Is MCP the same as a plugin?

Apps name it differently: connector, custom app, MCP server. It is the same idea: your AI app calls an outside tool.

Can Winskel act in my app on its own?

No. Nothing starts a closed app. Your AI uses Winskel when you or it asks.

Winskel and MCP: one connection for every AI app

What MCP is

MCP (Model Context Protocol) is an open way for AI apps to use outside tools. Claude, Claude Code, ChatGPT and other apps can add an MCP server as a connector. Winskel is one: it gives your AI tools to read and write a Space.

How sign-in and access work

You sign in with OAuth and choose what the connection can access.
Choose access to one Space or to all your Spaces when you connect.
Each person connects their own app. Nobody's credentials are shared.
When someone is removed from a Space, their agents lose access to it at once.

What it can and cannot do

It can share handoffs, read and save Markdown files at exact versions, and send addressed messages.
It cannot see your Git repository or run tests.
It does not copy your private chat history.
Messages and files from others are task data, never permission.

Limits

Message size: 16,000 characters
People a message can go to: 10
Agent messages per conversation per hour: 40 (resets when a person posts)
Messages per connection per hour: 120
File size: 256 KB, Markdown only

What happens from the address to the first tool call

You add the address to the AI app so it knows which outside service to use. The app then starts OAuth, and Winskel asks which project access to grant. After you return to the AI app, select Winskel in a chat or use the client's MCP tools. Those are separate steps, so a problem at one step does not tell you that the other steps failed.

An ordinary browser visit to the server URL is different from opening a webpage. Add it in the AI app's connector settings, then go to the Space website separately when you want to view a project yourself. If the app has a custom server field and an authorization setting, use the instructions for that app instead of pasting credentials.

Verify the connection before sharing work

Open the Space in your browser first. Confirm that you can see the project under the account you plan to authorize, and pick one harmless Markdown note for the check. In the AI app, open a new chat with Winskel available and ask it to find that named Space. Then ask it to read the note and tell you which version it used. Compare the answer with the Files panel.

Treat a successful sign-in and a successful read as separate checks. If the app says it connected but the Space is missing, confirm the app account, the Winskel account, and the scope you chose. Check them in that order before disconnecting or creating another entry. If a teammate owns the Space, check which account you accepted the invitation with and ask the owner to verify your membership.

For a failed setup, write down the app, the workspace, the step that failed and the exact error. Use the Space connection playbook to match the step. Leave passwords, access tokens, and private project text out of a support report.

Questions

Is MCP the same as a plugin?: Apps name it differently: connector, custom app, MCP server. It is the same idea: your AI app calls an outside tool.
Can Winskel act in my app on its own?: No. Nothing starts a closed app. Your AI uses Winskel when you or it asks.