So You Want A Chat Room, Huh?

[Why So Long For This?][What You Need][How I Make My Own?][What Will Happen?]
[Is There More?][Where Is The HTML Goodies Chat Room?]
[When Will You Be In The Chat Room, Joe?]

Why So Long For This?

     The creation of a chat room has been the top of the "I Want" list at HTML Goodies. I asked the technition at my own server how to go about doing it and he responded, "If you want real time chat and you are talking about masses of people, you really need a dedicated server, if not even a dedicated T-1."

      I was of the opinion all was lost until I got a letter from Mike Futrell. (He's 14! See his WWWeb Site here) He told me he had created a chat room for HTML Goodies. He also told me he uses HTML Goodies a lot - (PLUG!) - but all that aside, I went and looked and the room is there. And it worked! Stunned, I went to the source of the room: SneakerChat.
     I contacted Manu Kumar, the person who runs SneakerChat and he gave me permission to use and explain the beginnings of creating a SneakerChat Chat Room. He would like you to come and read all the who's, what's, and why's before you create your own room. I urge you to do so. And best of all - it's advertiser supported. In plain English - that means IT'S FREE! WooHoo!

What You Need

     A SneakerChat Chat Room requires:      If you do not have a java-ready browser, you will get a message telling you so when you log into the HTML Goodies Chat Room.

 

How Do I Make My Own?

     You'll need to create a page that will act as your chat room page. It does not have to be a page from the SneakerChat server. You'll run this chat room right off of your server just attaching to the SneakerChat server for assistance. (This is really slick)
     Below is the Java Applet code you need to place on the page that will contain your chat room. It is already set up to contact the correct directories and sites on SneakerChat. You can just cut and paste it from here if you'd like.

     There are a couple of things you do need to change so the code below recognizes your page as a chat room. I have put them in bold in the code below. Here's what you need to do:

Code Is Below

<CENTER>
<TABLE BORDER="0" WIDTH=90%>
</TD>
<TD WIDTH=90% VALIGN="top" >
</FONT>
</TD>
</TR>
</TABLE>
<HR NOSHADE WIDTH="90%">
<CENTER>
<TABLE BORDER=3 CELLSPACING=3 CELLPADDING=3 BGCOLOR="#000000" >
<TR ALIGN=CENTER VALIGN=CENTER>
<TD ALIGN=CENTER VALIGN=CENTER BGCOLOR="#000000">
<APPLET NAME="JavaTalkClient"
CODEBASE="http://www.sneakerchat.com/SneakerChat/classes"
ARCHIVE = "JavaTalkClient.zip"
CODE="JavaTalkClient.class"
WIDTH=550
HEIGHT=300
ALT="SneakerChat requires a Java-enabled browser! You do not have a Java-enabled browser.">
<PARAM NAME="PORT" VALUE="8000">
<PARAM NAME="CABBASE" VALUE="JavaTalkClient.cab">
<PARAM NAME="ROOM" VALUE="Name The Room Here">
<PARAM NAME="ROOMLOGO" VALUE =
"Link to Room Logo Here (IMAGE URL)">
<PARAM NAME="ABOUTROOM" VALUE =
"Page People Log Into To Use Room (URL)">
<PARAM NAME="ROOMLINK" VALUE = "PAGE ROOM LINKED TO">
<PARAM NAME="BEEP"
VALUE="http://www.sneakerchat.com/SneakerChat/classes/sounds/ hi.au">
<PARAM NAME="FLOAT" VALUE="FALSE">
<PARAM NAME="PERSISTENT" VALUE="TRUE">
<PARAM NAME="ISOLATED" VALUE="FALSE">
<FONT COLOR="#A60000">
SneakerChat requires a Java enabled browser. <BR>
If you are seeing this message then you DO NOT have a Java-enabled
browser.<BR> It has been tested with<BR>
<A HREF="http://home.netscape.com/">Netscape Navigator</A><BR>
and <BR> <A HREF="http://www.microsoft.com/ie">Microsoft Internet Explorer</A><BR>
Here is a <A HREF="http://www.sneakerchat.com/SneakerChat/SneakPeek.html">s neak-peek</A> of what you are missing!<BR>
</FONT>
</APPLET>
</TD>
</TR>
</TABLE>
</CENTER>
<CENTER>
<P>
<FONT FACE="HELVETICA"><FONT SIZE=-2>
<A HREF="http://www.sneakerchat.com/SneakerChat/UsePolicy.html"
TARGET="SneakerChatTarget">Use Policy and Disclaimer</A>
<A HREF="http://www.sneakerchat.com/SneakerChat/ChatNews.html"
TARGET="SneakerChatTarget">News and Announcements</A>
<A HREF="http://www.sneakerchat.com/SneakerChat/FAQ.html"
TARGET="SneakerChatTarget">FAQ and Troubleshooting</A>
</FONT></FONT>
</P>
</CENTER>

Code Is Above

What Will Happen?

     If you configure the entire deal correctly, get no Java errors, and have a Java-ready browser, you will get a page that loads, contacts SneakerChat, loads stuff from them, and stands ready to accept information.

      Visitors to your chat page will be asked to first register by putting in their name, email address, a handle (nickname), a link to an image they want to represent them (keep it small), and their WWWeb URL. They then click on the "connect" button. If all goes well - they're connected. A list of everyone else who is connected pops up on the right.

      Once connected, you type in what you want to post, click on a button and post it. The text you write comes up with a time stamp and your handle. It really is easy.

 

Is There More?

     Yes. There are a lot of buttons and extra stuff you can do while talking. In addition, there are some restrictions on who can have a chat page. For all that - I strongly urge you to go to the SneakerChat site and read all about it before starting your own chat room. Please Do This. I told Manu Kumar that you would. Don't make a liar out of me.

 

Go To SneakerChat

Where Is The HTML Goodies Chat Room?

     The HTML Goodies Chat Room, kept by Mike Futrell is located at:

 

http:// members.tripod.com/~michaelfutrell/htmlchat

When Will You Be In The Room, Joe?

     I thought about giving a specific time that I would connect up, but decided against it. You see, there is a limit to the number of people who can come in to the room. In addition, if 250 people are there, it wouldn't be much of a chat. BUT...
     Goodness knows the final hour of work is tough to keep working through. The best times for me to be in the chat room will be weekdays between 4 and 5 PM. See you then.