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Send & receive

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Sending messages in Pilla works the same way across DMs, groups, team channels and context threads. Open a conversation, type your message, attach files if needed, and tap send.

The message input

When you open any conversation, the message input area sits at the bottom of the screen.

Mobile

The input area is a rounded container with:

  1. Text field -- placeholder text reads "Type a message..." and accepts up to 1,000 characters. The field supports multiline input
  2. Action bar below the text field showing three attachment icons on the left and a send button on the right:
    • Camera icon -- take a new photo
    • Gallery icon (image icon) -- pick images from your photo library
    • Paperclip icon -- pick documents from your files
    • Send button (arrow icon) -- turns blue when there is text or at least one attachment; grey and disabled otherwise

Web

On the web, the ChatInputBar appears at the bottom of the chat sheet. It includes a text field, attachment buttons and a send button with similar behaviour to mobile.

Composing and sending

  1. Tap the text field
  2. Type your message
  3. Optionally attach images, documents or add @mentions
  4. Tap the Send button

After sending:

  • Your message appears immediately in the conversation (as an optimistic update)
  • Recipients see it in real-time if they have the app open
  • They receive a push notification if the app is in the background
  • The real message replaces the optimistic version once the server confirms delivery

Attaching images

You can attach up to 5 images per message.

Taking a new photo (mobile only)

  1. Tap the Camera icon in the action bar
  2. Your device camera opens
  3. Take a photo
  4. The photo is added as an attachment preview

If you already have 5 images attached, tapping the camera shows an alert: "Limit Reached -- You can only attach up to 5 images per message."

Choosing from gallery

  1. Tap the Gallery icon (image icon) in the action bar
  2. Your photo library opens
  3. Select images (up to the remaining limit out of 5)
  4. Selected images appear as thumbnail previews below the action bar

Images are automatically compressed (quality 0.8, max 1024x1024) for faster uploads.

Removing an image

Each image thumbnail has an X button in the top-right corner. Tap it to remove that image before sending.

Attaching documents

You can attach up to 10 documents per message.

Selecting documents

  1. Tap the Paperclip icon in the action bar
  2. The file picker opens
  3. Select files (up to the remaining limit out of 10)
  4. Selected documents appear as preview cards below the action bar, each showing a paperclip icon and the filename

If you already have 10 documents attached, tapping the paperclip shows an alert: "Limit Reached -- You can only attach up to 10 documents per message."

Removing a document

Each document card has an X button in the top-right corner. Tap it to remove that document before sending.

@Mentions

Mentions let you tag specific people in your messages. This works in all conversation types (DMs, groups, team channels and context threads).

Using @mentions

  1. Type @ in the message field
  2. A suggestion list appears below the text field
  3. Suggestions show @everyone at the top, followed by matching user names (up to 5)
  4. Tap a suggestion to insert the mention

Mentions are highlighted in the primary colour so they stand out.

@everyone

Selecting @everyone notifies all members of the conversation. In context threads (shifts, work, etc.), @everyone expands to all team members associated with the entity.

Empty state

If there are no teammates to mention, the suggestion list reads "No teammates available to mention". If your search term has no matches, it reads "No matches found".

Replying to messages

Replies let you respond to a specific message in a conversation. This keeps discussions organised by showing which message you are responding to.

Swipe to reply (mobile)

  1. Find the message you want to reply to
  2. Swipe right on the message bubble
  3. A reply indicator with a "Reply" label and a reply icon appears on the left as you swipe
  4. Release when the indicator is fully visible
  5. A reply preview row appears above the text field showing the original sender's name with a reply icon
  6. Type your response and tap Send

A haptic feedback triggers when you reach the swipe threshold.

Reply via long press (mobile)

  1. Long press (500ms) on a message
  2. The Message actions sheet appears (see below)
  3. Tap Reply
  4. The reply preview appears above the input
  5. Type and send

Reply via hover (web)

  1. Hover over a message
  2. Action buttons appear (Reply, React, Copy, Info)
  3. Click the Reply button
  4. The reply preview appears above the input

Cancelling a reply

Tap the X button on the reply preview row to cancel. Your message will send as a regular message instead.

Viewing the original message

When you see a reply in the conversation, it shows the original sender's name and a quoted snippet of their text. Tap the reply preview to scroll to the original message.

Message reactions

Reactions let you respond to messages quickly with emoji.

Adding a reaction (mobile)

  1. Long press on a message
  2. The Message actions sheet appears with a scrollable emoji row at the top
  3. Scroll horizontally through the emoji options
  4. Tap an emoji to react

Available emoji include common reactions like thumbs up/down, heart, fire, 100, laughing face, thinking face, check mark, rocket, trophy, and many more.

Adding a reaction (web)

  1. Hover over a message
  2. Click the smiley face icon in the action bar
  3. An emoji picker popover appears
  4. Click an emoji to react

Viewing who reacted

Tap or click the reaction count on a message to open a details modal showing:

  • Each unique emoji and its count
  • The names of people who used each emoji
  • A Remove option if you have reacted with that emoji

Removing your reaction

Tap the same emoji again on the reaction bubble (or in the details modal) to toggle your reaction off.

Message actions sheet (mobile)

Long pressing a message opens a full-screen modal with:

  1. Emoji row -- a horizontally scrollable list of emoji at the top
  2. Message preview -- shows the message text, any image/document attachments, and the timestamp. The background colour differs for your messages (light blue) versus others' messages (light grey)
  3. Action buttons at the bottom:
    • Reply -- starts a reply to this message
    • Copy -- copies the message text to your clipboard
    • Info -- opens the read receipts screen for this message

Tap anywhere outside the modal to close it.

Hover actions (web)

Hovering over a message on the web reveals a floating action bar with icon buttons:

  • Reply (reply icon)
  • React (smiley icon) -- opens an emoji picker popover
  • Copy (copy icon) -- copies the message text
  • Info (info icon) -- opens read receipts

Date separators

Messages are grouped by date. A date header appears between messages from different days, showing the date in a centred label.

Tips

  • The send button only activates when you have text or at least one attachment
  • Swipe right on a message to reply, swipe left to see read receipts (mobile)
  • Use @mentions to get someone's attention in busy conversations
  • Add reactions instead of typing short replies like "OK" or "Thanks"
  • Images are compressed automatically for faster sending
  • You can add multiple reactions to the same message
  • Reactions work in all conversation types
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