FlowChat
FlowChat is a flexible, easy-to-use VSCode extension that allows users to experiment with conversational AI using various large language models (LLMs). With FlowChat, you can easily chat with LLMs, manage conversation histories, and even create custom LLM integrations.
❓ Wondering how to use?
Check out the Basic Usage section below.
Table of Contents
Features
- Chat with built-in LLM providers (API keys required):
- OpenAI
- Anthropic
- Google
- ZHIPU AI
- Poe
- Persist chat histories as
.chat files (YAML format)
- Easily manage and share conversations
- Add chat histories to version control
- Fork conversations to explore different paths
- Edit both user and LLM messages
- Resend/regenerate
- Inline configuration editing and switching
- Changes are saved to the
.chat file
- Attachments support for multimodal models
- Message snippets for quickly inserting prompts
- Instant Chat feature for quickly chatting with LLMs
- Create custom LLM providers using JavaScript
- Configure API keys and settings for built-in providers
Basic Usage
Instant Chat
- Open Command Palette (
Ctrl+Shift+P or Cmd+Shift+P on macOS)
- Type "Instant Chat" (you don't have to type the whole thing, it should autocomplete)
- If the "FlowChat: Instant Chat" command is highlighted, press
Enter
- You can now select a chat provider and start chatting! (API keys required)
Note: You can continue a previous Instant Chat session by running "FlowChat: Continue Last Instant Chat" from the Command Palette.
Managing Chat Sessions as .chat Files
- Create a new file with a
.chat extension (e.g., my_conversation.chat)
- Open the file
- Select a chat provider to start (API keys required)
Advanced Chat Features
Forking Conversations
Right-click on a message, then select "Duplicate" to create a fork of the conversation. You can then edit the messages and continue the conversation from that point.
You can switch between branches by clicking "Branches" below a message, then selecting the desired branch.
Tip: The "Resend" and "Regenerate" options will also fork the conversation.
Editing Messages
Right-click on a message, then select "Edit" to modify the message. You can change both user and LLM messages.
Inline Configuration Editing
FlowChat provides a convenient way to edit chat provider configurations or switch between providers at different stages within a single conversation. For example, you can combine and utilize the strengths of different LLMs, such as GPT, Claude, and Gemini, seamlessly in one chat session.
Selecting a chat provider from the right side of the VSCode status bar will create a configuration card in the chat view. You can edit the configuration values by right-clicking on the card and selecting "Edit".
Inline configuration editing applies to messages after the card.
You can also right-click on any message and select "Insert Configuration" to quickly add a configuration card to the chat view.
Autocompletion is available for configuration keys, and forking is supported for configuration changes.
Message Snippets
Often, you may find yourself typing the same prompts repeatedly. FlowChat provides a message snippet feature to help you quickly insert frequently used prompts.
When typing a message, you can select parts of the text and right-click on the selection to "Create Snippet". You will be prompted to enter a quick completion text for the snippet.
When typing a message, you can enter /YourSnippetName to insert the snippet.
Right-click on a message editor and select "Manage Snippets" to view, edit, and delete snippets.
Requirements
To use FlowChat with the built-in LLM providers, you'll need to provide your own API keys. When you send your first message, FlowChat will prompt you to enter the necessary configuration details.
Extension Settings
You can view the script settings for a built-in provider by clicking the provider name in the VSCode status bar, selecting "Configure". Provider code can also be opened from this menu.
Creating Custom Providers
FlowChat supports custom LLM providers written in JavaScript. Provider scripts use a format similar to Tampermonkey to declare configuration entries.
Take a look at the Built-in Providers for examples.
Known Issues
As FlowChat is in early development, you may encounter bugs or instability. If you experience any issues, please file a report on the GitHub repository. Pull requests are also welcome!
Planned Enhancements
- [ ] Rendering performance optimizations
- [ ] Search, tagging, and filtering of chat histories
- [ ] Visualization of conversation trees
- [x] In context updating of provider configuration
- [x] UI improvements
Release Notes
0.4.0
- Added message snippets for quickly inserting prompts
- Improved color palette for better integration with VSCode themes
- Replaced plain text editor with feature-rich CodeMirror editor for better message composition experience
0.3.1
- Fixed an issue where chat providers were not self-contained, preventing some providers from working
- Improved error handling for the Anthropic Claude provider
- OpenAI provider now has better compatibility with third-party API providers
0.3.0
- Added attachment support for chat messages
- Fixed an issue where the chat view would be reloaded when switching back from other panels
0.2.2
- Fixed an issue where some tags were not rendered correctly in the chat view
0.2.1
- Fixed an issue where custom tags were not being properly rendered in the chat view
- Configuration values with multiple lines are no longer displayed with extra spaces
0.2.0
- Added Instant Chat feature for quickly chatting with LLMs
- Added the ability to quickly edit and switch between configurations in the chat view
- Added Google Gemini provider
- Added ZHIPU GLM provider
- Improved configuration initialization experience
- Improved code block scrolling behavior
- Enhanced error handling and chat provider variable prompt logic
- Fixed an issue where empty assistant messages were not deleted when regenerating responses
- Fixed display issues with configuration update cards for better readability
0.1.0
- Initial release of FlowChat
- Basic chat functionality with OpenAI, Anthropic, and Poe providers
- Persist conversations as
.chat YAML files
- Custom provider support
Contributing
If you'd like to contribute to FlowChat, please submit a pull request on GitHub. For major changes, please open an issue first to discuss the proposed changes.
Enjoy using FlowChat to explore the world of conversational AI!
