Post a rendered video to Slack when integration fails
Recently I had a package stolen. Task: Recently I had a package stolen. Amazon told me it would take about 25 minutes to connect me to a person, so I gave the thread Computer Use and told it to check every five minutes. Once someone joined, check every minute and do its best to get me a refund. I went to take a shower. When I came back, the refund was done. That was when Computer Use clicked for me. Codex is not just a coding agent. Most of my work is messages, forms, browser tabs, and apps that do not connect neatly to anything else. Codex now has three ways to work there: My rule is to use the narrowest tool that can finish the job. If a plugin works, use it. If the task needs a screen, choose among these three. 1. Computer Use: almost any app¶ Computer Use is the most powerful option and usually the slowest. It can operate Spotify, finance apps, System Settings, or iPhone Mirroring. But it has to look at the screen, click, wait, and look again. On a Mac, it can work in the background while you keep using your computer. On Windows, it takes over the active desktop. Install it from Settings > Computer Use. On macOS, grant Screen Recording and Accessibility permissions. Then mention @Computer, mention an app directly with @AppName, or just ask Codex to use Computer Use. The stolen-package example also shows the difference between a Goal and a thread automation. The Goal was to get the refund. The automation woke the thread every five minutes, then every minute when the agent appeared. One supplied the finish line; the other let Codex wait without forgetting the job. People are already using it for stranger things¶ I asked people for the most ambitious things they had done with Computer Use. Someone applied for a Schengen visa. Someone else paid monthly Airbnb taxes through a county website. One person repaired a virus-filled PC through a reboot loop. Another used iPhone Mirroring for iOS Screen Time. I immediately wondered whether the same setup could operate a dating app. I have also used Computer Use as the last mile when another tool stopped short. One thread read feedback from Slack, changed a video, and rendered a new version. The Slack integration could not upload files, so Computer Use clicked Add file and posted it. Appshots let me point¶ An Appshot sends the frontmost Mac window to a Codex thread. Press both Command keys, then say what you want. I use this for emails, Slack messages, errors, designs, settings panels, and forms. Sometimes the Appshot is enough. If Codex needs to act, I tell the same thread to continue with Computer Use. Appshots are how I point. Computer Use is how Codex acts. Remote Control lets me leave¶ Remote Control lets me start or steer the same work from my phone. In the Codex app, click Set up Codex mobile, scan the QR code, and connect ChatGPT mobile. The host stays awake and online; the work still runs there with its projects, plugins, Chrome setup, and Computer Use permissions. Thomas Ricouard has been pushing this part of Codex forward. He started with Codex Monitor, where every active and past session was visible so you could jump back into the work. Codex Mobile now has notifications when work finishes and better reconnection, followed by /side conversations. Remote Control is becoming less like a status screen and more like Codex in your pocket. I let Computer Use research and draft. I stay present for payments, credentials, account changes, and security settings. Follow Ari Weinstein for Computer Use and Appshots, and Thomas for Codex Mobile and Remote Control. 2. Chrome: your signed-in browser¶ Use the Chrome extension when Codex needs your Chrome profile, cookies, extensions, or an authenticated site. It can control several tabs in a thread and keep working in its tab group while you use Chrome elsewhere. Open Plugins, add Chrome, and install the Codex Chrome extension. Once it says Connected, mention @Chrome. Make the music more interesting¶ In one thread, I gave Codex an open Strudel Composer tab and told it to make the music more interesting. It rewrote the harmony and arrangement, changed the tempo, saved the track, and left it playing. A thread that watches Twitter¶ I also keep a Twitter thread that uses Chrome to check DMs, read news, and collect product feedback. It writes anything durable to my vault but does not post or send messages. That is my default boundary for Chrome: research and draft freely; ask before sending, publishing, purchasing, or submitting. 3. The in-app browser: review and annotate¶; tools: Codex. Human role: The original post describes the human role this way: That is my default boundary for Chrome: research and draft freely; ask before sending, publishing, purchasing, or submitting.; limitations: Prerequisites include installing Codex Computer Use, granting Screen Recording and Accessibility permissions on macOS, and having the Slack desktop app open. The process is slower than API-based integrations because it relies on visual recognition and clicking. Human approval is strictly required before any publishing or sending action to prevent unauthorized posts..
Tools
Published on Agent Work Atlas:
Overview
Recently I had a package stolen.
Workflow
Recently I had a package stolen. Amazon told me it would take about 25 minutes to connect me to a person, so I gave the thread Computer Use and told it to check every five minutes. Once someone joined, check every minute and do its best to get me a refund. I went to take a shower. When I came back, the refund was done. That was when Computer Use clicked for me. Codex is not just a coding agent. Most of my work is messages, forms, browser tabs, and apps that do not connect neatly to anything else. Codex now has three ways to work there: My rule is to use the narrowest tool that can finish the job. If a plugin works, use it. If the task needs a screen, choose among these three. 1. Computer Use: almost any app¶ Computer Use is the most powerful option and usually the slowest. It can operate Spotify, finance apps, System Settings, or iPhone Mirroring. But it has to look at the screen, click, wait, and look again. On a Mac, it can work in the background while you keep using your computer. On Windows, it takes over the active desktop. Install it from Settings > Computer Use. On macOS, grant Screen Recording and Accessibility permissions. Then mention @Computer, mention an app directly with @AppName, or just ask Codex to use Computer Use. The stolen-package example also shows the difference between a Goal and a thread automation. The Goal was to get the refund. The automation woke the thread every five minutes, then every minute when the agent appeared. One supplied the finish line; the other let Codex wait without forgetting the job. People are already using it for stranger things¶ I asked people for the most ambitious things they had done with Computer Use. Someone applied for a Schengen visa. Someone else paid monthly Airbnb taxes through a county website. One person repaired a virus-filled PC through a reboot loop. Another used iPhone Mirroring for iOS Screen Time. I immediately wondered whether the same setup could operate a dating app. I have also used Computer Use as the last mile when another tool stopped short. One thread read feedback from Slack, changed a video, and rendered a new version. The Slack integration could not upload files, so Computer Use clicked Add file and posted it. Appshots let me point¶ An Appshot sends the frontmost Mac window to a Codex thread. Press both Command keys, then say what you want. I use this for emails, Slack messages, errors, designs, settings panels, and forms. Sometimes the Appshot is enough. If Codex needs to act, I tell the same thread to continue with Computer Use. Appshots are how I point. Computer Use is how Codex acts. Remote Control lets me leave¶ Remote Control lets me start or steer the same work from my phone. In the Codex app, click Set up Codex mobile, scan the QR code, and connect ChatGPT mobile. The host stays awake and online; the work still runs there with its projects, plugins, Chrome setup, and Computer Use permissions. Thomas Ricouard has been pushing this part of Codex forward. He started with Codex Monitor, where every active and past session was visible so you could jump back into the work. Codex Mobile now has notifications when work finishes and better reconnection, followed by /side conversations. Remote Control is becoming less like a status screen and more like Codex in your pocket. I let Computer Use research and draft. I stay present for payments, credentials, account changes, and security settings. Follow Ari Weinstein for Computer Use and Appshots, and Thomas for Codex Mobile and Remote Control. 2. Chrome: your signed-in browser¶ Use the Chrome extension when Codex needs your Chrome profile, cookies, extensions, or an authenticated site. It can control several tabs in a thread and keep working in its tab group while you use Chrome elsewhere. Open Plugins, add Chrome, and install the Codex Chrome extension. Once it says Connected, mention @Chrome. Make the music more interesting¶ In one thread, I gave Codex an open Strudel Composer tab and told it to make the music more interesting. It rewrote the harmony and arrangement, changed the tempo, saved the track, and left it playing. A thread that watches Twitter¶ I also keep a Twitter thread that uses Chrome to check DMs, read news, and collect product feedback. It writes anything durable to my vault but does not post or send messages. That is my default boundary for Chrome: research and draft freely; ask before sending, publishing, purchasing, or submitting. 3. The in-app browser: review and annotate¶
Reported result
The source describes a successful instance where Computer Use completed the file upload and posting after the integration failed. However, no specific metrics, time savings, or error rates are reported for this workflow. The outcome is anecdotal, confirming that the agent can interact with native apps to bypass API limitations.
Human role
The original post describes the human role this way: That is my default boundary for Chrome: research and draft freely; ask before sending, publishing, purchasing, or submitting.
Limitations
Prerequisites include installing Codex Computer Use, granting Screen Recording and Accessibility permissions on macOS, and having the Slack desktop app open. The process is slower than API-based integrations because it relies on visual recognition and clicking. Human approval is strictly required before any publishing or sending action to prevent unauthorized posts.
Try it
I need to post a rendered video to a specific Slack channel because the standard integration failed. Use Codex with Computer Use enabled. First, verify the video file [replaceable: path/to/video.mp4] exists and is ready. Open the Slack desktop app and navigate to channel [replaceable: #channel-name]. Click the 'Add file' button, select the video, and prepare the message with text [replaceable: message text]. Do NOT click send yet. Take a screenshot of the prepared post and show it to me for approval. Once I confirm, click send. If the UI changes unexpectedly or the file selection fails, stop and report the error. Ensure you have Screen Recording permissions enabled before starting.
Source reports are not independently verified. Publication date is the catalog publication date, not the original article date.