Chat

Chat brings team conversation into your workspace. Channels and direct messages live in the left sidebar under Channels and Direct messages. Coming from Slack? Import your channels and history.

Channels

• Create a channel with the + next to Channels (public or private).
• Every workspace has a permanent #general channel that can't be deleted.
• After creating a channel you can add people right away. Tick everyone you want in the picker, then click Add. The channel shows a line like "Samir added Azer", and the people you added get a notification. When someone leaves, the channel shows "Name left the channel".
• From a channel's ⋯ menu: edit details (name/description), add people, copy link, or leave the channel.

Direct messages & agents

• Click the + next to Direct messages to open the New message picker. Search for a teammate by name, username, or email, then click them to open a direct message. The list loads more people as you scroll.
• Start an agent chat from the same picker to talk to one of your AI agents.
• In any channel, @mention an agent with an issue key to put it to work: "@Coder pick up HRB-142". It answers right there ("On it…") and posts a pull request card when it's done, with the lines changed, files, runtime and cost. See AI agents.

Favorites

Pin the things you use most to a Favorites section at the top of the sidebar, just below the main navigation.

• Favorite a channel or direct message from the star next to its name in the conversation header. Favorite a project from the star in its board header.
• Favorited items move into Favorites and are removed from their normal Channels / Direct messages / Projects lists, so there's no duplication.
• Click the filled star in Favorites to remove an item. The Favorites section isn't drag-reorderable.

Writing messages

The composer supports rich formatting — bold, italic, strike, links, ordered/bulleted/checklists, and code. Messages render as Markdown. Use the emoji picker and @ to mention people. Press Enter to send and Shift + Enter for a new line. Inside a list or code block, Enter continues the list or adds a line; press Enter on an empty list item to leave the list.

Hover over a message's time to see its full date and time.

Links get a preview card (site, title, description and image) a moment after you send them. Code: use the code block button (or type three backticks) for multi-line code, which is shown with syntax colouring and a copy button. Name the language after the backticks, for example ```php, to pin the colouring.

Threads

Hover over a message and click Reply in thread to answer it without cluttering the conversation. The thread opens in a side panel with the same composer as the main chat: the formatting toolbar, the emoji picker and @-mentions. Send a reply with Reply or Enter (Shift + Enter for a new line). Messages with replies show a reply count you can click to reopen the thread.

Hover over a message and click Create issue to turn it into an issue on a board. Typing an issue key like WEB-12 links to that issue.

Sharing files

Share any kind of file (up to 50 MB each): images, videos, PDFs, Office documents, archives, logs, code, design files, installers and more. There are three ways to attach:

• Click the paperclip in the composer.
• Drag and drop files anywhere onto the conversation.
• Paste a screenshot or copied file into the message box.

Record a voice message with the mic.

Images and videos show a preview; click one to open it full screen, where you can pinch or scroll to zoom an image, play videos, or download the original. PDFs open right in Deckbell (use Open for a new tab, handy on phones). Other files show a card with their type, name and size; click to download.

Files are only ever stored and handed out as files: Deckbell never runs them or opens them as web pages. Text files such as logs, code and config are kept as plain text. Programs and scripts (for example .exe, .dmg or .sh) are marked Program file: only open them if you trust the person who sent them.

A message longer than 20,000 characters (a big log or stack trace, say) is sent as a message.txt file instead of being cut off.

Voice messages play inline with a waveform; use the 1×/1.5×/2× button to change playback speed.

Every file shared in a conversation is collected in one place: open the Files panel (the Files icon or the ⋯ menu) in the conversation header. It opens as a panel on the right of the conversation (where threads open), newest first, with who shared each one. Click the icon again or × to close it. Use the search box to find a file by name (or by who shared it), and the Images / Videos / PDFs / Documents filters to narrow the list.

Huddles

A huddle is a quick call inside a channel or direct message: audio by default, with video and screen sharing when you need them. There's no link to share and no meeting to schedule.

• Start one with the headphones button in the conversation header. Your browser asks for microphone access the first time.
• A "started a huddle" card appears in the conversation, and a headphones icon shows next to the conversation in the sidebar. Anyone in the channel or DM can click Join, either on the card or in the header.
• In a direct message, a huddle rings. The other person sees an incoming call card at the top of the screen with a ringtone (and a desktop notification if Deckbell is in a background tab). They can Join or Decline. Declining stops the ringing on all their devices; the caller sees "Name declined the huddle", and the card says so too. A call that isn't answered stops ringing after 30 seconds.
• While you're in a huddle, a panel at the bottom of the sidebar shows who's there. A green ring marks whoever is talking, and a mic-off badge marks people who are muted. From there you can:
  • Mute or unmute your microphone.
  • Turn your camera on or off.
  • Share your screen. Your browser asks which screen, window or tab to share; stop with the same button or the browser's own Stop sharing.
  • Leave the huddle.
• Raise your hand with the hand button: everyone sees a ✋ on your picture and gets a short notice. Click it again to lower it. The smiley button sends a quick reaction (👍 ❤️ 😂 🎉 👏 😮) that floats over your video for a moment.
• When anyone turns on a camera or shares a screen, a video panel opens, laid out like Google Meet: the other people fill the panel, and your own view sits in the bottom-right corner. A shared screen takes the big spot, with people beside it. People without a camera show their avatar, and whoever is talking is outlined in your theme color. On a phone, a shared screen goes across the top with people in a row underneath. Every video has a full screen button. Expand the panel to fill the window, or hide it and bring it back with Show huddle video.
• The huddle stays with you while you move around the app. On a phone the controls sit in the top bar (screen sharing needs a desktop browser).
• Huddle about something specific: open a thread and click Huddle in its header. The huddle is named after the thread (or the issue, for an issue card), and a live bar across the top of the channel shows who's in it and what it's about, with a Join button. See Boards & chat together.
• You can be in one huddle at a time, so joining another one moves you there.
• A huddle ends when the last person leaves. Its card then shows how long it lasted and how many people took part.

Huddles in a private channel or a DM are only visible to the people in it. Huddles aren't recorded. If your network blocks direct calls (common on corporate Wi-Fi), Deckbell connects through a relay automatically.

Notifications

Unread badges in the sidebar update live, and they clear as soon as you open the conversation.

When a conversation notifies you. Click the bell in a conversation's header to choose one of these:

• All new messages: every message notifies you. This is the default for direct messages.
• Mentions only: only messages that mention you (@Your Name) or everyone (@channel, @here, @everyone). This is the default for channels.
• Nothing (mute): no notifications. The conversation is dimmed in the sidebar and shows no unread badge.

Desktop notifications and sound. Go to Settings → Notifications to turn desktop notifications and the chime on or off. Your browser asks for permission the first time; if you blocked it, allow notifications for Deckbell in your browser's site settings. Use Send a test notification to check your setup. You're notified about conversations you don't have open, or when Deckbell is in a background tab. Click a notification to jump to the conversation.

Search

Click the search icon in a conversation header to search messages. Use Slack‑style shortcuts:

• in:general — limit to a channel.
• from:alice — messages from a person.

Presence & profiles

Teammates who are currently online show a green dot on the bottom-right of their avatar. Hover over anyone's avatar to see a quick profile preview with their name and live online status.

Real-time

Messages are delivered live to everyone in a conversation, with unread badges in the sidebar.