fix(native-chat): chat failure messages appear in the app's language

mobile/src/session/mobile-structured-queued-message-cards.test.ts

@@ -239,6 +239,28 @@ describe('mobileQueuedMessageCards', () => {
     expect(card?.caption).toBe('Words for a kind a newer host added.')
   })
 
+  it("shows the host's sentence for a fact this build cannot read all of, as the desktop card", () => {
+    const reason = "Claude couldn't start. Start a new chat to continue."
+    // As a newer host sends it: a known code with a reason this build doesn't know.
+    const newer = {
+      kind: 'startFailed',
+      refusal: { code: 'agent_session_conflict', details: { reason: 'newerReason' } }
+    }
+    const [card] = mobileQueuedMessageCards(
+      [
+        draft({
+          messageId: 'a',
+          state: 'returned',
+          returnedReason: reason,
+          returnedRejection: newer
+        })
+      ],
+      [],
+      { pendingPrompt: false }
+    )
+    expect(card?.caption).toBe(reason)
+  })
+
   it('maps the send-failed pause marker to English and an unknown marker to a plain pause', () => {
     const cards = mobileQueuedMessageCards(
       [

mobile/src/session/mobile-structured-queued-message-cards.ts

@@ -2,7 +2,7 @@
 // The wire carries no hold copy on purpose: the caption is derived here from the
 // draft's own state plus the live facts the client already holds.
 
-import { readAgentSessionFailureFact } from '../../../src/shared/agent-session-failure'
+import { readWholeAgentSessionFailureFact } from '../../../src/shared/agent-session-failure'
 import type { AgentJournalSubmission } from '../../../src/shared/agent-session-journal-types'
 import { agentSessionWriteNoticeEnglish } from '../../../src/shared/agent-session-refusal-notice'
 import { dispatchWasWithdrawn } from '../../../src/shared/structured-agent-session-dispatch-rejection'
@@ -37,13 +37,13 @@ function returnedCaption(
   if (dispatchWasWithdrawn({ dispatchState: 'rejected', reason, rejection })) {
     return 'Stopped before it was sent'
   }
-  // Worded as the desktop card words it: the fact decides, the reason is the fallback, and the
-  // card's own Send is the retry, so the words leave out sending again.
+  // Worded as the desktop card words it: a fact read whole decides, the host's reason is the
+  // fallback, and the card's own Send is the retry, so the words leave out sending again.
   return agentSessionWriteNoticeEnglish(
     structuredAgentSessionAttemptFailureParts(
       { kind: 'rejected', reason },
       { retryControl: true },
-      readAgentSessionFailureFact(rejection)
+      readWholeAgentSessionFailureFact(rejection)
     )
   )
 }

src/renderer/src/components/native-chat/NativeChatEmptyState.tsx

@@ -1,26 +1,33 @@
 import { MessageSquare, TriangleAlert } from 'lucide-react'
 import { translate } from '@/i18n/i18n'
 import { formatAgentTypeLabel } from '@/lib/agent-status'
-import { NATIVE_CHAT_EMPTY_STATE_COPY } from '../../../../shared/native-chat-empty-state'
+import {
+  NATIVE_CHAT_EMPTY_STATE_COPY,
+  NATIVE_CHAT_KEEPS_TRYING_COPY
+} from '../../../../shared/native-chat-empty-state'
 import type { NativeChatSession } from '../../../../shared/native-chat-types'
 
 export function NativeChatEmptyState({
   kind,
   message,
   headline,
+  headlineSaysUnread = false,
   agent,
   retrying = false
 }: {
   kind: 'loading' | 'empty' | 'error' | 'not-agent'
   message?: string
   /** The chat's own sentence for the failure, said once: it takes the generic title's place. */
   headline?: string
+  /** The headline already says the history didn't load, so the retrying line says only that
+   *  Orca keeps trying. */
+  headlineSaysUnread?: boolean
   agent?: NativeChatSession['agent']
   /** The read retries on its own (structured chat), so the error says so instead of pointing
    *  back to the terminal. */
   retrying?: boolean
 }): React.JSX.Element {
-  const copy = emptyStateCopy(kind, { message, headline }, agent, retrying)
+  const copy = emptyStateCopy(kind, { message, headline, headlineSaysUnread }, agent, retrying)
   return (
     <div className="flex h-full w-full flex-col items-center justify-center gap-3 p-6 text-center">
       <div
@@ -46,7 +53,7 @@ export function NativeChatEmptyState({
 
 function emptyStateCopy(
   kind: 'loading' | 'empty' | 'error' | 'not-agent',
-  words: { message?: string; headline?: string },
+  words: { message?: string; headline?: string; headlineSaysUnread?: boolean },
   agent?: NativeChatSession['agent'],
   retrying = false
 ): { title: string; subtitle: string | null } {
@@ -63,12 +70,17 @@ function emptyStateCopy(
         )
       }
     case 'error': {
-      const retryingLine = retrying
-        ? translate(
-            'components.native-chat.state.error.retryingSubtitle',
-            NATIVE_CHAT_EMPTY_STATE_COPY.retryingError.subtitle
-          )
-        : null
+      const retryingLine = !retrying
+        ? null
+        : words.headline && words.headlineSaysUnread
+          ? translate(
+              'components.native-chat.state.error.keepsTrying',
+              NATIVE_CHAT_KEEPS_TRYING_COPY
+            )
+          : translate(
+              'components.native-chat.state.error.retryingSubtitle',
+              NATIVE_CHAT_EMPTY_STATE_COPY.retryingError.subtitle
+            )
       if (words.headline) {
         return { title: words.headline, subtitle: retryingLine }
       }

src/renderer/src/components/native-chat/NativeChatLaunchRetry.tsx

@@ -4,6 +4,7 @@ import { translate } from '@/i18n/i18n'
 import type { StructuredAgentSessionLaunchLifecycle } from '@/lib/structured-agent-session-launch'
 import { agentSessionRefusalCauseParts } from '../../../../shared/agent-session-refusal-notice'
 import type { AgentSessionWriteRefusal } from '../../../../shared/agent-session-write-failure'
+import { joinSentences } from '../../../../shared/sentence-joining'
 import { agentSessionWriteNoticeText } from './agent-session-write-notice-text'
 
 export function NativeChatLaunchRetry({
@@ -41,8 +42,7 @@ export function NativeChatLaunchRetry({
   return (
     <div className="mx-auto flex w-full max-w-4xl items-center justify-between gap-3 px-4 py-1 text-xs text-destructive">
       <span className="min-w-0 break-words">
-        {message}
-        {cause ? ` ${cause}` : null}
+        {cause ? joinSentences([message, cause]) : message}
       </span>
       <Button type="button" variant="ghost" size="xs" onClick={onRetry}>
         <RotateCcw className="size-3" />

src/renderer/src/components/native-chat/NativeChatQueuedMessageCard.tsx

@@ -19,7 +19,7 @@ import { ShortcutKeyCombo } from '@/components/ShortcutKeyCombo'
 import { translate } from '@/i18n/i18n'
 import { structuredAgentSessionAttemptFailureParts } from '../../../../shared/structured-agent-session-send-disposition'
 import { classifyDispatchRejection } from '../../../../shared/structured-agent-session-dispatch-rejection'
-import { readAgentSessionFailureFact } from '../../../../shared/agent-session-failure'
+import { readWholeAgentSessionFailureFact } from '../../../../shared/agent-session-failure'
 import { agentSessionWriteNoticeText } from './agent-session-write-notice-text'
 import { QUEUED_MESSAGE_PAUSED_SEND_FAILED } from '../../../../shared/agent-session-wire'
 import { isMacPlatform } from './native-chat-shortcut'
@@ -47,7 +47,7 @@ export function queuedMessageCardCaption(card: QueuedMessageCard): string | null
           { kind: 'rejected', reason },
           // The card's own Send is the retry, so the words leave out sending again.
           { retryControl: true },
-          readAgentSessionFailureFact(card.returnedRejection)
+          readWholeAgentSessionFailureFact(card.returnedRejection)
         )
       )
     }

src/renderer/src/components/native-chat/NativeChatQueuedMessageList.test.tsx

@@ -167,6 +167,25 @@ describe('NativeChatQueuedMessageList', () => {
     expect(row.textContent).not.toContain('Your message was not sent.')
   })
 
+  it("shows the host's sentence for a fact this build cannot read all of", () => {
+    const reason = "Claude couldn't start. Start a new chat to continue."
+    renderList(
+      controller([
+        card({
+          messageId: 'newer',
+          state: 'returned',
+          hold: 'returned',
+          returnedReason: reason,
+          // As a newer host sends it: a known code with a reason this build doesn't know.
+          returnedRejection: JSON.parse(
+            '{ "kind": "startFailed", "refusal": { "code": "agent_session_conflict", "details": { "reason": "newerReason" } } }'
+          )
+        })
+      ])
+    )
+    expect(screen.getByRole('listitem').textContent).toContain(reason)
+  })
+
   it('the words leave out sending again: the card offers its own Send', () => {
     renderList(
       controller([

src/renderer/src/components/native-chat/NativeChatStructuredSession.read-error.test.tsx

@@ -39,7 +39,9 @@ function renderPane(): void {
   )
 }
 
-function journalRefusal(reason: 'journalCorrupt' | 'journalUnavailable') {
+function journalRefusal(
+  reason: 'journalCorrupt' | 'journalUnavailable' | 'journalWrittenByNewerOrca'
+) {
   return { code: 'agent_session_journal_unreadable', details: { reason } } as const
 }
 
@@ -80,10 +82,38 @@ it("names a history that couldn't open right now once, and that the pane keeps t
 
   expect(screen.getAllByText("Orca couldn't open this chat's history right now.")).toHaveLength(1)
   expect(screen.queryByText('Could not load conversation')).toBeNull()
+  // The title already says the history didn't open, so the line under it says only the retrying.
+  expect(screen.getByText('Orca keeps trying to load it.')).toBeTruthy()
+  expect(screen.queryByText(/could not be read/)).toBeNull()
+  expect(screen.queryByText(/Try again/)).toBeNull()
+})
+
+it("says only that it keeps trying under a code's own words that the history didn't load", () => {
+  mocks.status = 'error'
+  mocks.readRefusal = {
+    code: 'agent_session_checkpoint_stale',
+    details: { reason: 'fenceStale' }
+  } as const
+  mocks.messages = []
+
+  renderPane()
+
+  expect(screen.getAllByText("This chat's history couldn't be loaded.")).toHaveLength(1)
+  expect(screen.getByText('Orca keeps trying to load it.')).toBeTruthy()
+  expect(screen.queryByText(/could not be read/)).toBeNull()
+})
+
+it('keeps the whole retrying line under a newer Orca\'s words, which name no one chat for "it"', () => {
+  mocks.status = 'error'
+  mocks.readRefusal = journalRefusal('journalWrittenByNewerOrca')
+  mocks.messages = []
+
+  renderPane()
+
+  expect(screen.getByText(/^Chats were saved by a newer Orca\./)).toBeTruthy()
   expect(
     screen.getByText('The transcript could not be read. Orca keeps trying to load it.')
   ).toBeTruthy()
-  expect(screen.queryByText(/Try again/)).toBeNull()
 })
 
 it('says only that it is reconnecting, not as an error, when a failure names nothing', () => {

src/renderer/src/components/native-chat/NativeChatStructuredSession.tsx

@@ -270,7 +270,9 @@ export function NativeChatStructuredSession(
           <NativeChatEmptyState
             kind="error"
             retrying={!readFailure?.final}
-            {...(readFailure?.named ? { headline: readFailure.text } : {})}
+            {...(readFailure?.named
+              ? { headline: readFailure.text, headlineSaysUnread: readFailure.saysUnread }
+              : {})}
           />
         ) : viewState.kind === 'empty' ? (
           <NativeChatEmptyState kind="empty" agent={props.agent} />