Feature
One-to-one conversations
Click a name in the user list and start a private conversation. It behaves like the rooms do — the message arrives live, it is there next time, and the same rules apply.
Several at once
Private conversations open as separate windows, so somebody can keep three going and the room at the same time.
Ignoring somebody sticks
A member who ignores another stays ignoring them — across windows, sessions and devices, not just until the tab is closed.
Still moderated
The word filter and the link rules apply to private messages as well, and a ban applies everywhere.
How it works
How two people end up in their own conversation
Somebody picks a name in the list
From the room, the member list, or an operator picking a visitor. There is nothing to set up first and no invitation to accept.
A window opens for both of them
Up to three at once, side by side, each one rolled up to a tile when it is not the one being typed into — so a conversation that goes quiet does not take up the screen and does not get lost either.
It keeps up when they are away
A rolled-up conversation still counts what arrived while it was rolled up, and when it is opened again the line between what was read and what was missed is drawn where it belongs.
Either of them can end it
Closing the window ends the conversation without ending the relationship: the history is still there the next time either one opens it.
Questions
- Can I stop visitors messaging each other?
- Yes, and it is enforced on the server rather than by hiding the button. Private chat can be off entirely, or restricted so that only identified members can start one, which is the setting most public sites want.
- Can somebody refuse a conversation?
- Ignoring a member stops their messages reaching you, and it is applied server-side, so it is not something the other person can work around by using a different tab.
- Do private conversations get moderated?
- The word filter and anti-spam limits apply to private messages as well as room messages. What administrators cannot do is read them, which is the trade the feature makes deliberately.
- Does it work between a visitor and an operator?
- That is what a support conversation is — the same mechanism, with the person on the other end being somebody you have promoted to operator.
Put a chat on your site this afternoon
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