Write good requests

Five habits

1. One task per chat. A new chat for each task keeps answers focused. Long chats get summarised, and details from early on can blur. Press Ctrl + Alt + N when you move on.
2. Name the record type, the trigger and the result. "When a Sales Invoice is submitted, email the customer's account manager" beats "fix invoicing".
3. Be on the right page. Open the form or list the change is about and turn on the page toggle.
4. Use Plan for anything bigger than one change. Read the plan, fix it with Modify, then press Proceed.
5. Check the result before you migrate it. Open the links in Changes Made and try it.

Do and don't

Do	Don't
"Add a Select field Delivery Window with options Morning, Afternoon, Evening to Sales Order, after Delivery Date."	"Add a delivery field."
"Quotations over ₹5,00,000 need a Sales Manager's approval. The person who created it can't approve it."	"Make an approval process."
"Build a report of submitted Purchase Orders from the last 3 months, grouped by supplier, filterable by warehouse."	"Show me purchases."
One change per message, then the next	"Also fix the print format, add a dashboard and import the old data"
Attach the old system's invoice as a PDF or image	"Make it look like our old invoice"

Pass better context with the page toggle

HydraAI can see the Desk page you're on, but only if you share it. Before you ask, open the record or list your task is about, then turn on the page toggle: the eye button under the message box, labelled with the page name. HydraAI then gets that page's filled-in field values, or on a list, its filters and the rows you've ticked.

Your task	Be on this page first	Then
Change Sales Invoice	A Sales Invoice, or the list	Turn on the page toggle and describe the change
Create a print format	A record of the target DocType	Turn it on and attach a sample PDF or image of the layout
Add a custom field	A record of the target DocType	Turn it on and give the field's name, type and where it goes
Fix a workflow	A document that uses the workflow	Turn it on and describe the state or transition to change

"Add a field to this form" with the page shared works far better than describing a DocType from memory three screens away. Attach files for anything the page can't show: an old system's screenshots, a PDF of a process, a spreadsheet of field mappings, or a spec.

Requests that work well

Accounts

• "Block submitting a Purchase Invoice when the bill date is older than the posting date."
• "Add a Payment Terms Approved check to Sales Invoice that only Accounts Managers can tick."
• "Create a script report of unpaid invoices older than 60 days, by customer, with the total outstanding."

Sales

• "Every morning, email each salesperson their quotations that expire this week."
• "Make Customer Group mandatory on Customer, and default it to Commercial."
• "Add a Lost Reason select field on Opportunity and show it in the list view."

HR

• "Set up a Leave Application workflow: Employee → Reporting Manager → HR, with HR able to send it back."
• "Email HR when an employee's probation ends in the next 14 days."

Consultants and IT

• "Explain how this site's naming series for Sales Invoice works." (Ask mode)
• "Create a DocType Site Visit with a child table of Findings, linked to Customer, and add it to the Selling workspace."
• "List every custom field on Sales Order and say which ones are mandatory." (Ask mode)

Big pieces of work

For a whole module or a long checklist:

1. Write the requirements down first, as a Markdown or Word file with the tasks and how you'll know each one is done.
2. Attach it in a new chat, switch to Plan, and ask for the first few tasks only: "Build tasks 1 to 3 from the attached spec."
3. Check the result, then start a new chat for the next batch. Say what already exists: "The Site Visit DocType is done. Now add the approval workflow."

Credits and modes

What you do	Typical cost	Tip
Ask a question	1 credit	Use Ask with the page toggle on. It's read-only and safe to explore.
A small change	2 credits	Fast is fine when the change is small and clear
A build: a workflow, report or script	10 credits	Use Plan, one focused task per chat
A big plan and build	20 credits	Split it into phases

HydraAI pauses at your credit limit, with no overage. See Credits and usage.

When answers start drifting

If replies get vague, skip steps or mix up earlier work, stop and start a new chat with only the next task and the files it needs. The old chat stays under Past chats.

Next

• What HydraAI can't do
• Plans and builds