Annotations and quotes

Long conversations mix the work of several people and several Mates: figures, tables, charts, drafts. Annotations let you discuss one precise passage with your team, next to that passage, without adding messages to the conversation. Quotes let you point a Mate to that exact passage.

This article shows how to annotate a passage, work in a comment thread, and send a thread or a quote to a Mate. Annotations and quotes work in private chats and in workspace conversations.

Annotate a passage

1. In a message, select the text you want to discuss. It can be a message from a Mate or from a person.
2. Two buttons appear next to your selection: Annotate and Quote. Click Annotate.

3. The Comments panel opens on the right, with a draft card that shows the selected passage.
4. Type your comment. To ask a teammate, type @ and pick their name.
5. Click Comment.

The passage stays highlighted in the message. Click the highlight to open its thread.

Tip: to get more space, hide the side menu while the panel is open.

Comment on a chart

A chart has no text to select. Move the pointer over the chart and click the Comment on this chart button in its top-right corner. The draft card opens with the chart title as the passage.

You can also select text inside a table or a code block, like any other text.

Find the comments of a conversation

The Comments button in the conversation header opens and closes the panel. Its badge shows the number of open threads.

In the panel:

• Threads are listed in the order of the conversation.
• Click a thread to scroll the conversation to its passage.
• Use the Open and Resolved filter to switch between current and closed threads.
• A message with open threads also shows a small count button. Click it to open its first thread.

Reply, mention and resolve

Each thread works like a short discussion:

• Reply: type in the reply box of the thread and click Reply.
• Mention: type @ and a name. The person gets a notification in their inbox. The notification opens the conversation on the thread.
• Resolve: click the check mark (Resolve thread) when the point is closed. The thread moves to the Resolved filter and its highlight disappears. Click Reopen to bring it back.
• Edit or delete: open the ⋯ menu of your own comment and choose Edit comment or Delete comment. You can only change your own comments. A thread itself cannot be deleted: resolve it instead.
• Copy link: open the ⋯ menu and choose Copy link to share a direct link to the thread. Anyone who can open the conversation can open the link.

A mention notifies the person when you post the comment or the reply. Editing a comment later does not send a new notification.

Send a thread to a Mate

When your team agrees on a point, send the whole thread to a Mate:

1. In the thread, click Add to message.
2. The thread becomes a Markdown file attached to your message, named Thread – "<passage>".md. The thread card shows In your message.
3. Add other threads if needed. Then write your request, for example "@Data Analyst, can you take these comments into account?", and send.

The Mate reads the passage, the comments and their authors. It knows exactly which part of the conversation you mean, and the file stays in its context for the next messages. To take a thread out before you send, click Remove from message on its card, or remove the file from the message box.

Quote a passage

A quote sends a passage to a Mate without starting a thread:

1. Select the text, for example one row of a table.
2. Click Quote.

3. The passage is attached to your message as a Markdown file named Quote – "<passage>".md. Write your request and send.

A quote adds nothing to the Comments panel and highlights nothing. You can add several quotes to one message.

Resolved threads

Resolved threads stay available. Select Resolved in the panel filter to see who resolved each thread and when. Click Reopen to continue the discussion.

Good to know

• On a phone or tablet: select the text, then use the Annotate and Quote buttons in the bar above the message box. The Comments panel opens over the conversation.
• Keyboard: the message actions also have Annotate selection and Quote selection.
• Who can do what: members who can write in the conversation can annotate, reply, mention, resolve and reopen. Viewers can read the threads and copy their links.
• Edited messages: if the passage changes after a comment, the thread stays on the message and shows "Passage not found". The thread keeps the original passage.
• Not included: public shared links, conversation replay and exports (PDF, Word, Markdown) do not show annotations.
• Not in context by default: a Mate does not read the comments panel. Use Add to message or Quote to give it a thread or a passage.

Related articles

• Communication Best Practices: Mastering Mentions
• Understanding and Using Notifications
• Adding Attachments to Your Messages
• Managing Messages in Your Conversations