diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index faeae86..42ddb80 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -17,7 +17,7 @@ You can also build and run Sucker as a Docker container with `docker compose bui
 
 ### Changelog
 
-- 2.5: Fixed extraction for users whose Janitor sends a request without the blank turn before the first message — sucker read the parts by position rather than by role, so for them it read the wrong ones and errored. Now resolved by role, with tests for both shapes.
+- 2.5: Unread dot on the Changelog button. Fixed extraction for users whose Janitor sends a request without the blank turn before the first message — sucker read the parts by position rather than by role, so for them it read the wrong ones and errored. Now resolved by role, with tests for both shapes.
 - 2.4: CSS editor for Janitor profiles. New banner links to the live-preview editor at tools.from-avalon.com/janitor-profile-maker.
 - 2.3: ECHO. Put ECHO: anywhere in a message and sucker repeats whatever comes after it in the reply — for triggering char-side script and lorebook keywords.
 - 2.2: Added support for directly inputting webp file names or character image links when creating PNG character cards
diff --git a/src/app/api/proxy/route.ts b/src/app/api/proxy/route.ts
index 77607ed..5f76ed9 100644
--- a/src/app/api/proxy/route.ts
+++ b/src/app/api/proxy/route.ts
@@ -121,16 +121,16 @@ function removePersonaTags(content: string): string {
 function extractCardData(messages: Message[]): ExtractedCard {
   const { system, greeting, nameSlot } = selectMessageSlots(messages);
 
-  if (!system?.content) {
+  if (!system) {
     throw new Error("No system message: this request carries no character card.");
   }
-  if (!greeting?.content) {
+  if (!greeting) {
     throw new Error("No assistant message: this chat has no greeting to read.");
   }
 
-  const first_mes = greeting.content.replace(/{user}/g, "{{user}}");
+  const first_mes = greeting.replace(/{user}/g, "{{user}}");
 
-  const nameContent = nameSlot?.content ?? "";
+  const nameContent = nameSlot ?? "";
   // If the name slot is actually a token, ignore it for naming purposes
   const tokenInNameSlot = parseConversationToken(nameContent);
   const lastColonIndex = nameContent.lastIndexOf(": ");
@@ -140,7 +140,7 @@ function extractCardData(messages: Message[]): ExtractedCard {
     ? nameContent.substring(lastColonIndex + 2).trim()
     : "";
 
-  let content = system.content.replace(/{user}/g, "{{user}}");
+  let content = system.replace(/{user}/g, "{{user}}");
   const inferredName = extractPersonaName(content);
   content = removePersonaTags(content);
 
diff --git a/src/app/page.tsx b/src/app/page.tsx
index 6781b56..e4d2b69 100644
--- a/src/app/page.tsx
+++ b/src/app/page.tsx
@@ -67,9 +67,36 @@ interface Card {
   initialVersion?: CardDataV2;
 }
 
+/** Bumped once per release; the changelog dot keys off it. */
+const APP_VERSION = "2.5";
+const CHANGELOG_SEEN_KEY = "sucker:changelog-seen";
+
 export default function Home() {
   const [cards, setCards] = useState<Card[]>([]);
+  // The changelog dot. Starts hidden so the server and the first client render
+  // agree; the effect below turns it on for anyone who has not opened the
+  // dialog since this version shipped.
+  const [changelogSeen, setChangelogSeen] = useState(true);
   const [dialogOpen, setDialogOpen] = useState(false);
+  useEffect(() => {
+    try {
+      setChangelogSeen(localStorage.getItem(CHANGELOG_SEEN_KEY) === APP_VERSION);
+    } catch {
+      // Private mode or blocked storage: just leave the dot off.
+    }
+  }, []);
+
+  /** Open the changelog and remember that this version has been read. */
+  const openChangelog = () => {
+    setChangelogDialogOpen(true);
+    setChangelogSeen(true);
+    try {
+      localStorage.setItem(CHANGELOG_SEEN_KEY, APP_VERSION);
+    } catch {
+      // Nothing to do; the dot simply comes back next time.
+    }
+  };
+
   const [selectedCardIndex, setSelectedCardIndex] = useState<number | null>(
     null
   );
@@ -373,15 +400,21 @@ export default function Home() {
           {/* Row 1: Title on left, Hamburger on right */}
           <div className="flex justify-between items-start mb-3">
             <div>
-              <h1 className="text-2xl font-bold">Sucker v2.5</h1>
+              <h1 className="text-2xl font-bold">Sucker v{APP_VERSION}</h1>
               <p className="text-xs text-muted-foreground">
                 New: a live CSS editor for your profile.
               </p>
             </div>
             <DropdownMenu>
               <DropdownMenuTrigger asChild>
-                <Button variant="outline" size="icon">
+                <Button variant="outline" size="icon" className="relative">
                   <Menu className="h-4 w-4" />
+                  {!changelogSeen && (
+                    <span
+                      aria-label="New changelog entry"
+                      className="absolute -top-1 -right-1 h-2.5 w-2.5 rounded-full bg-sky-500 ring-2 ring-background"
+                    />
+                  )}
                 </Button>
               </DropdownMenuTrigger>
               <DropdownMenuContent align="end">
@@ -391,8 +424,11 @@ export default function Home() {
                 <DropdownMenuItem onClick={() => setMirrorsDialogOpen(true)}>
                   Mirrors
                 </DropdownMenuItem>
-                <DropdownMenuItem onClick={() => setChangelogDialogOpen(true)}>
+                <DropdownMenuItem onClick={openChangelog}>
                   Changelog
+                  {!changelogSeen && (
+                    <span className="ml-2 h-2 w-2 rounded-full bg-sky-500" />
+                  )}
                 </DropdownMenuItem>
               </DropdownMenuContent>
             </DropdownMenu>
@@ -411,7 +447,7 @@ export default function Home() {
         {/* Desktop Layout */}
         <div className="hidden sm:flex justify-between items-center mb-4">
           <div>
-            <h1 className="text-3xl font-bold">Sucker v2.5</h1>
+            <h1 className="text-3xl font-bold">Sucker v{APP_VERSION}</h1>
             <p className="text-sm text-muted-foreground">
               New: a live CSS editor for your profile.
             </p>
@@ -430,10 +466,17 @@ export default function Home() {
               Mirrors
             </Button>
             <Button
-              onClick={() => setChangelogDialogOpen(true)}
+              onClick={openChangelog}
               variant="outline"
+              className="relative"
             >
               Changelog
+              {!changelogSeen && (
+                <span
+                  aria-label="New changelog entry"
+                  className="absolute -top-1 -right-1 h-2.5 w-2.5 rounded-full bg-sky-500 ring-2 ring-background"
+                />
+              )}
             </Button>
             <Button
               onClick={fetchCards}
diff --git a/src/lib/messages.ts b/src/lib/messages.ts
index 720ff5d..c6141ec 100644
--- a/src/lib/messages.ts
+++ b/src/lib/messages.ts
@@ -17,43 +17,77 @@
  *     typed to start, which stays put as more turns are appended;
  *   - what the user typed most recently is the LAST user turn.
  *
+ * Roles are compared case-insensitively and content is flattened to text
+ * first, because neither is guaranteed: a client may send "Assistant", or
+ * content as OpenAI's multipart array rather than a plain string. Getting
+ * either wrong looks exactly like the bug above.
+ *
  * If JanitorAI changes the shape again, this is the only file that should
  * need to know.
  */
 
 export interface Message {
   role?: string;
-  content?: string;
+  content?: unknown;
 }
 
 export interface MessageSlots {
   /** The character card. */
-  system: Message | undefined;
+  system: string | undefined;
   /** The character's opening message. */
-  greeting: Message | undefined;
+  greeting: string | undefined;
   /** The name — or conversation token — the user typed to start the chat. */
-  nameSlot: Message | undefined;
+  nameSlot: string | undefined;
   /** Whatever the user typed most recently. */
-  lastUser: Message | undefined;
+  lastUser: string | undefined;
 }
 
-export function selectMessageSlots(
-  messages: Message[] | undefined
-): MessageSlots {
-  const list = Array.isArray(messages) ? messages : [];
-  const greetingIndex = list.findIndex((m) => m?.role === "assistant");
-  const users = list.filter((m) => m?.role === "user");
+/** "Assistant", " user " and "USER" all have to count. */
+function roleOf(message: Message | undefined): string {
+  return typeof message?.role === "string" ? message.role.trim().toLowerCase() : "";
+}
+
+/**
+ * Content is usually a string, but the OpenAI shape allows an array of parts
+ * ({ type: "text", text: "…" }). Anything else — null, a number, a missing
+ * key — flattens to "" so it is simply skipped rather than throwing.
+ */
+export function textOf(content: unknown): string {
+  if (typeof content === "string") return content;
+  if (Array.isArray(content)) {
+    return content
+      .map((part) => {
+        if (typeof part === "string") return part;
+        const text = (part as { text?: unknown } | null)?.text;
+        return typeof text === "string" ? text : "";
+      })
+      .join("");
+  }
+  return "";
+}
+
+/** Messages with usable text, paired with their normalised role. */
+function usable(messages: Message[] | undefined): { role: string; text: string }[] {
+  return (Array.isArray(messages) ? messages : [])
+    .map((m) => ({ role: roleOf(m), text: textOf(m?.content) }))
+    .filter((m) => m.text.length > 0);
+}
+
+export function selectMessageSlots(messages: Message[] | undefined): MessageSlots {
+  const list = usable(messages);
+  const greetingIndex = list.findIndex((m) => m.role === "assistant");
+  const users = list.filter((m) => m.role === "user");
 
   return {
     // Falling back to the first message keeps working if a client ever omits
     // the role on the card, which is where it has always been.
-    system: list.find((m) => m?.role === "system") ?? list[0],
-    greeting: greetingIndex === -1 ? undefined : list[greetingIndex],
+    system: (list.find((m) => m.role === "system") ?? list[0])?.text,
+    greeting: greetingIndex === -1 ? undefined : list[greetingIndex].text,
     nameSlot:
       greetingIndex === -1
         ? undefined
-        : list.slice(greetingIndex + 1).find((m) => m?.role === "user"),
-    lastUser: users[users.length - 1],
+        : list.slice(greetingIndex + 1).find((m) => m.role === "user")?.text,
+    lastUser: users[users.length - 1]?.text,
   };
 }
 
@@ -67,11 +101,11 @@ export function selectMessageSlots(
  * What the user just typed still wins, since pasting a token is deliberate.
  */
 export function tokenCandidates(messages: Message[] | undefined): string[] {
-  const list = Array.isArray(messages) ? messages : [];
-  const users = list.filter((m) => m?.role === "user");
+  const list = usable(messages);
+  const users = list.filter((m) => m.role === "user");
   const mostRecentUser = users[users.length - 1];
 
   return [mostRecentUser, ...list.filter((m) => m !== mostRecentUser)]
-    .map((m) => m?.content)
-    .filter((c): c is string => typeof c === "string" && c.length > 0);
+    .filter((m): m is { role: string; text: string } => Boolean(m))
+    .map((m) => m.text);
 }
diff --git a/tests/messages.test.ts b/tests/messages.test.ts
index bb8fba1..358ef1f 100644
--- a/tests/messages.test.ts
+++ b/tests/messages.test.ts
@@ -1,10 +1,10 @@
 /**
- * Both request shapes JanitorAI sends, and conversations that keep going.
- * Run with `npm test` — no test framework, just node's built-in runner.
+ * Every request shape we have actually seen, plus the malformed ones a client
+ * could plausibly send. Run with `npm test` — no framework, node's own runner.
  */
 import { test } from "node:test";
 import assert from "node:assert/strict";
-import { selectMessageSlots, tokenCandidates } from "../src/lib/messages.ts";
+import { selectMessageSlots, tokenCandidates, textOf } from "../src/lib/messages.ts";
 
 const CARD =
   "<.>\n<Gaius's Persona>a tired innkeeper</Gaius's Persona><UserPersona>.</UserPersona>";
@@ -13,7 +13,7 @@ const NAME = "{{user}}: Gaius";
 const TOKEN = "[sucker:conv=abc123]";
 
 /** What most clients send: a throwaway "." user turn before the greeting. */
-const withProbe: { role: string; content: string }[] = [
+const withProbe = [
   { role: "system", content: CARD },
   { role: "user", content: "." },
   { role: "assistant", content: GREETING },
@@ -21,7 +21,7 @@ const withProbe: { role: string; content: string }[] = [
 ];
 
 /** What some clients send: no "." turn, so every index shifts by one. */
-const withoutProbe: { role: string; content: string }[] = [
+const withoutProbe = [
   { role: "system", content: CARD },
   { role: "assistant", content: GREETING },
   { role: "user", content: NAME },
@@ -42,18 +42,18 @@ test("both shapes resolve to the same slots", () => {
     ["without probe", withoutProbe],
   ] as const) {
     const slots = selectMessageSlots(messages);
-    assert.equal(slots.system?.content, CARD, `${label}: card`);
-    assert.equal(slots.greeting?.content, GREETING, `${label}: greeting`);
-    assert.equal(slots.nameSlot?.content, NAME, `${label}: name`);
+    assert.equal(slots.system, CARD, `${label}: card`);
+    assert.equal(slots.greeting, GREETING, `${label}: greeting`);
+    assert.equal(slots.nameSlot, NAME, `${label}: name`);
   }
 });
 
 test("the greeting and the name stay put as a conversation grows", () => {
   const slots = selectMessageSlots(continued);
-  assert.equal(slots.greeting?.content, GREETING);
+  assert.equal(slots.greeting, GREETING);
   // Not "keep going" or "and again": the name is what started the chat.
-  assert.equal(slots.nameSlot?.content, NAME);
-  assert.equal(slots.lastUser?.content, "{{user}}: and again");
+  assert.equal(slots.nameSlot, NAME);
+  assert.equal(slots.lastUser, "{{user}}: and again");
 });
 
 test("the token is still found once later replies stop carrying it", () => {
@@ -71,17 +71,52 @@ test("a token the user just pasted outranks an older one", () => {
   assert.match(candidates[0], /zzz999/);
 });
 
+test("roles are matched whatever their casing", () => {
+  const slots = selectMessageSlots([
+    { role: "System", content: CARD },
+    { role: " Assistant ", content: GREETING },
+    { role: "USER", content: NAME },
+  ]);
+  assert.equal(slots.system, CARD);
+  assert.equal(slots.greeting, GREETING);
+  assert.equal(slots.nameSlot, NAME);
+});
+
+test("content sent as OpenAI's multipart array is read as text", () => {
+  assert.equal(textOf([{ type: "text", text: "one " }, { type: "text", text: "two" }]), "one two");
+  const slots = selectMessageSlots([
+    { role: "system", content: [{ type: "text", text: CARD }] },
+    { role: "assistant", content: [{ type: "text", text: GREETING }] },
+    { role: "user", content: NAME },
+  ]);
+  assert.equal(slots.system, CARD);
+  assert.equal(slots.greeting, GREETING);
+});
+
+test("messages with no usable content are skipped, not treated as slots", () => {
+  const slots = selectMessageSlots([
+    { role: "system", content: CARD },
+    { role: "assistant", content: null },
+    { role: "assistant" },
+    { role: "assistant", content: GREETING },
+    { role: "user", content: NAME },
+  ]);
+  // The empty assistant turns must not be mistaken for the greeting.
+  assert.equal(slots.greeting, GREETING);
+  assert.equal(slots.nameSlot, NAME);
+});
+
 test("a card with no role on the system turn still resolves", () => {
   const slots = selectMessageSlots([
     { content: CARD },
     { role: "assistant", content: GREETING },
     { role: "user", content: NAME },
   ]);
-  assert.equal(slots.system?.content, CARD);
+  assert.equal(slots.system, CARD);
 });
 
 test("nothing throws on empty or malformed input", () => {
-  for (const input of [[], undefined, [{}, { role: "user" }]]) {
+  for (const input of [[], undefined, [{}, { role: "user" }], [null], [{ content: 42 }]]) {
     assert.doesNotThrow(() => selectMessageSlots(input as never));
     assert.doesNotThrow(() => tokenCandidates(input as never));
   }