Telegram chats

Your Telegram chats and small groups, read as a device of your own account. Replies only after you approve.

1. What it reads
2. What it can send
3. Connect it
4. When it stops
5. Remove it

What it reads

Your private chats and groups of up to 50 people, as a logged-in device of your own Telegram account, like Telegram Desktop. When you connect it reads the last 7 days, then what comes in.

It never reads channels, bots, Saved Messages or Telegram's own service messages. Muted and archived chats are skipped too.

It leaves your read and online status alone: nothing is marked read, and your phone still shows new messages as new.

This is separate from Telegram, where your own bot sends you your to-dos.

What it can send

A text into a chat that already exists, only after you approve it on the to-do. Sends go out one at a time, with a pause in between.

If a to-do came in by email but you talk to that person on Telegram, say so in the to-do's chat. The Machine finds your existing chat with them and switches the draft to Telegram, for you to review and send. It never starts a new chat.

Connect it

1. In the dashboard, open Connections, then + Add, and pick Telegram chats.
2. Choose Scan a QR code in Telegram on your phone.
3. On your phone, in Telegram, open Settings, Devices, Link Desktop Device, and scan the code.
4. If your account has a cloud password, type it when asked. It goes to Telegram and is never stored.

Setting up on your phone, with no second screen to scan from? Choose Get a code in Telegram for your phone number instead. Telegram sends the code to your Telegram app.

On your own computer you also need a Telegram app ID of your own. Create one at my.telegram.org, under API development tools, and fill in its api_id and api_hash in the form.

Or run assistant connect telegram in a terminal and scan the code it shows there.

When it stops

• Logged out of Telegram: Telegram ended this device's login, or you logged it out on your phone. Press Reconnect on its card.
• Telegram stopped accepting the app ID: Telegram no longer accepts the app ID this Machine uses. Nothing is read or sent until you press Reconnect and add an app ID of your own.

The Machine uses Telegram's API for this. Telegram may limit or end logins from apps like it.

Remove it

Connections, open Telegram chats, Details, then Disconnect. Your Machine logs itself out at Telegram and deletes what it kept for Telegram.

Or end it on your phone: in Telegram, open Settings, Devices, tap The Machine and end the session.