Messaging basics
Start conversations, send messages, reply to a specific message, and read the status icons — everything you need for day-to-day chat.
Basic This is the everyday core of chat: opening a conversation, sending a message, and understanding what you’re looking at.
Conversations: direct and group
There are two kinds of conversation:
- Direct — a one-to-one thread between you and a single client. Every client automatically has one; it’s the same thread you see on their profile.
- Group — you plus several people, for a cohort, challenge, or your whole roster. Give it a name so everyone knows what it’s for.
Starting a new conversation
Open the chat area and use New conversation, then pick the people to include. One person makes a direct chat; several makes a group.
The conversation list & unread badges
Your conversations live in a list on the left, most-recent activity first. A conversation with unread messages shows a green count badge with the number of unread messages (it caps at 99+). Open the conversation and the badge clears.
Sending a message
Type in the composer at the bottom and press Enter to send. Need a new line or a paragraph? Use Shift + Enter — your line breaks and paragraphs are preserved exactly as you type them.
Tip: Messages support rich formatting (bold, links, @mentions and more). That’s its own guide — see Formatting & mentions.
Replying to a specific message
To answer one particular message in a busy thread, reply to it. Your message is then attached to a quoted preview of the original, so everyone can see what you’re responding to. Tap or click the quoted preview to jump back to the original message.
Reading the status icons
Your own messages (the green bubbles on the right) carry a small status icon so you know how far a message got:
| Icon | Meaning |
|---|---|
| ✓ single check | Sent — delivered to Protocol |
| ✓✓ grey double check | Delivered to the recipient’s device |
| ✓✓ green double check | Read — they’ve opened it |
| ! red | Failed to send — tap to retry |
In a group, “read” reflects when everyone who needs to has seen it.
Typing indicators
When the other person is composing, you’ll see a small animated “typing…” line in the thread — and they see the same when you type. It’s live in both directions, on web and mobile, and disappears on its own when they stop.
Next: make your messages clearer with Formatting & mentions →