Post by Jonathan Mejia on Feb 13, 2012 9:19:58 GMT -5
The Sarracenia Forum Chat has arrived!
Upon a suggestion from Brie, I have added a chat to the Sarracenia forum. On the main page, under general, there is a board that says forum chat. the forum chat is there!
The chat itself is a java application, and so your browser will need to be able to run java to be able to use it, but as this is 2012, I don't believe this will be a problem.
Once you start the chat (by clicking forum chat on the main page), you will see a small prompt asking for your username. Type it in and click sign in. If this doesn't happen, you can use the irc code /nick to change your name.
It is really that simple. The chat allows simple emoticons, and sounds. There is also a button which will open the chat in a different window, so that you can resize it full screen. There are even features to send someone an instant message (IM), if they are online at the same time.
A few things I should note:
The chats are not saved! If you close the screen or refresh the page, the previous messages will no longer be there. Imagine how much space it would take on our end to save hundreds and thousands of chat messages. This is a blessing and a curse. It is not a shoutbox, because you cannot leave messages for other members to see, who are not currently in the chat. The chat is only for real time conversations with other people who are on. If you want to leave someone a message who is not currently on, I suggest using the forums current message system.
At the same time, a chat with no memory helps me save space and keep the forum (and now the forum chat) free! (and I know we all love to hear the word free (what you talking about Jon? Free is just another word for SOCIALIST!, just j/k))
And a final note, the chat would be awesome if everyone recognized everyone else's username, so I suggest using the same name you use in these forums. In this manner, we don't have to ask, "WHO ARE YOU?" And, "what's your name on the boards?" It just saves time.
If you have any questions about the forum chat, feel free to ask about them below. I will do my best to answer all questions as quickly, and fully as possible.
Thanks a lot guys, and keep the suggestions coming. Together we can make this forum awesome.