Channels are for a topic or a team; direct messages are for a few people. This page covers creating, joining, managing, and leaving both.

Creating a channel

  1. In the sidebar, click + beside Channels and choose New Channel.
  2. Give it a name and, optionally, a description.
  3. Choose Public or Private.
  4. Add members by searching employees. You can add more later.
  5. Save. Members are notified and the channel appears in their sidebar immediately.

Channel names must be unique within the studio.

Joining a public channel

Click Join a Channel in the sidebar to browse and search public channels you are not yet in, with a member count for each. Click Join to enter. Private channels do not appear here; a member has to add you.

Starting a direct message

Click + beside Direct Messages and choose Start Direct. Pick one person for a one-to-one conversation, or several for a group. Airchat reuses an existing conversation if one with exactly those people already exists, so you never end up with two threads with the same group.

Members and roles

The person who creates a channel is its Owner. Others are Members. Members can be added from Channel Settings or by @mentioning someone who is not yet in the channel, which prompts you to add them.

Channel Settings

Open the gear in the header. What you see depends on your role.

Setting Who What it does
Name, description, public or private Owner, Administrators, Regional Administrators Change the channel itself. Switching to Private hides it from Join a Channel.
Members Owner, Administrators, Regional Administrators Add or remove people.
Notifications Everyone, for themselves All Messages, Mentions Only, or None. See ‣.
Pin Everyone, for themselves Keeps the conversation at the top of your sidebar.
Leave Channel Everyone Removes you. You can rejoin a public channel at any time.
Delete Channel Owner, Administrators, Regional Administrators Removes the channel and its history for everyone. Files already saved to the channel's folder stay in Files.

Hiding a conversation

A direct message you no longer need can be hidden with Hide Chat. It disappears from your sidebar and comes back the next time someone posts in it. Nothing is deleted.

Files for a channel