Files

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Supported File Types

sideBar accepts a wide range of file formats, organised into folders by type:

• Documents: PDFs, Word documents, and plain text files
• Images: JPG, PNG, and other common image formats
• Audio: audio recordings and other common audio formats
• Video: video files
• Spreadsheets: Excel workbooks and CSV files
• Reports: structured report formats generated by sideBar
• Presentations: PowerPoint and similar formats

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Adding Files

Tap the + button in the Files tab to open the file picker, then choose a file from your device. You can also share files directly from other apps using the sideBar Share extension, see Widgets & Extensions to set it up. After you select a file, sideBar begins ingesting it right away. Ingestion moves through three stages: uploading, processing, and ready. You can watch the status update in real time on the file card. If something goes wrong during processing, the card shows an error state with a Retry button, tap it to try again without re-uploading.

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The File List

Each file in your list shows its filename, size, type, and upload date at a glance. Two organizational tools help keep the list manageable:

• Pin files you reach for often, they stay at the top of the list.
• Archive files you no longer need active, they move out of the main view. A count of archived files appears at the bottom of the list so you can restore them any time.

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Viewing Files

Tap any ready file to open it in the built-in viewer:

• PDFs: full-page viewer with page navigation and pinch-to-zoom
• Spreadsheets: scrollable grid view with column headers
• YouTube videos: in-app player alongside the extracted plain-text transcript
• Images: full-screen display
• Text and Markdown: rendered preview

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Using Files with sideBar

Once a file reaches the ready state, its content is indexed and sideBar can search and reference it during any conversation. You can also attach a specific file directly to a chat message to upload it and give sideBar focused context on that file.

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Skill-Generated Files

Some skills save files to your library automatically. For example, the Audio Transcription skill saves completed transcripts as markdown files in a Transcripts folder, and the YouTube skills save downloaded audio and transcripts to a Videos folder. These files behave exactly like any file you uploaded manually — they are indexed, viewable, and available to sideBar in conversation.

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File Actions

Tap the menu on any file card to access these actions:

• Delete: permanently removes the file and its index
• Archive / Restore: moves the file out of (or back into) the active list
• Pin / Unpin: controls whether the file stays at the top of your list

You can also swipe right on any file to pin or unpin it, or swipe left to delete it.

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Keyboard Shortcuts