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Basic Usage Guide

Welcome to Chirp! This guide will explain some of the basic features and functionality of Chirp.

Servers and Channels​

Channel Types​

Chirp supports multiple channel types for different purposes:

📝 Text Channels​

  • Purpose: General conversation, announcements, discussions
  • Features: Real-time messaging, reactions, threads
  • Best for: Community chat, team communication

🖼️ Media Channels​

  • Purpose: Sharing and browsing images, videos, and files
  • Features: Automatic thumbnails, gallery view, comments
  • Best for: Photo sharing, video collections, file archives

💬 Forum Channels​

  • Purpose: Organized discussions with tags and following
  • Features: Threaded posts, tags, following, search
  • Best for: Support, feedback, organized discussions

🤝 Collaborative Channels​

  • Purpose: Real-time document editing and collaboration
  • Features: Shared documents, wikis, real-time editing
  • Best for: Team projects, documentation, planning

Messaging and Communication​

Sending Messages​

Basic Text Messages​

Just type your message and press Enter!

Rich Text Formatting​

Chirp supports Markdown for text formatting:

**Bold text** or *italic text*
~~Strikethrough text~~
`Inline code`
````code block`

@Mentions​

  • @username: Mention a specific user
  • @here: Mention all online users
  • @everyone: Mention all server members
  • #channel: Mention a channel

File Sharing​

Supported File Types​

  • Images: JPG, PNG, GIF, WebP
  • Videos: MP4, WebM, MOV
  • Documents: PDF, DOC, DOCX, TXT
  • Archives: ZIP, RAR, 7Z
  • Audio: MP3, WAV, OGG

Upload Limits​

  • Default: 250MB per file
  • Thumbnail Generation: Automatic for images and videos

File Organization​

  • Upload to Channel: Files appear in chat with preview
  • Media Channels: Organized gallery view
  • Search: Search file names and content

Search and Discovery​

Click the 🔍 search icon or press Ctrl+F:

Search Operators​

  • "exact phrase": Search for exact matches
  • -exclude: Exclude words from results
  • user:@username: Search messages from specific user
  • in:#channel: Search in specific channel
  • has:link: Find messages with links
  • has:file: Find messages with attachments

Keyboard Shortcuts​

  • Ctrl+K: Quick switcher

Messaging​

  • Enter: Send message
  • Shift+Enter: New line
  • ↑: Edit last message
  • Ctrl+F: Search in channel

Happy Chirping! 🎵