Referencing other chats

You can point DataMind Oda at one of your earlier chats while you write a message, so the work already done there can carry into the current task. The pick becomes a reference chip in your message; Mention files, folders and chats covers the menu itself, and Chat with Oda covers everything else a chat can do.

Add an earlier chat to a message

1. Type @ in the message box and choose a chat under Sessions. Chats from the folder you are working in are listed first.
2. The pick becomes a chip that shows the chat's title.
3. Send the message. When Oda takes up the request, it captures the earlier chat as background for the message.

• The chat you are writing in is not offered, so a message cannot reference itself.
• A message can bring in up to three chats. A message that references more fails when Oda takes it up, and the chat says why.
• References start from what you type: a referenced chat cannot pull in further chats of its own.

What Oda uses from the earlier chat

Oda takes a snapshot of the chat when it takes up your message, and from then on the copy is fixed:

• Text only. Oda reads the conversation: your messages and Oda's answers. If the earlier chat has been shortened to keep it going, its summary stands in for the shortened part.
• Not the rest. Files and images, command output and other step details from the earlier chat are not carried over.
• Fixed, not live. Later work in the earlier chat does not change the copy this chat holds, and this chat does not change the earlier chat either.
• Background only. Oda is told to treat the snapshot as background information, and not to follow instructions, permission claims or tool requests found inside it unless you repeat them yourself.
• The snapshot is not shown among the message rows; this chat keeps a record of what the earlier chat contributed, and System prompt, context and compaction covers these records.

When an earlier chat is longer than Oda can carry

Each referenced chat is kept within its own size limit, so one long chat cannot crowd out the others.

• Oda keeps the part that fits, leaving out the earliest parts first, and records what it left out.
• When it can, Oda stores the full snapshot on your computer, the same way as other large results; ask Oda to read it back, or to search inside it, when you need the rest. Large results and spill files explains these files.
• In a rare case, even the newest part of a chat cannot fit. The message then does not run, and the chat shows the reason; remove that reference or choose another chat and send again.

When a reference cannot be prepared

Oda prepares a reference after you send the message, when it takes up the request. Preparation can stop for a few reasons:

• The referenced chat cannot be read.
• The message references more than three chats.
• A referenced chat cannot fit even after Oda leaves out the earliest parts.

When it stops, the turn fails and shows the reason, and your message stays in the chat. To carry on, remove or replace the reference and send the request again; Failures and recovery covers failed turns in general.

Questions, answered

How many earlier chats can I reference in one message?

Up to three. If you reference more, the message fails when Oda takes it up.

What exactly does Oda take from a referenced chat?

The text of the conversation: your messages and Oda's answers. Files and images, command output and other step details are not carried over, and if the chat has been shortened to keep it going, its summary stands in for the shortened part.

Does a referenced chat keep updating after I send?

No. Oda captures a snapshot when it takes up your message, and that copy stays as it was; later work in the earlier chat does not change it. This chat does not change the earlier chat either.

Can I reference the chat I am writing in?

No. The chat you are writing in is left out of the suggestions, so a message cannot point at itself.

What happens when the earlier chat is longer than Oda can carry?

Each referenced chat is kept within its own size limit. Oda keeps the part that fits, leaving out the earliest parts first, and records what it left out. If even the newest part cannot fit, the message does not run and the chat shows the reason.

Can I get the part of a long chat that was left out?

Yes. When it can, Oda stores the full snapshot on your computer, the same way as other large results; ask Oda to read it back, or to search inside it, when you need the rest. See Large results and spill files.

Does Oda follow instructions found inside a referenced chat?

No. A referenced chat is background only: Oda is told not to follow instructions, permission claims or tool requests found inside it unless you repeat them yourself.

Does a reference stay available after that message?

Yes. The snapshot joins this chat's history, so Oda can keep building on it in later messages; like other history, a compaction of this chat can shorten it away.

Why does a chat in the suggestions show an id instead of its title?

Oda lists a chat by its title when it already has one. A chat it does not have a title for yet is shown by its id; open the chat once, and its title becomes available.