive	Interactive elements, refs, roles	Most interactions
minimal	Refs and names only	Rapid polling, confirmation checks

bap observe --tier=interactive --max=20

Incremental Observation

After performing an action, use --diff to see only what changed instead of re-scanning the entire page:

bap act click:role:button:"Load More"
bap observe --diff

The response includes changes: { added, updated, removed } — much smaller than a full observation.

Use --diff after small DOM changes (button clicks, form submissions). Use a full observe after navigation to a new page.

snapshot

Full YAML accessibility snapshot, compatible with playwright-cli.

Default (saves to .bap/)

bap snapshot

The snapshot includes the full accessibility tree in YAML format. Useful for debugging and for playwright-cli compatibility.

bap observe is preferred over bap snapshot for AI agents. It returns structured data with stable refs instead of raw YAML.