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.

[tweak]

IS it {ossible to make the CHAT appear Under your forum???? so when users log into the forum the chat would be below it???

[beemer]

This may sound simple to most, but how do you add a link in my site to the chat.php file? Where do you do this and how do I add a button to my page? Sorry guys but I am somewhat new to this.

[tweak]

Originally posted by beemer
This may sound simple to most, but how do you add a link in my site to the chat.php file? Where do you do this and how do I add a button to my page? Sorry guys but I am somewhat new to this.

PHP Code:

 <a href="chat.php?s=$session[sessionhash]"><img src="{imagesfolder}/top_chat.gif" alt="Chatroom" border="0"></a> 


you can add it anywhere u want in the header or where ever your buttons are located.

[beemer]

Thanks, that works but I am now getting a connection error. I can connect if I just use the link from my browser, but when integrated into my site, I get this error:

Unable to Connect
Server is teporarily unavailable. Please try again later.

As I said, this works fine in a browser but not from the site. I am using the professional version of Raidersoft.

Here is my chatbit template:

<applet codebase="http://freechat.raidersoft.com" archive="scclient4.zip" code="Client.class" width=$setwidth height=$setheight
<param name="port" value="45007">
<param name="room" value="my code is here">
<param name="canvaslength" value="1000">
<param name="USERNAME" value="$username">
</applet>

[wot-Mike]

Originally posted by tweak
IS it {ossible to make the CHAT appear Under your forum???? so when users log into the forum the chat would be below it???

I think you mean under the forum on the main index page. Yes, it's possible, but people have a habit of passing by the index page a lot of times when visiting your forums. Meaning that they would log in and out each time they visit and leave the index. Believe me, that wouldn't make it much fun for those who are chatting. You can work with frames maybe.


And beemer, are you behind a firewall or proxy? If so then TCP ports 80 and 45007 need to be open on the firewall/proxy. Do you have an url to your forum? PM the url (and a test account) if you don't wish to go public with that info.

[wot-Mike]

Oh, and when adding a button, I don't think it would be nice to link to the one at vbulletin.org (bandwidth stealing)
Create your own button on your own site and use that one

[beemer]

Wot-Mike, the hack does work when using my browser, it just doesn't work when I use the link I created in my site. I am not using a firewall or proxy. I will create test account so you can see what I am doing.

[wot-Mike]

Just send you a reply PM

*crosses fingers*

[wot-Mike]

Oh, currently this mod checks for a valid vBulletin username.

Guests will be redirected to a login page when trying to enter chat, but any valid member will be given access. There's no support for seperate usergroups (yet?)

[tweak]

WEll On the Main index page Couldnt you make the CHAT POP UP??? is that possible? So they wouyld have a BOX opened and be free to surf the net.