GuruWatcher questions, answered

No. GuruWatcher (guruwatcher.com) is not Watcher Guru and is not affiliated with watcher.guru.

After you buy, the thank-you page downloads the app for your machine — a macOS app (DMG, Apple Silicon) or a Windows app (portable zip). No Python install, no terminal: open the app and your browser opens the Control Panel, and a small tray icon keeps it running. The fastest first step is the built-in sample — One-time paste → Load sample → Run once (safe) — so you can skip email setup for now and see it work. When you’re ready to go live: connect your newsletter email (Gmail uses an App password) or drop a file in, paste a Discord webhook, and start Keep checking. (The source zip is the fallback — it needs Python and a double-click launcher.) Walkthrough: Getting started. Step-by-step: Guides.

One payment, no subscription. Right after checkout you download the app from the thank-you page — macOS app (DMG, Apple Silicon), Windows app (portable zip), or source zip — no waiting for an invite. It runs on your computer: it reads your newsletter email, watches the price levels it prints, and messages your Discord when one is hit. There’s no free version. You can practice in Quiet mode — nothing posts to Discord — before going live. Want the private GitHub repo for updates and issues? Email support@guruwatcher.com.

The thank-you page auto-picks for your machine. macOS (Apple Silicon): the DMG app is notarized Developer ID — open the DMG, drag GuruWatcher to Applications, and double-click to launch. Windows: the portable zip — after download, if the browser says "isn't commonly downloaded" click Keep, right-click the zip → Properties → Unblock → Apply, extract, then run GuruWatcher.exe (keep the _internal folder next to it). It is Authenticode-signed via Azure Artifact Signing; SmartScreen may still warn once for a new publisher — if so: More info → Run anyway. Any other system (Intel Mac, Linux, or if you prefer): the source zip with a double-click launcher — it needs Python installed once. All three are the same app: a local Control Panel in your browser. Packaged apps keep running from a tray icon; the source launcher needs its window left open. Your data lives in ~/.guruwatcher (Mac/Linux) or %USERPROFILE%\.guruwatcher (Windows).

No to both. It never buys or sells anything, it’s not a broker, and it doesn’t tell you what to do. It only watches prices your newsletter printed and pings your Discord. You make the final call.

Any newsletter you subscribe to — Macro Charts is just one example. GuruWatcher is BYO sources. The two everyday ways in are email (connect a mailbox you choose) and file drop (save an issue as .txt/.md into the drop folder). RSS and Telegram are supported too, but as advanced CLI-only options — you don’t need them to start. It does not redistribute Macro Charts or any paid newsletter, and you keep the content rights for what you bring in.

No. Each check only pulls new or unread mail in the folder you choose — not your whole history. GuruWatcher doesn’t guess which sender is your newsletter, so point it at a dedicated mailbox or a Gmail filter into one label. Step-by-step: Connect your newsletter email.

Yes. Run once (safe) = one price check right now, no Discord post. Quiet = Keep checking on a timer, still no post until you choose Live with a saved webhook. In the Control Panel, Load sample fills in an invented SPY/QQQ issue, then Run once (safe) checks prices once — nothing posts to Discord. For ongoing practice, run Keep checking in Quiet mode. Nothing posts until you intentionally choose Live with a saved webhook. Practice walkthrough: First run with a sample.

No — skip email for now and start with the sample. Open the Control Panel → One-time paste → Load sample → Run once (safe). That walks the whole loop with an invented SPY/QQQ issue and needs no email, no webhook, and no pasting of a real issue. Add email auto-ingest or file drop whenever you’re ready. Practice walkthrough: First run with a sample.

A small page in your browser that runs only on your computer. Open the GuruWatcher app (Mac DMG / Windows zip) and it opens — usually at http://127.0.0.1:8788/ — with a menu-bar / system-tray icon to reopen the panel or quit. It’s where you set your Discord webhook, connect email, load samples, and start Keep checking. No terminal skills required. Using the source zip instead? Double-click the launcher script and leave its window open.

No. You do not need Claude, Cursor, or MCP. The Mac/Windows app + Control Panel is the product. MCP is optional — an extra for people who already use those tools. Guide: Optional: Claude / Cursor (MCP).

Only while Keep checking is on. By default it looks up live prices about every 5 minutes and pulls new newsletter email about every 15 minutes — two separate timers you can edit in the Control Panel (floors protect against Yahoo/IMAP rate limits). On Live, Discord pings when a check sees a hit. If Keep checking is off (or the computer is asleep), nothing is looking — you won’t get Discord alerts. Guide: Keep checking. Want 24/7 without leaving your computer on? Optional DIY: Run 24/7 on a cheap Hetzner server.

Each Keep checking pass looks up the last traded price from free public market data (via yfinance on a normal install). It is not a brokerage stream and not the exchange official close — Discord fires on the next check after the market has moved through the level, often within a few minutes depending on your price-check interval. Crypto follows the same rule — see Watch crypto.

Yes. Newsletter levels typically expire after about 14 days unless a newer issue refreshes that symbol — you can change those days under Keep checking in the Control Panel. A newer claim for the same name replaces the older one (most-recent-wins). Expired or cancelled watches stop being tracked; old finished records are cleaned up after about 90 days.

On your machine, in one folder — ~/.guruwatcher (Mac/Linux) or %USERPROFILE%\.guruwatcher (Windows) for the app. Your newsletter text, config, and state stay local. Email is read from your mail server, prices are looked up from market data, and alerts go to your own Discord webhook — GuruWatcher doesn’t host your feeds or your webhook.

Open the Support page and copy support@guruwatcher.com — that’s the primary way, before and after purchase. You do not need a desktop mail app. We answer within 1 business day. After you have the toolkit, a private GitHub Issues path is available on request (repo invite — not a public board), or join the Discord community (secondary).

Because levels change almost every issue. A hand-set alert is only correct until the newsletter prints a new number — and you’d be transcribing every level yourself. GuruWatcher reads the issue, updates the levels automatically, and only pings Discord when a check sees one was reached. Still alert-only, still your sources.

Each paid checkout allows up to 5 downloads for the Mac/Windows apps and 3 for the source zip, within 7 days of the checkout time. Save the files on your machine. If you lose the thank-you link, email support@guruwatcher.com with your Stripe receipt and we can help re-issue access. Digital goods: no refunds once the download is delivered (see Terms).

Yes — MCP is optional. Setup is in the optional MCP guide. This is for advanced users who already use Claude Desktop or Cursor. You do not need it to use GuruWatcher.

Yes — Windows, Mac, and Linux. On Windows and Apple-Silicon Macs the packaged app needs no Python at all: download, then open the DMG (Mac) or run GuruWatcher.exe (Windows). On Windows, first run has up to three prompts: your browser may say the file "isn't commonly downloaded" — click Keep; right-click the zip → Properties → Unblock → Apply before extracting; and SmartScreen may still warn once for a new publisher — if so: More info → Run anyway. New to the three prompts? Windows first run, step by step. The portable zip is Authenticode-signed via Azure Artifact Signing. The source zip runs anywhere but needs a one-time Python install from python.org.

GuruWatcher is a Python app packaged with PyInstaller (onedir) — the runtime libraries are already bundled into the _internal folder next to the exe, so no Electron shell is needed. Electron would add a second UI/runtime layer and a second signing tree without clearing SmartScreen or browser download warnings (those are publisher reputation, which builds over time with live signed bytes — not by switching frameworks). We ship a signed onedir exe instead.

No. Docker is an optional extra for power users who want the one-command pipeline. The launcher handles everything else. More in the setup guide.

Yes. Crypto majors from your newsletter (BTC, ETH, SOL, XRP, DOGE) are watched exactly like equity levels and priced as BTC-USD etc. Token watches are an advanced CLI-only option keyed to a chain + contract, with a DexScreener liquidity floor and a preview step before anything is written. Crypto alerts are alert-only — no orders, and never a brokerage tick stream. Step-by-step: Watch crypto.

Majors are looked up from Yahoo (via yfinance) as *-USD pairs by default. CoinGecko is an optional second source: new kits and the live operator config ship with crypto_price.enabled on, so CoinGecko is used as a failover when Yahoo fails (or first, if you prefer it). Tokens are priced from DexScreener by contract when token_watch.enabled is on (also on for new kits and live ops), and a pair must clear a $25,000 liquidity floor on the token’s chain before it can fire an alert. If nothing clears the floor, the check fails loud — no alert — rather than use a stale or wrong price.