Embedded chat

This "hack" will allow you to run a semi-integrated (free or paid) chat room "inside" your forum:

+ It's quite generic and should work with several chat providers (made a seperate template, just for the applet code)
+ The chat room will be displayed within your forum's structure,
+ The chat applet will be sized according to the user's screen resolution (could get scary at 1600x1200 )
+ People will be logged into the chat room using their forum usernames (if the chat supports auto-login)
+ Invalid characters in usernames will be replaced before logging in to the chat, plus too lengty names will be shortened
+ Easy installation

- At this time there's no feedback from the chat room to the forum. A "chat monitor" is planned though (version 2)

The install docs and template examples are mainly focussed on the chat provider we use (http://www.raidersoft.com), but it shouldn't be a problem adjusting one or two things to get this thing to work with your own chat provider.

The sizes of the chat applet haven't been tested out fully. I have no clue how bigger resolutions work out. All the rest seems to work fine.

Hope you like it...

[update 1.4]Sizes can now be set more easily, just by editing the chatredirect template, nothing else.
Added support for raidersoft's ICE, which is more flexible with usernames.

[wot-Mike]

Well, as Ghostsuit said. There's no other way to deal with this then through the SigmaChat Control Panel, but that's limited for the free service, and I don't know what is and isn't possible.

[telc]

Anyone with the SigmaChat Professional Running on thier site? Post your URL, or PM it to me I would like to see a working chat and see what you guys did with it, before i purchase. Thanks.

[Curtis M]

OK, I cant get it to work PERIOD. Al I get when I try to use the chat is a blank screen. I have sigmachat professional, latest version of vb, and a WHOLE lot of stress right now. I have read throught this entire thread, I have tried EVERY single possibility to make it work and I still get the blank screen.

Any help will be appreciated

[wot-Mike]

Originally posted by Curtis M
OK, I cant get it to work PERIOD. Al I get when I try to use the chat is a blank screen. I have sigmachat professional, latest version of vb, and a WHOLE lot of stress right now. I have read throught this entire thread, I have tried EVERY single possibility to make it work and I still get the blank screen.

Any help will be appreciated

Well, I registered at your board and tried chat. Something is messed up. Did you modify the chat.php file in anyway? You might also want to check your php error log for any clues.

Quick possible fix: upload a fresh chat.php to your server (make sure it's uploaded in ascii mode). If you edit anything, use a text editor like Notepad, and definitely not someting fancy like Word.

Hope the quick fix is enough

[ricoche]

Well I just installed the hack and everything to get chat running on my site and it seems to be working very well.

I'm running SigmaChat Pro from Raidersoft.com
This hack which is fabulous
Vbulletin 2.2.8 and vbportal 3.0

Everything is working great.

Is it the chat template I edit in order to get addional info on the chat page? I'd like to add a couple of HTML tables at the bottom with lists of commands to remind users. I think that would be useful. I'll take a look at that.

Plus I know it's been said a hundred times, but we need to pull our heads together and find a way to inform users about who's in the chat area. Although it would be nice to have a who's online deal, I don't think it's going to happen anytime soon.

For me I run two computers, so with one I try to stay in the chatroom as much as possible. That way I can be there in case people pop in. I'm also interested in modifying the areas around the chat page with info, links, or perhaps other stats or site info to entice users to at least click chat and take a peek. If they see people in there, then they just might join. Personally I think if a chatroom is active and popular on a site, then a who's online ( although great to have I know ), might not be so necessary.

I'm also allowing users to request subrooms to be added too, but it remains to be seen if any of this will take off. I'm determined though so I'll see. For now, they're just ideas at best.

<LOL> Just my 2cents. Thanks for listening.

Ricoche

Great hack though and no regrets definitely. Lot's to work with here. Thanks.

[ricoche]

Any updates on a who's online for this addon? Hmmm.

Thanks,

Ricoche

[94supratt]

Not working

I keep getting the following error...

Parse error: parse error, expecting `T_STRING' or `T_VARIABLE' or `T_NUM_STRING' in /home/niggapino/www/forums/chat.php(45) : eval()'d code on line 12

Someone please help.

[jamoss]

I have implemented Sigma (paid for pro) and it seems to be working very well.

Just an FYI: your redirect script adds variables (height and width) to the chat.php script. If a site (like ours) has SIGMA restricted to launch from one page ONLY, (i.e. http://www.babynames.com/boards/chat.php ) it will fail if it is launched from chat.php?width=750&height=400. So I had to disable the redirect portion (screen options).

Here is a screenshot of our working SIGMA PRO chat:



Thank you!!!

[Capt PPRuNe]

Hi, I have upgraded to SigmaChat Platinum and added the chat.php script to the forums directory and added the templates but still having terrible problems getting it to work.

One thing that happens on my Mac is that when the chat.php script is called it downloads it!!! If I add the ? and screen parameters in then it functions OK until the next point...

The chat loads within my vB environment but stops at the log-in page for the chat with a message that the Username or password is incorrect. I have made sure that the Username is not in the SigmaChat database and there is no password box. Also, I have checked that the settings are Ok in the SigmaChat control panel for User Options: Automatic user Registration is Disabled and Standard User List, Allow Guest is set to NO.

Auto log In parameter is set in the chatbit template.

URL for the chat is at http://www.pprune.org/forums/chat.php

You will of course have to register a username for the BB to get past the vB log-in and after that you should automatically be logged in to the SigmaChat but.... no luck!

Any suggestions would be appreciated.

[wot-Mike]

Capt PPRuNe, the current hack need guest access to be enabled. It just forwards names into the applet, and that autologs people in. No accounts are used. Access to chat.php is limited to registered members.

The Mac problem is weird, and I'm afraid you're on your own on that one. I don't have any knowledge in that area at all, and no one else has reported anything similar. I hope you can solve it, and if so, please post it here. I'm interested in the why of this thing.

94supratt, a late answer, but did you change the code? Uploading a fresh copy of chat.php will probable solve your problem. Or check the code you altered.

jamoss, that looks just great. You should send that pic to Raidersoft, and maybe they'll put it up on their screenshots page. It certainly looks way better then the pics that are there
And yes, I was aware of the variables in the url, and I think I posted about it before. Ok, to be honest, I never realized it until Chris from raidersoft told me


As for news about the new script with the Who's Chatting, I've got the core ready for the Platinum and Enterprise version. That script uses vBulletin authentication (username and password), so no more guest access in chat
Unfortunately I'm in a bit of a bad situation. Maybe losing my job and all that kind of fun. I don't know when I can get myself to finish it.
Once it's finished though, it will be easy enough to alter it for use with the Pro (and free?) version of chat.

Right now the Who's Chatting is based on a "switch", set inside the database: inchat or not. But it relies on people logging out the correct way. If they don't, they'll show up in the Who's Chatting "forever". I'm not sure if that's the way to go