How to use Ci Light
This guide covers the five tabs of the Ci Light panel and the template shortcut in the message box. If you have not installed the extension yet, start with the install guide.
Open the "Ci" tab on the right edge. The Waiting tab lists chats waiting for a reply; in the Chat tab you add notes and reminders; in the message box, ;shortcut and Tab bring in a template. Ci Light never sends a message.
What you need
- A Chrome tab with WhatsApp Web open
- A short list of replies you often write
- Notification permission for Chrome, for reminders
What Ci Light does
- Marks chats waiting for a reply with their waiting time
- Shows a notification when a reminder is due
- Puts the template you pick into the message box
- Chats waiting for a reply
- Follow-up reminders and chat notes
- Templates
- Chatting without saving the number
- Hide screen, language and deleting data
Everyday use
Check the waiting chats
Chats whose last message came from the customer show a waiting-time badge; by default, those waiting longer than 30 minutes turn red. The Waiting tab in the panel lists them oldest first. "Open" goes to the chat; "Dismiss" hides it until a new message arrives.
Set a follow-up reminder
Open the chat and switch to the Chat tab in the panel. Press "In 1 hour", "Tomorrow 10:00" or "In 3 days, 10:00", or pick a date and click "Set". When it is due, a notification appears; clicking it opens the chat. When you are done, press "Done" in the Reminders tab.
Write a chat note
Type in the note box in the Chat tab; the note saves itself. The next time you open the chat, the note is in the same place.
Use a template
Type a shortcut such as ;hello in the message box and press Tab. The text appears in the box; you send it. {name} is filled with the first word of the chat name and {fullname} with the whole name. Add new templates in the Settings tab with "Add template".
Chat without saving the number
Type or paste the number in the New tab and press "Open chat". In the English panel, write the number with its country code, for example +44 7700 900123; the Turkish panel also accepts local Turkish numbers such as 0532 111 22 33.
Hide screen
Alt+Shift+G (Option+Shift+G on a Mac) or the "Hide screen" button in the panel blurs chats, messages and photos. The chat under your mouse stays readable. The same key or the "Show screen" button brings the screen back.
Settings: red threshold, language and deleting data
Red threshold: in the Settings tab, change "Turn red after (minutes)" and press "Save".
Language: under Settings → Language, pick Automatic (Chrome language), Türkçe or English. The panel switches without a page reload.
Deleting data: the "Delete all Ci Light data" button deletes every note, reminder, template and setting in this browser. This cannot be undone.
What Ci Light does and does not do
Does
- Shows chats waiting for a reply with their waiting time
- Shows a notification when a reminder is due
- Puts a template into the message box
Does not
- Send messages; there is no bulk messaging, auto-reply or scheduled sending
- Move your records to another computer or a server
- See notes on your team's other computers
Handling several channels together?
If your team answers WhatsApp, Instagram DM and calls together, let us look at the Chatinbox panel in a 15-minute call.
Button and tab names are taken from Ci Light's English panel. This page was checked against the Ci Light 0.2.0 source code on 1 October 2026.
