“General chat” topic

Zulip’s topics help you keep conversations organized, but you may sometimes want to send a message without a topic. For example, this could be appropriate for social chatter, or for a one-off request (e.g., “Is anyone around to help me out?”).

Messages sent without a topic go to the special “general chat” topic. The name of this topic is shown in italics, and is translated into your language.

The “general chat” topic can be used only if allowed by your organization’s administrators, and channels can be configured to only allow the “general chat” topic.

Sending a message to the “general chat” topic

You can reply to a message in the “general chat” topic, or follow the instructions below.

Via left sidebar

1. Click the start a new topic () button next to the name of the channel where you’d like to send a message.
2. Click on the compose box, or press Tab to compose your message. You can preview your message before sending.
3. Click the send () button, or use a keyboard shortcut to send your message.

Keyboard tip: You can also use the C keyboard shortcut to send a message to the channel you’re viewing.

Via compose box

1. Click the Start new conversation button at the bottom of the app.
2. (optional) You can change the destination channel for your message using the dropdown in the top left of the compose box. Start typing to filter channels.
3. Click on the compose box, or press Tab to compose your message. You can preview your message before sending.
4. Click the send () button, or use a keyboard shortcut to send your message.

Keyboard tip: You can also use the C keyboard shortcut to send a message to the channel you’re viewing.

Related articles

• Introduction to topics
• “General chat” channels
• Require topics in channel messages