1. Using the Test Room As a Guide

2. Creating New ParaChat Rooms

3. Adding ParaChat to a Web Page

4. Editing Existing ParaChat Rooms

5. Admin User Creation

1. Using the Test Room As a Guide

• Use the sample HTML applet code that is found on the testroom.html page (..\ParaChat\ParaChat400\httpd\test.html) that comes with your server software as a foundation for creating new rooms

• Here is the what the HTML applet code looks like for the #TestRoom that comes with your server software:

<applet codebase=pchat/classes archive=pchat.zip code=ParaChat.class HEIGHT=350 WIDTH=600>
<param name="ServerPort" value=7777>
<param name="HTTPPort" value="7877">
<param name="Channel" value="TestRoom">
<param name="net.Heartbeat" value="true">
<param name="net.Protocol" value="true">
If you see this message you do not have a Java
enabled browser. Visit <a href="http://www.parachat.com/faq/java.html">
ParaChat Support</a> for more information on how to upgrade your browser!
</applet>

 

The sample HTML applet code uses the relative path to the server's class files (see codebase=pchat/classes).  If you are placing HTML applet code for new rooms on web pages that reside on a different host from where your ParaChat Server is running, than you will need to use the absolute path to the class files instead of the relative path. 

Example:
If your chat server host is called parachat.com, but you are placing HTML applet code on a page served by chatmadness.com, the absolute path to the ParaChat Server class files on parachat.com would be included as indicated in red below:

<applet codebase="http://www.parachat.com:7877/pchat/classes" archive=pchat.zip code=ParaChat.class HEIGHT=350 WIDTH=600> <param name="ServerPort" value=7777>
<param name="HTTPPort" value="7877">
<param name="Channel" value="TestRoom">
<param name="net.Heartbeat" value="true">
<param name="net.Protocol" value="true">
If you see this message you do not have a Java
enabled browser. Visit <a href="http://www.parachat.com/faq/java.html">
ParaChat Support</a> for more information on how to upgrade your browser!
</applet>

 
• The sample above assumes that you are not using an external web server, and includes the default port number (7877) of the web server that comes with ParaChat Server.  If you include this port number in the absolute path to the class files, there is no need to include the parameter <param name="HTTPPort" value="7877">.

 HINT:  The HEARTBEAT parameter is not a required parameter, and can be completely removed.  When included, the HEARTBEAT parameter sends a pulse to the chat server every 5 minutes to keep even idle connections alive.  This parameter is ideal for moderated events when users tend to view the chat without submitting text themselves.  The default time-out for user connections to ParaChat Server is 10 minutes.  If you elect to remove the HEARTBEAT parameter, user connections that are idle for 10 minutes will be automatically severed.

2. Creating New ParaChat Rooms

• Log in to your ParaChat Server's Administration pages (found by visiting: http://<your-host-name>:7877/plynx/parachat/index.lhtml).  Enter the Server Admin name and password you selected during installation, and click the 'Sign In' button.

• You will arrive at the ParaChat Server Administration Main Menu (see image below).

• Enter the name of the ParaChat room you want to create in the field marked: Create New Room

 HINT:  ParaChat room names must begin with the "#" symbol to be recognized by the server.  By default, the "#" symbol is auto-filled in the Create New Room field.

• Click the Create button

• You will arrive at the Room Parameters page for the ParaChat room you are creating (see image below).

• There are 7 input fields on the Room Parameters page.  A description of each follows:

1. Title:
For internal use only, and is not required.  The title you place here will appear along with the ParaChat room name on the "View currently active rooms" list that is linked from the Main Menu page.  It will not appear in the ParaChat room itself

2. Topic:
Enter the topic for the chat room.  The topic you enter here will appear each time a user logs into the chat room. You will have an opportunity to change this later, or from the ParaChat room itself using the GUI Admin Console or admin commands. This field is not required.

3. Admin user(s):
Enter the user name(s) of the Room Admin user.  You may enter multiple names here separated only by a comma.  There is no need to place a comma and a space between Admin user names, just a comma.  If you leave this field blank, only the Server Admin User will have admin powers in this room.

 HINT:  Room Admin user names should be password protected.  If you list a user name(s) in this field, it is suggested that you create a User Profile for each user.  If you do not create a User Profile for an Admin name, any person who logs into the chat room using that Admin name will have admin privileges in the room.  Instructions for creating User Profiles are below in Section 5.

4. Banned IPs:
You may manually add user IP addresses in this location that you wish to ban from the chat room.  User IP addresses that are banned by the Admin user from the chat room (via the GUI Admin Console, or using admin user commands) will appear in this list.  IP addresses should be separated by a comma only, and not a comma and a space.  If you wish to remove an IP address that is on the list, simply highlight the IP address and delete it, remembering not to leave 2 commas separating any remaining IP addresses.  You do not need to add data to this field during room creation.

5. Allowed URLs:
ParaChat's unique URL enforcement system allows you to limit the way applet code for a particular room can be distributed onto other web pages on the Internet.  By indicating the EXACT URL(s) where you wish your room HTML applet code to run, you may limit people from taking the code from your HTML and running your chat room on their own web page without your permission.  List all URLs where you wish to run your applet code in this field.

 HINT:  It is important to note that users sometimes access domains with out the www suffix before your domain name.  Therefore, if your chat page is http://www.domain-name.com/chat.html, you may also wish to include http://parachat.com/chat.html - without the www suffix -  as an allowed URL.  It is best to use the complete URL structure here, so be certain to include the http:// as well.  It is also important to note that if you designate an allowed URL as http://www.domain-name.com, for example, the server will permit the ParaChat room to run on any web page within that domain, and not just on a specific page within that domain.

6. Enforce URLs:
ParaChat Server will enforce the URLs you provide for each room by either:

• allow - allows all user connections regardless of URL
• warn - warns users that a ParaChat room is running on a web page that is not allowed
• deny - does not allow a connection to the server

Users will still be able to connect with the URL enforcement set to both allow and warn.  However, an Imposter Room server message will appear in the room if the Enforce URLs is set to warn, and a page is running on a disallowed web page.

7. Home URL:
For internal use only, and not required.  Place the home domain name of the ParaChat Pro room if applicable as a point of reference if the Allowed URLs reside on a different domain.

 HINT:  The default URL enforcement for ParaChat Server is warn.  This configuration can be easily changed in the server configuration file (\ParaChat\ParaChat400\config\pchatd) to either allow or deny.  Each room that you create will always use the servers default URL enforcement.  You may configure the room to a URL enforcement setting other than the server default using this pull-down menu.

3. Adding ParaChat to a Web Page

Add the room name of a ParaChat room you have created into the sample HTML applet code found on the testroom.html page.  The room name should be inserted into the Channel Parameter.  For example, if you created a chat room called #ChatRoom , you need to place that room name into the correct position within the HTML applet code.  An example is below:

<applet codebase="http://www.yourdomainname.com/pchat/classes" archive=pchat.zip code=ParaChat.class HEIGHT=350 WIDTH=600> <param name="ServerPort" value=7777>
<param name="HTTPPort" value="7877">
<param name="Channel" value="ChatRoom">
<param name="net.Heartbeat" value="true">
<param name="net.Protocol" value="true">
If you see this message you do not have a Java
enabled browser. Visit <a href="http://www.parachat.com/faq/java.html">
ParaChat Support</a> for more information on how to upgrade your browser!
</applet>

• Copy the HTML, and place it onto a web page like you would any other HTML.  Follow the same process to add all of the chat rooms you create to their specified web pages.

 HINT:  It may be useful to keep a copy of the sample applet code for your chat server in a convenient location, such as in a text or html document on your desktop.  Use this applet code as the foundation for all of the chat rooms you create going forward.  You may wish to consider placing all of the customization parameters into the sample applet code you keep in a convenient location.

4. Editing Existing ParaChat Rooms

• It is easy to change the basic room parameters in your ParaChat room using the Server Administration Pages.

• Log in to your ParaChat Server's Administration pages (found by visiting: http://<your-host-name>:<your-http-port>/plynx/parachat/index.lhtml).  Enter the Server Admin name and password you selected during installation, and click the 'Sign In' button.

• You will arrive at the ParaChat Server Administration Main Menu.

• You will be familiar with the first 7 fields in the section marked Room Parameters because they are identical to the fields that you used to initially create a chat room.  You may make changes to any of these fields as you need to, and click the Apply button when you have finished editing the room parameters to save your changes.

• Below the Room Parameters section is the Fetch Room Transcripts section (see image below).  Use this section to retrieve transcripts, which are simply log files on the server.   Input the log file name you selected when you initiated the logging feature from the ParaChat room.

 HINT:  Room transcripts are log files, so you must enter a .log extension to the file name you are requesting.  For example, if you named your session transcript Monday_Meeting, then you will need to input the name of the transcript to retrieve as Monday_Meeting.log.

• ParaChat Server will allow you to select special user names, such as celebrities or speakers who have participated in a session that was logged, and have their text displayed in a bold type on the session transcript.  Input the special user names into the field marked "Make these users stand out" when you retrieve a transcript.

 HINT:  Transcripts reside on the chat server in a password-protected area.  If you wish to make transcripts public, you will need to copy the log file from the server, or simply copy and paste the text that displays on the screen.

• Below the 'Fetch Room Transcripts' section are the Upper Panel Graphic and Lower Panel Graphic sections (see image below).  You may upload images to the ParaChat room's Upper Ad Panel (325x60 pixels or less)  and Lower Ad Panel (500x60 pixels or less) for advertising or branding purposes.  Input a valid image URL into the Image URL field, and an accompanying click-through URL for the image, and click the Update Panel Image button.  ParaChat Server will download the image file and save it to the appropriate directory (\ParaChat\ParaChat400\httpd\pchat\classes\scripts\<room-name>).

 HINT:  If you do not enter an image or click-through URL, the ParaChat room will use the server-wide default images.

5. Admin User Creation

• From the ParaChat Server Main Administration Menu, select User Admin from the links on the left side of the page, or the User Administration link at the very top of the page.

• You will arrive at the User Administration form.  On the form there are three entry fields - Edit User, Create New User, and Delete User (see image below):

 HINT:  User is defined as an Admin User, or a user name that you wish to password-protect.  ParaChat Server contains an auto-login feature that you can use with your existing database, and there is no need to create User accounts here for your entire database.  The intention is to create Room Admin user accounts, or to simply password protect special names.

• In Section Three above, the example ParaChat room that was created was called #ChatRoom.  During the room creation process, the opportunity to enter an Admin user(s) name was presented.  For example, let's assume that the Admin user you input for #ChatRoom was called Room_Admin.  By creating a new user profile using the User Administration feature, your are assigning a password to the room Admin name Room_Admin. By assigning a password to this room Admin name, the user who logs in as Room_Admin into room #ChatRoom will only have room admin privileges in room #ChatRoom when they log in with the user name and the password that you assign to the Admin name.

 HINT: Although the user name Room_Admin will be password-protected in every room on this instance of ParaChat Server, this user name will only have Room Admin privileges in rooms where this Admin name was added into the Admin user list.

• To create the Admin user profile, input the User Name into the Create New User field, and click the Create button.

• The only required fields are the Password and Verify Password fields (see image below).  The email address, first name and last name fields are optional fields, and are for internal reference purposes only.

• When you have supplied the required data, click the Create New User button.  The user profile has been created.  A full list of user profiles can be found in the user directory (..\ParaChat\ParaChat400\users).

• Use the Edit User field to change a user's password, or internal information.

• Use the Delete User field to remove a user profile from the server.