Focus rooms: everything you can do
A focus room is more than cameras and a timer. This is the tour of what you can do inside one, with pointers to the
deep-dive guides. Most of these features are on the web app (app.studystream.live); the mobile app keeps rooms simpler,
and each section says what applies there.
Ways to view the room
- Grid — everyone in the room, page by page. Use the arrows (or swipe, on touch screens) to page through; double
arrows jump 10 pages.
- Pin view — only the people you've pinned.
- Space view — your active Space, once you've joined or created one.
The view switch sits in the room's action bar. Your remaining daily time shows at the top of the page — see: Plans and
daily focus room time limits.
Can I talk with other people in the room?
Focus rooms are silent by design — everyone is muted so the room stays distraction-free. To talk or chat with specific
people while you study, create or join a Space: your own small group with voice chat, group chat, and a shared task list
that only Space members can hear and see. Full guide: Spaces: study together (and talk) in a focus room.
There's also a room chat (the chat button in the action bar) — a text channel for the whole room.
Your own video tile
Camera controls, blur and virtual backgrounds, your tile message, boost, privacy settings, and video quality all live on
the "Your video tile" panel. Full guide: Your video tile: camera, backgrounds, status and privacy.
Pins, favorites and encouragements
Pin the people who motivate you, favorite the ones you want to study with again (with mobile notifications when they
come online), send encouragements and waves, and react to tile messages. Full guide: Pins and pin reasons explained.
What is pairing (linking your tile with a friend's)?
Pairing places your video tile and a friend's tile side by side in the grid, marked with a link badge — a little
shared-desk feeling inside a big room.
- Both of you need Premium, and you must be in the same room.
- To invite: open the other person's tile menu and choose "Invite to pair". They accept from the popup that appears
for them.
- A pair lasts up to 24 hours. To end it early, hover the link badge on your tile and choose "End the session".
- You can only be in one pair at a time. If your partner leaves the room, the pair stays active (your badge remains)
until it expires or you end it.
- Don't want pair invites? Turn them off under "Pair invites" in your Privacy settings.
Pairing is web only — the mobile app doesn't have it.
Can I hide another user's video?
Yes. If someone's tile distracts you, you can hide them — they won't know, and it only changes what you see.
Hiding someone (web)
- Hover their tile and click the eye icon ("Hide user"), or open their tile menu and choose "Hide user", then confirm.
- Hiding applies everywhere and stays until you unhide them — it's not just for the current room or session. It also
removes any pin between you.
Unhiding someone (web)
Open the Participant list, go to the "All" tab, and click the eye toggle next to the search box ("Show hidden users").
You'll see everyone you've hidden, each with an "Unhide" button.
Two-way hide (Premium)
Premium users also get "Two-way hide" in the tile menu: it hides the user from your grid and prevents them from seeing
your video tile. Note that a two-way hide also removes any mutual favorite between you, and it can't be applied to
moderators.
On the mobile app
The mobile app has a simpler "Hide user" that lasts only for your current session — it resets when you leave, and it
doesn't sync with the web.
What is Focus+ (distraction-free mode)?
Focus+ strips the room down to just you and the tiles you choose, for a set time. Click "Start working" (Focus+) in the
room controls, pick a task (optionally shown publicly on your tile), choose a duration, and start.
While Focus+ is running you won't receive encouragements, Space invitations, or message notifications — and you can't
pin, unpin, or message either. Pause for a break or end it any time with the timer controls. Desktop web only, and not
available while you're in a Space.
What is Quiet Mode?
The quiet mode toggle in the room controls mutes your chat notifications for a period you choose (30 minutes to 12
hours) and lets others see you're heads-down. Notifications return automatically when the time is up.
Finding people: filters and Focus Buddies
The filters button opens filtering and sorting for the whole room: filter by gender, user type, country, or subject;
sort by most pins; or show only users with pin-for-pin on, free pin slots, or new users. "Find Focus Buddies" is the
quick version — a couple of taps to find people open to connecting.
The participant list
The participant list button (with the live participant count) opens a panel with everyone in the room and a set of tabs:
- All — everyone, searchable; also home of the hidden-users list (the eye toggle).
- Pinning — who you're pinning, with reordering and bulk encourage/wave.
- Following — people you follow who are in the room, plus suggestions of users studying the same subject or from your
country.
- Favorites — your favorites who are online.
- Pinning Me — who's pinning you (see the pins guide).
- Tasks — what people in the room are working on right now.
The globe icon shows a world map of where everyone in the room is studying from.
The list also shows a viewers count — those are people watching the room without being logged in. They're counted
separately from the members you see in the tabs.
First steps: the milestones bar
New to rooms? The milestones bar at the top walks you through the basics — join, pin someone, send an encouragement,
turn your camera on, post a tile message, complete your profile, and study your first 30 minutes. Dismiss it any time
with the X.
When you're done: session summary
"Finish session" ends your room session and shows your session summary — duration, pins, encouragements and waves
received, and any badges you earned. You can switch between your last session and the whole day, and download a
screenshot to share.
Someone is behaving badly — what do I do?
Use the in-room "Report user" option on their tile menu — rooms are moderated 24/7 and moderators act within minutes.
You can also block users so they can't interact with you at all. Full guide: Reporting users, blocking, and appealing
bans.