2. The terminal and your workspace

Chat and teams (CHAT, DM, TEAM)

CHAT opens public channels by topic, DM @user starts a private conversation, and TEAM creates a private group that shares layouts, lists, notes and its own chat.

  • 4 min
  • 3 questions
  • Lesson 6 of 8

Why you would care

Who can you talk markets with, without leaving the terminal? Traders talk all day: "anyone seeing this print in XOM?", "what's the read on CPI?". On the Bloomberg Terminal that chat is a big part of why people pay for it. Gloom's chat lives next to your panes, so a ticker you mention is one click away from its chart.

The idea from scratch

Three ways to talk, from most public to most private:

WhereWho sees itOpen with
ChannelEvery signed-in userCHAT or CHAT macro
Direct message (DM)Only the people in it (one or a small group)DM @user or DM @a @b
TeamOnly team membersTEAM, then its chat

A team is more than a chat room: it is a shared workspace. Members share layouts, lists (watchlists and portfolios), notes, theses and custom views. TEAM new creates one; TEAM invite @user adds someone.

Diagram: You, signed in leads to Channels: public, by topic; You, signed in leads to DMs: private, 1 or a few people; You, signed in leads to Team: private group; Team: private group leads to Shared layouts, lists, notes, theses, views; Team: private group leads to Team chat.
Wide diagram: scroll sideways to see all of it.

Useful details

  • In newer versions (after 0.15.8), messages can carry up to four images: in the desktop and web apps, paste or drop them; in the terminal, paste the path of an image file.
  • Images in public channels are checked before others see them.
  • The status bar shows an unread count; in newer versions it opens an Unread Chat pane, and mentions of you are counted in green.
  • Point at a name to see that person's profile card, if they made it public.

See it in Gloom

Gloom screenshot: The chat pane
The chat pane: the channel list on the left, the open channel on the right (message text blurred here for privacy), and the message box at the bottom.

open ittype CHAT, or CHAT options for one channel.

  1. Channels: #everyone, then topic channels (equities, etfs, semis, options, macro, crypto, energy...), language channels, and help.
  2. The speaker icons: desktop notifications for that channel, grey when off and green when on. Click to switch.
  3. DMs with a +: your private conversations; + starts one.
  4. Type a message...: press i to compose, Enter on a message to reply.
  5. Profile (bottom left): your public profile.

Keys: i compose, Enter reply, n new channel.

Practice and recap

Try it3 tasks
  1. Which channel would you open to discuss an inflation report? (macro.)
  2. Write the command to start a private chat with two people, @ana and @ben. (DM @ana @ben.)
  3. In the app, open CHAT help and read the last few messages.
Common mistakes4 mistakes
  • Posting something private in a public channel. Use a DM or a team.
  • Sharing screenshots with personal data (account numbers, emails) in public channels.
  • Treating chat opinions as research. Check the data yourself.
  • Forgetting that a team shares lists: deleting a ticker from a team watchlist removes it for everyone.
Check yourself3 questions
  1. What is the difference between a channel and a team?
  2. How many images can one message carry?
  3. What does TEAM invite @user do?
Answers
  1. A channel is public to all signed-in users; a team is a private group that also shares layouts, lists, notes, theses and views.
  2. Up to four, in newer versions (after 0.15.8).
  3. Invites that user to your team.
Words in this lesson4 words
channel
A public chat room on one topic.
DM (direct message)
A private conversation with one or a few people.
team
A private group that shares a chat and parts of the workspace.
mention
A message that names you with @; it is counted separately.

Educational material about reading market data, not investment advice.