2.8 KiB
Reading strategies
In Zulip, streams determine who gets a message. Topics tell you what the message is about. If you are not yet familiar with Zulip's topics, we recommend first reading about streams and topics.
This article describes a few ways to efficiently read through messages in Zulip.
Conversation by conversation
{!conversation-definition.md!}
{!conversation-recommendation.md!}
Finding a conversation to read
From the Inbox view
{!inbox-intro.md!}
{!inbox-instructions.md!}
From Recent conversations
{!recent-conversations.md!}
From the left sidebar
{!left-sidebar-topics.md!}
Reading conversations
{!reading-topics.md!}
Combined views
All messages
{!all-messages.md!}
All direct messages
You can see all your direct messages in one place.
{start_tabs}
{tab|desktop-web}
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Click on the All direct messages icon next to DIRECT MESSAGES in the left sidebar.
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Read your direct messages, starting from your first unread message. You can scroll using your mouse, the arrow keys, End, or page up/down.
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You can click on a conversation in the left sidebar or a message recipient bar to narrow to messages from that conversation.
!!! keyboard_tip ""
Use the <kbd>Shift</kbd> + <kbd>P</kbd> keyboard shortcut to go to
**All direct messages**.
{end_tabs}
Stream view
Sometimes it's useful to scroll through all the messages in a stream, especially in situations where you just want a general idea of what's going on.
{start_tabs}
{tab|desktop-web}
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Find the stream you want to read in the left sidebar. If you don't see it right away, you can search for a stream by clicking on STREAMS in the left sidebar, or using the Q keyboard shortcut.
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Click on the stream name in the left sidebar.
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Read messages in the stream, starting from your first unread message. You can scroll using your mouse, the arrow keys, End, or page up/down.
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You can click on a topic in the left sidebar or a message recipient bar to narrow to messages from that topic.
{end_tabs}
Special views
Mentions
The mentions view lets you quickly find all the places where you were mentioned. Reviewing your mentions can be a good way to start your day.
{!view-mentions.md!}
Starred messages
You can star messages that you plan to follow up on later.
View starred messages
{!view-starred-messages.md!}