Keep shaping the idea

3 minute read · Chats & Local Agents

Keep refining an idea in the same conversation so its decisions, files and previous results remain easy to find. Use another chat for a different piece of work, even when both belong to one project.

• Work through one change in a conversation
• Drafts are unfinished work
• Organize without destroying the project
• Continue a run with useful context

Work through one change in a conversation#

Start a thread in the intended project, choose the provider/model and access mode, then describe a bounded result. The thread retains its own history, provider session choices and attachments. Changing the default agent in Settings affects new conversations; it does not rewrite the identity of an existing provider session.

A useful sequence is request → inspect progress → answer an approval → try the result → send a precise correction. Additional input during a run may steer the current turn or wait for the next one. Inspect the queue state before sending the same instruction again, especially after a connection interruption.

Drafts are unfinished work#

Text, attached files, selected tool-result context and model/access choices belong to the current account and draft or chat. Moving to another chat should leave its draft available when you return. If cloud sync reports a competing draft, keep the local text until you have compared the versions. Do not clear a draft merely to remove a sync indicator.

After reconnecting, distinguish a pending message from a provider response already in progress. Retrying a failed run and sending a new message can produce different work. Use the recorded failure and current queue to decide which action is appropriate.

Organize without destroying the project#

Rename or pin chats so their purpose is clear. Archive completed work to remove it from the active list while retaining its history; restoring it brings the same conversation back. Archived and standalone chats remain saved without a product count cap. Continue a useful conversation for as long as its context serves the work.

Permanent chat deletion removes the conversation and eligible unused attachments, not its project checkout. A live process stays on the device running it, even when another device can read the synchronized history. Parallel chats explain shared files and isolated worktrees; sync explains cross-device conflicts.

Continue a run with useful context#

For a visual change, describe the screen and the action you tried. For a data problem, include the selected API or SQL result through its Vortex result link. Open that captured result to inspect the evidence; opening the link does not rerun the request or query. Attach only files that are relevant and safe to share with the chosen provider.

Try a follow-up such as “Keep the article layout, but add a search box above the list.” If the agent is working, inspect whether the input was delivered as steering, is uncertain, or is waiting for the next turn. Remove a queued message before delivery when the queue offers that action. A missing answer is not a reason to submit the same request several times.

Stopping cancels the run and invalidates its pending approvals. It does not undo file changes or external actions that already completed. Read the retained output and inspect the affected files before retrying. When another device owns a live run, wait for its result or manage the run on that device; synchronized history does not transfer its process.

Related guides: follow-up messages, attachments, storage and deletion.