Desktop & web
Navigating the Message interface in the app desktop and web
Last updated on February 14, 2022
The Message interface acts as the homepage for the app for desktop and web. To access the Message interface, you can click the Message chat bubble icon in the left-hand navigation bar.
The Message interface is divided into three panes: the conversation list (left pane), the message thread (center pane), and the conversation details pane (right pane). Let’s review each of these panes below.
Conversation list
The conversation list (left pane) is where you manage all your conversations. Click on any of the conversations in the list to open it.
At the top of the conversation list, you’ll find the following tabs:
- @mentions: Click on this tab to navigate to a page with a list of messages that have included you in an @mention. This page can help you sort through messages that need your immediate attention.
- Bookmarks: Click on this tab to navigate to the Bookmarks page, which contains a list of all messages that you have bookmarked to refer back to later.
Beneath these tabs, you’ll find a list of all your messages, organized into three sections:
- Favorites: This section contains all direct messages, group conversations, and team conversations that you have favorited.
- Direct messages: This section contains all open direct messages and group conversations with other app users. In the Direct messages section, click the Send new message plus button to start a new chat.
- Teams: This section contains all teams you’ve joined. In the Teams section, click the Create new team plus button to create a new team.
At the bottom of the conversation list, you can click on New folder to group relevant conversations together. For more info about favoriting conversations and creating a folder, visit Organizing your conversations in the app desktop and web.
Message thread
When you select a conversation from the conversation list, that will appear in the center pane, also known as the message thread. The message thread contains the entire history of that conversation, with the most recent message at the bottom of the thread.
Below the message thread is the message field, where you can type your message, insert files, create tasks and notes, and share events.
At the top of the center pane is the conversation header bar, which might contain some of the following important action items:
- Video: You can start a video call, start screen share, or schedule a meeting with a person, group, or team via this option, located at top right in the conversation header bar.
- Start video call: If you have access to the Video platform, you can start a meeting with a person, group, or team via this option. Please note that you can only start a meeting in a group or team with no more than 200 members.
- Start screen share: If you’ve configured Video as your video service, you can click the Video actions down arrow button to start sharing your screen from a conversation without the need to start a meeting first. This is available in one-on-one conversations, and in group or team conversations with no more than 200 members.
- Schedule video meeting: Only available if you’ve selected Video as your video service, you can schedule a meeting in any of your conversations with a person, group, or team via this option.
- Call: If you have telephone enabled for your account, you can select the Call phone button option at far right in the conversation header bar to start a phone call with another person in a one-on-one conversation.
- Start conference call: If you have telephony enabled at your account and you’re in a group or team, you can click the More menu, then select Start conference call to start a conference call.
Conversation details
At the far right of the app is your conversation details pane. This pane contains two sections. The first section, labeled Members, contains a list of all users included in the conversation. Conversation members are represented by their profile picture, and if there are many members that don’t fit in this section, you can click the Members (x) text to view those members in the group or team profile.
The second section in the conversation details pane contains conversation items, such as pinned messages, attached files, shared events, and more. These items are organized by tabs that you can select to view the items associated with that category.
To learn more, visit Viewing conversation details in the app desktop and web.
© 1999 - 2022 RingCentral, Inc. All rights reserved.