Quickstart

First Run

Launch chattor:

chattor

Or with a theme:

chattor --theme rose-pine

On first run, chattor will:

1. Generate your Ed25519 identity keypair
2. Create an encrypted SQLCipher database
3. Bootstrap an embedded Tor connection via arti
4. Launch your Tor hidden service (your .onion address)

The bootstrap takes 30-60 seconds while Tor establishes circuits. You’ll see an animated loading screen.

CLI Options

Flag	Short	Description
--debug	-d	Enable debug logging
--theme <name>	-t	Theme preset (see Theming)
--config-dir <path>	-c	Custom config directory

Adding a Friend

1. Press [a] to open the Add Friend modal
2. Enter your friend’s 32-word friend code (they can find it by pressing [i] for Identity)
3. A friend request is sent over Tor
4. Once they accept, you can exchange messages

Your Identity

Press [i] to view your identity:

• Your .onion address — this is your network identity
• Your friend code — share this with people who want to reach you
• Press [o] to copy your onion address, [c] to copy your friend code

Sending Messages

1. Select a friend in the sidebar (arrow keys or mouse)
2. Type your message in the input bar
3. Press Enter to send

Messages are encrypted with Signal Protocol before leaving your machine. If your friend is offline, messages are queued and delivered automatically when they come back online.

Keybindings

Key	Action
q	Quit
a	Add friend
i	View identity
r	View friend requests
n	Toggle notifications
Tab	Switch between sidebar and chat
↑/↓	Navigate friends/messages