---
title: "Talk with the whale"
description: "Send a message, add to or queue behind a running reply, stop the whale, and read what it did."
works_on: [desktop, phone]
---

# Talk with the whale

Ask, add to a reply while it's being written, queue the next message, stop,
and read what the whale did.

**Works on:** the desktop app and the phone app. Web: not available yet.

## Send a message

Type in the composer and press Enter. Shift+Enter starts a new line. While
you type with an input method (Chinese, Japanese and others), Enter picks
the word and never sends.

The reply streams in as the whale writes it, with lists, links and
highlighted code. Under each finished reply you can copy it or fork from it;
**Good reply** and **Report** say "Not available yet".

## Add to a reply that is running

While the whale works, the composer says what Enter does: "↵ send after this
turn · ⌘↩ send into this turn" (Ctrl+↩ on Windows and Linux).

| Press | What happens |
| --- | --- |
| Enter | Queues your message. It shows above the composer as "Queued · …" and sends when the current reply ends. |
| ⌘Enter (Ctrl+Enter) | Sends your message into the running reply, so the whale takes it into account right away. |
| Enter in an empty composer, with something queued | Sends the first queued message into the running reply now. |

Press × on a queued message to take it back. Queued messages live only in
this window: if you quit, they aren't sent.

## Stop the whale

Press Stop (while the whale works, the send button turns into Stop when the
composer is empty), or press Esc in an empty composer. The whale stops where it is, and the conversation
says "You stopped this reply". Whatever it wrote so far stays.

## Read what the whale did

When the whale uses a tool, a row shows what it did, for example
"Read · README.md". Press the row to see details. Several steps in a row
group into one card.

Some steps need you:

- An approval card asks before a command or a file change. See
  [Approvals and permissions](approvals-and-permissions.md).
- A question card says "Needs your answer". Press one of its answers.
  The line under the composer reads "Needs you · answer a question" until you
  do, and the card then says "Answered".
- An agent card shows a helper the whale started, with its state, such
  as Running or Ready. Press **Stop** on the card to stop it. **Open agent**
  says "Not available yet".

## In a group conversation

When other people are in the conversation (see [Groups](groups.md)):

- Enter sends at once. There's no queue, no "send into this turn" and no
  Stop button.
- A helper agent can be stopped from its card by the conversation's owner or
  by the person who asked for it.
- A Viewer can't send. The composer says "You can read along here."

## When something interrupts a reply

| What you see | What it means |
| --- | --- |
| "Reconnecting" under the composer | Codewhale is starting again by itself and picks the conversation up where it left off. |
| "This reply stopped early" | A reply was cut off. Send your message again if you need the rest. |
| "Codewhale was updated. Reload to continue." at the top of the window | Press **Reload**. Your conversations stay. |

More in [Troubleshooting](troubleshooting.md).

## On the web

Not available yet.

## On your phone

Open a conversation from your list. You can:

- **Send** a message.
- **Add to this reply** while the whale is working, which sends your message
  into the running reply.
- **Stop** the running reply, if you own the conversation or you started
  that reply.

The phone has no queue and no question cards, and no copy or fork row under
replies. An approval opens on its own screen; see [Approvals and
permissions](approvals-and-permissions.md#on-your-phone). More in [Codewhale
on your phone](phone.md).

## Related

- [Conversations and folders](sessions.md)
- [Approvals and permissions](approvals-and-permissions.md)
- [The work pane](work-pane.md)
- [Choose a model](model-picker.md)

Previous: [Codewhale on the web](web.md) · Next: [Conversations and folders](sessions.md)