> ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.sterlinglabs.co/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # Asking questions and attaching documents > Start a chat, bring in a trade idea or report as context, attach your own files, and keep several conversations going. ## What you can do in a chat * **Ask anything...** — the message box. Answers stream in with their reasoning, charts, tables and cited sources. * **Read in analyst** — bring what you're looking at into the chat as context. * **Attach file** — up to three documents or images per message. * **New tab** and **History** — several conversations at once, and every past one searchable. ## Where to find it The Analyst is collapsed into a narrow bar along the right edge of the page. Select it to open the panel, or press **⌘K** (**Ctrl+K** on Windows). The Analyst isn't available on the [Trading Pit](/trading-pit/what-is-the-trading-pit). ## Using the chat ### Ask a question Type in **Ask anything...** and press **Enter**. Answers stream in with the reasoning under **Thinking**, and charts, tables and sources appear inline. Select a citation to see where a figure came from. Before your first message, the chat offers **Trending questions** to start from. ### Bring something into the conversation Anywhere you see **Read in analyst**, select it and the Analyst opens with that item as context. A [trade idea](/trade-ideas/what-are-trade-ideas) card or a bullish or bearish argument on a company's [Overview](/companies/company-overview) is a good place to start. In a [research report](/companies/reading-a-research-report), select a passage and choose **Explain** or **Custom Question**. The Analyst also knows which page you're on. ### Attach a document Give the Analyst a document to read: select **Attach file**, or drag a file into the message box. The Analyst reads it and draws on it for the rest of the conversation, until the file expires after 24 hours. Up to three files per message, each up to 3 MB. PDF, Word, Excel, PowerPoint and images are accepted, and text files such as Markdown, CSV, TSV and JSON. ### Keep several conversations going * Select the **+** button at the top of the panel to start a new conversation beside the current one. Switch between them at the top of the panel. * **History** lists past conversations, grouped by when they happened, with a **Search...** box. Open one to continue it, or use its ⋮ menu to **Rename** or **Delete** it. ## Tips * Name the company and the timeframe. "\[Company]'s services margin over the last eight quarters" gets a better answer than "margins". * Ask follow-ups in the same chat. The Analyst keeps the context. Open a new tab when you change topic, so each conversation stays on one subject. * If you want the reasoning, ask the Analyst to show its work. ## If something goes wrong | What you see | What it means | What to do | | - | - | - | | "All files exceed the maximum size." | Every file you added is over 3 MB | Compress or split the file | | "Too many files. Some were not added." | You added more than three files | Send the rest in another message | | "No files match the accepted types." | The file type isn't accepted | Convert it to one of the types above | | "Could not upload that file. Please try again." | The upload failed | Try again in a moment | | "Rate limit exceeded" | You've passed 60 uploads in an hour | Wait, then try again | | "Out of analyst balance" | Your allowance and credits are used up | Select **Buy usage credits** under [Account → Plan](/account/billing-payments), or wait for your next renewal | | "You're offline" | Your connection dropped | Check your connection | | "Couldn't load messages. Try refreshing." | The conversation didn't load | Reload the page | ## Frequently asked questions ### Does Sterling keep the files I attach? No. An attached file is available to the model for 24 hours and then expires. Sterling keeps only the file's name, so the chat can show what was attached. ### Where did my earlier conversation go? Chats persist across pages and sessions. Select **History** and search for it. ### Can the Analyst see the page I'm on? Yes. The page you're on is added to the conversation as context. On a company page, that company is included too. Use **Read in analyst** to add a specific item, or select text in a report and choose **Explain**. ### Does each message cost credits? During the trial, Analyst usage is free. After that it counts against your monthly allowance, then against credits you've bought. [Deep Research](/analyst/deep-research) uses more per question than a standard message. Accounts are limited to 100 messages an hour. See [Your plan, usage and invoices](/account/billing-payments). ## Related articles * [What is the Analyst?](/analyst/what-is-the-analyst) * [Deep Research](/analyst/deep-research) * [Guide Mode](/analyst/guide-mode) * [Your plan, usage and invoices](/account/billing-payments) This documentation is built and hosted on [Mintlify](https://mintlify.com), a developer documentation platform.