Product Update Newsletter

Product Update Newsletter

Announce a desktop release to users through the "Anarlog update (...)" campaign in Loops.

Run this after ../new-changelog/SKILL.md produces the entry and the version is released via ../release-new-version/SKILL.md. The published changelog is the copy source, not the raw commit log.

Nightly announcement

The newsletter follows stable releases. Do not send a newsletter for each Nightly. In the next stable update, include the opt-in Nightly announcement from nightly-announcement.md, alongside that stable release's changelog. Existing users remain on stable automatically.

Before describing Nightly as available, verify its published installers, update feed, and https://anarlog.so/download/nightly/. Use the released stable changelog as the main source; Nightly-only changes are not shipped stable features. Nightly release notes live in the app and GitHub prereleases, not the website changelog. Prepare copy locally before publication is ready; create or update the Loops campaign once the stable release and linked Nightly are live.

Source of Truth

Read https://anarlog.so/changelog/<version>, which renders packages/changelog/content/<version>.md.

The changelog is frequently edited after first publish. When told it changed, re-fetch and diff against the current email body, then apply only the delta. Do not reapply the whole rewrite.

Map items to the existing structure rather than appending a dump:

• Feature-level items become or extend an H3 section.
• Minor UX items become bullets under "Small things that add up".
• Reliability and privacy items append to the fixes paragraph after the bullets.

Keep beta or partially shipped work honestly qualified. If execution is not connected yet, say so.

Copy Style Contract

Write a product email, not an essay. Keep it crisp, concrete, and easy to scan.

• Open with what shipped and when. Prefer We shipped four releases since last week. Anarlog 1.4.8 is here. over scene-setting such as If you've been putting off updating, this is the one to take or It folds in four releases.
• If encouraging an update, use explicit loss framing tied to named features: If you aren't updating, you're missing out on Automations that run after every meeting, editable transcripts, meeting imports, and near-instant sync. Do not use vague hype, guilt, or blame.
• Lead with outcomes and specific numbers: 30 assistants, eight connect directly, about a second. Cut adjectives when a fact can do the work.
• Use short, active H3 headings such as Automations do the work now, Transcripts you can fix, and Sync you stop thinking about.
• Keep most paragraphs to one to three sentences. Split long chains, remove repeated setup, and do not restate the same framing in both the intro and fixes paragraph.
• Use contractions and direct verbs. Last week ... This week ... is a useful cadence when it connects one update to the next. Avoid cutesy transitions such as Now they earn it and vague phrases such as Accuracy got quieter improvements.
• Keep subjects compact and noun-led: Anarlog 1.4.8: automations, meeting imports, instant sync. Preview text should front-load concrete outcomes and stay near 90 to 140 characters.
• Self-critical language belongs only when Anarlog or the company was actually at fault. Never add an apology merely to sound personal.
• Read the final copy aloud and cut anything that can disappear without losing a fact, instruction, or point of view. Changelog lists are allowed; do not force prose just to avoid a list.

Campaign Setup

Duplicate the most recent "Anarlog update (...)" campaign from the Loops Home page so sender, reply-to, section headings, Download button, and footer are inherited, then rename to the new date.

Campaign metrics pages show only send/open/click stats. Use the compose view to edit content.

Body Structure Contract

Every section is exactly this block sequence, and edits must preserve it:

H3 heading
P (empty spacer)
DIV.editor-image
P (empty spacer)
P (body text)

Verify before finishing:

await page.evaluate(() => {
  const blocks = [...document.querySelector(".ContentEditable__root").children];
  return blocks
    .filter((b) => b.tagName === "H3")
    .map((h) => {
      const i = blocks.indexOf(h);
      return (
        h.innerText +
        " -> " +
        blocks
          .slice(i + 1, i + 4)
          .map((x) =>
            x.className.includes("editor-image")
              ? "IMG"
              : x.innerText.trim() === ""
                ? "SP"
                : "TXT",
          )
          .join(",")
      );
    });
});

Editing the Lexical Body

The body is div.ContentEditable__root. The page has several [contenteditable="true"] elements (Sender, From, Reply, Subject, Preview, body). Match on distinctive existing text, never a cached index or ref. Before any multi-block pass, rescan the full block map and resolve targets again. The user may edit concurrently, so a previously correct fixed index can shift and corrupt headings, bullets, or the greeting. ### creates an H3 and - creates a bullet.

Reliable mid-document replacement is Range-select then type:

async function selectTextInBody(searchStr) {
  return await page.evaluate((str) => {
    const root = document.querySelector(".ContentEditable__root");
    const walker = document.createTreeWalker(root, NodeFilter.SHOW_TEXT);
    let node;
    while ((node = walker.nextNode())) {
      const idx = node.textContent.indexOf(str);
      if (idx !== -1) {
        root.focus();
        const range = document.createRange();
        range.setStart(node, idx);
        range.setEnd(node, idx + str.length);
        const sel = window.getSelection();
        sel.removeAllRanges();
        sel.addRange(range);
        node.parentElement.scrollIntoView({ block: "center" });
        return true;
      }
    }
    return false;
  }, searchStr);
}

Repeat per occurrence for multi-hit edits such as version bumps.

Failure Modes

These corrupt the document silently. All four were observed in practice.

• Range selection on the first block reverses typed characters, so "Hi," becomes ",iH". Lexical resets the caret to offset 0 per keystroke there. Use a native mouse triple-click, then type.
• Meta+ArrowUp does not reliably reach document start. It has appended to the end of the current block instead. Triple-click the target block.
• Coordinates read in the same evaluate() as scrollIntoView are stale, so clicks land in the wrong block and keystrokes corrupt unrelated sections. Scroll, sleep(600), then re-read the rect in a second evaluate().
• Pressing Enter with an active Range selection deletes the selected text. Press End or Home first.

Verify caret placement before typing:

const ok = await page.evaluate(() => {
  const sel = window.getSelection();
  const blocks = [...document.querySelector(".ContentEditable__root").children];
  const target = blocks[TARGET_INDEX];
  const anchorBlock = sel.anchorNode
    ? (sel.anchorNode.nodeType === 1
        ? sel.anchorNode
        : sel.anchorNode.parentElement
      ).closest(".ContentEditable__root > *")
    : null;
  return anchorBlock === target;
});

If false, click the horizontal middle of the block's text rather than its left edge.

After any structural repair, scan all blocks for stray empty paragraphs, duplicated greetings, and leftover / or /image text.

Inserting an Image

The slash menu triggers a native file chooser. Arm the listener before opening the menu.

const fcPromise = page
  .waitForEvent("filechooser", { timeout: 15000 })
  .catch(() => null);
await page.keyboard.type("/", { delay: 200 });
await sleep(700);
await page.keyboard.type("image", { delay: 120 });
await sleep(700);
const btn = await page.evaluate(() => {
  const menu = [...document.querySelectorAll("div.fixed")].find((el) =>
    el.className.toString().includes("z-[100]"),
  );
  const img =
    menu &&
    [...menu.querySelectorAll("button")].find(
      (b) => b.textContent.trim() === "Image",
    );
  const r = img.getBoundingClientRect();
  return { cx: r.x + r.width / 2, cy: r.y + r.height / 2 };
});
await page.mouse.click(btn.cx, btn.cy);
const fc = await fcPromise;
await fc.setFiles("/abs/path/to/image.png");

• The caret must sit in an empty paragraph, and / needs delay >= 150 or a literal / is typed.
• The menu is a scrollable div.fixed.z-[100]. Unfiltered, the Image item under MEDIA sits below the visible scroll area, so clicking its reported rect hits the page behind and silently closes the menu. Typing image filters the list and brings it into view.
• Enter and ArrowDown+Enter do not activate the item. Only a mouse click works.
• Poll until img.src contains images.vialoops.com to confirm the upload finished.
• Insertion consumes the empty paragraph, so re-add the trailing spacer.

Replace an image by clicking it to select the block, pressing Backspace, then re-running the flow. Capture existing images.vialoops.com URLs before editing so a deleted image can be re-downloaded and restored.

Section Art

Generate with Midjourney using the established house style:

dithered. [short concept]. bright white sunshine, cheerful, high key. --ar 4:3 --profile aofpoq2

• Target bright, high-key, airy, light-background results. Reject dim or dystopian output.
• Prefer scene compositions, an object in a sunlit room, over flat grids or UI mockups. Grids do not match the existing set.
• The Personalize "P" toggle may fail to activate, leaving data-active="false". Appending --profile aofpoq2 to the prompt text works and produces the profile chip.
• Poll for completion by watching for \d+% Complete to disappear from document.body.innerText.

cdn.midjourney.com returns a Cloudflare challenge to Node-side fetch(). Download full resolution inside the authenticated tab, where jobId comes from the grid thumbnail cdn.midjourney.com/<jobId>/0_<n>_640_N.webp:

const b64 = await mjPage.evaluate(async (u) => {
  const r = await fetch(u);
  const blob = await r.blob();
  return await new Promise((res) => {
    const fr = new FileReader();
    fr.onload = () => res(fr.result.split(",")[1]);
    fr.readAsDataURL(blob);
  });
}, `https://cdn.midjourney.com/${jobId}/0_${variant}.png`);

Pre-Send Audit

Run before sending and report pass or fail per item.

Automated:

• Version string consistent across subject and body, with no prior version anywhere.
• Every changelog item is represented in the copy, including contributor thanks when a change came from someone outside the Fastrepl org.
• All H3 sections match the SP,IMG,SP pattern.
• All images report complete && naturalWidth > 0.
• No stray artifacts: /image, orphan /, double spaces, duplicated greeting.
• Sign-off block intact.

Manual judgment:

• Sender, From, and Reply fields correct. Flag any reply-to change, since the body promises a personal reply and any call for testers routes to the same address.
• Preview text length. Clients truncate near 90 to 140 characters, so front-load the important content.
• The Download button URL lives in editor state, not the DOM. Click the button block and read the Link textbox in the right sidebar.
• State explicitly that only the Compose step was audited unless Audience, Schedule, and Goals were also checked.

Reporting

Restate what changed in plain language, quote the new copy, and attach a screenshot of edited sections. Disclose any self-inflicted document damage and its repair rather than hiding it.