# Ask Mode

**Ask Mode** provides a simple, conversational way to use DinoAI without changing any files in your project. It’s ideal for quick questions, learning dbt™, and getting high‑level guidance.

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### Opening Ask Mode

1. Click the **DinoAI icon** (🪄) in the right panel of the Code IDE.
2. At the top of the DinoAI panel, click on the **Agent Mode On** Button to toggle **Ask Mode**.
3. Type your question in natural language and press **Enter**.

You can paste code snippets, SQL queries, error messages, or short pieces of documentation directly into the chat for DinoAI to review.

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### What Ask Mode is Best For

Use Ask Mode when you want DinoAI to:

* **Explain concepts** – e.g. dbt™ features, Paradime workflows, or SQL patterns
* **Review pasted code** – by copying a model, macro, or YAML snippet into the chat
* **Help debug errors** – by pasting terminal output or stack traces
* **Brainstorm approaches** – for model design, testing strategy, or project structure
* **Answer “how do I…?” questions** – without touching your project files

Ask Mode is read‑only: it will never create, edit, or delete files in your repository.

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### Credits and Limitations

Ask Mode is designed to be lightweight:

* **Ask Mode does&#x20;*****not*****&#x20;consume DinoAI credits.**
* Because it is credit‑free, **Ask Mode also does&#x20;*****not*****&#x20;use tools or integrations**.

In Ask Mode, DinoAI:

* **Cannot read your project files automatically**
* **Cannot access added context** from File, Directory, or Terminal context
* **Cannot use tools** such as Warehouse, File System, PDF, Jira, Linear, Perplexity, or Terminal tools
* Only sees **what you type or paste** into the conversation

If you need DinoAI to:

* Inspect your project structure
* Read or modify files directly
* Use your data warehouse metadata
* Pull in external context (Jira, PDFs, web search, etc.)

…then switch to **Agent Mode**, which can use tools and will consume credits.

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### Ask Mode vs Agent Mode

Choose the mode that matches your task:

* **Ask Mode**
  * No credits used
  * No access to files or tools
  * Best for learning, Q\&A, and reviewing copied snippets
* **Agent Mode**
  * Uses credits when processing text and calling tools
  * Can read and modify files, use warehouse metadata, and work with external systems
  * Best for automating dbt™ development and workflow tasks

You can switch between Ask Mode and Agent Mode at any time from the top of the DinoAI panel.


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# Agent Instructions: Querying This Documentation

If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation dynamically by asking a question.

Perform an HTTP GET request on the current page URL with the `ask` query parameter:

```
GET https://docs.paradime.io/app-help/documentation/dino-ai/ask-mode.md?ask=<question>
```

The question should be specific, self-contained, and written in natural language.
The response will contain a direct answer to the question and relevant excerpts and sources from the documentation.

Use this mechanism when the answer is not explicitly present in the current page, you need clarification or additional context, or you want to retrieve related documentation sections.