TSupport

Telegram Support

To make answering questions a breeze, the TSF has a specialized build of the TDesktop client. It is called TSupport and is equipped with unique features that will save you and our users a lot of time and nerves.

The client is available for Windows, Mac and Linux. There are also two unofficial clients for Android and Web created by Ruben from TSF Spain.

Although it is possible to log in to support accounts using common Telegram apps, we ask you not to do it. These clients will mark each opened conversation as read and this brings chaos easily.

Features

This article refers to the official desktop client. If you're using the Android and Web version, take a look at the related pages.

Chats aren't marked as read automatically. Chats are only marked as read when you send a reply there. This means you have the time you need to think about an answer and no questions will be lost because someone read them accidentally.
Note: to only mark a chat as read, send an empty message.
Improved workflow. It's up to you to configure what happens after you send a reply: you can switch automatically to the next or the previous chat, or just stay in the current conversation. This behaviour can be configured in Settings.
Marked chats. If you want to keep track of a conversation easily, open user profile and check Mark conversation. If you have someone marked, a new tab 'Marked' appears on the top bar — with all the users listed on it.
Note: TSupport Desktop stores this info locally, so it won't be synched between volunteers and you will lose your marked chats if you log out.
Shortcuts. You can move through unread chats with Ctrl + Page Up and Ctrl + Page Down.
Templates. Use the official template file or create your custom one.
Multiple account support. Some TSF members need access to several support accounts, here's how you can manage it.

Templates

Many users ask the same questions, so we have answer templates to send the same answers easier.

Each template has a KEY and a VALUE. Type the KEY in the input field, then hit Tab, and you get the VALUE text.

You can find many ready-made answers in the official template file, which is regularly updated and translated to many languages. You can also find the list on Trello.

Download the file and place it to your client's folder > TEMPLATES folder, then restart TSupport or go to Settings > Reload templates.

Technically, each template file is a txt file with the format supported by the client. Open any template file, and you will bump into text blocks like this one:

{QUESTION}
That's a test question
{KEYS}
hello
helloworld
{VALUE}
Hello, I'm learning templates

In TSupport, type one of the keys (in this case hello or helloworld) and then hit Tab. The value will be placed to your text field, you can make some changes or send it right away. Try the tutorial template in the support chat with yourself.

TSupport automatically syncs official template files each time you launch the app. Your custom {KEYS} will not be changed, but all values will be updated from the server. This means that if you modify the {VALUES} in the official template, your changes will be lost when you reload. If you'd like to use a different set of templates, it's best to put them in a separate file that won't sync. Simply put a tl_something.txt file in your tsupport\TEMPLATES\ folder. Check tl_about_templates.txt for tips and syntax.

If you are really into templates, check out these advanced tips collected by null from TSF NA.

Footers

All messages from users have a footer with useful information. Thus we can give more relevant instructions based on their app and OS.

Here's a sample footer:

#CountryIt | #desktop (#linux) | #pc | #app2040 (TDesktop, #v1000003) #tq1234

#Country: It, Us, etc.
Device information (Android, iOS, etc.)
System details (Android SDK version, iOS version, etc.)
App information
#tq number, the internal user identifier

Please always include the user's footer when you ask questions in the local groups, it can save plenty of time.

Getting started

Log in to Trello and download the support client for your platform.
Find and download your up to date general template file.
That's it! You're ready to go.

Need some help? Do not hesitate to ask in your local TSF group. Make sure you've read the BIOS.