Chat Tips - Very Useful

About Chat Emoticons

Text emoticons

The word "emoticon" is a combination of the words "emotion" and "icon." Text emoticons are shortcuts that add zest to the often flat text of chat or instant messaging. Text emoticons are used anywhere in sentences – before, after, or within, and can also stand on their own. Here are some of the more common text emoticons :- ) smile :- )) big smile (double chin) :- D laughing ;- ) wink :- ( frown :- / smirk :- P sticking tongue out :- x kiss/my lips are sealed :- 0 surprise 8- | confused/concerned !- ( black eye ! -) proud of black eye #:- 0 shocked % *} inebriated >>:- << furious >: -( annoyed > : ) mischievous.

\_/ \_/…………….Soda
(~~ )? (~~ )3………Coffee mugs
(_)?………………..Tea cups (fine china)
(~)…………….Chilled cups of fresh juice
[%]D………………Hot cocoa with mini marshmallows
(#$#$#$#$#$)……Plate of hash browns and onions
[:::] [:::]…………..Poptarts for all
(sgeg)===………..Pan of scrambled eggs
< * )((((((>>><…….Fish
<: ))))><……………Fish
<><………………..Fish
<3 <3 <3…………..Hearts
@–>–>– …………A rose
())))___crayola___)))>..Crayola Crayon
(::waving:: )……….Waving
{{a screen name here}}}..Personal Cyber hugs
{{{ }}}………………Lots of Hugs
: ) ……………………Smile or
: o ) ……with round nose
(: …………………Left Handed Smile or (o: ….w/round nose
(: D) …………………..Big Grin
: o……………………..Surprised
:O…………………….REALLY Surprised
: D…………………….Laughing/smiling : oD…..with nose
:+ or : o+……………Kiss
: * or : o *……………Whistle
; ) or ; o)…………….Wink
: x or : o x…………..My lips are sealed
}: (………………………Mad
= )……………………….Smiley face
: ( or : o(……………..Frown
:'( or :,( or :,o(……Crying
0: )…………………Angel (Halo is a zero)
(\ O /)…………………Angel
\o/ \o/ \o/…………..Praising God
: oP~~~ …………..Nanner Nanner!
):~( ………………..Very Disappointed

Pictures Using The ALT Button and Number Pad
(make sure the number lock button is activated)
Graphic………Name……….Keys to press "," is a separator

ô¿ô….Face….Alt+147, Alt+168, Alt+147
â¿â….Face….Alt+131, Alt+168, Alt+131
~¿ô….Wink…Alt+638, Alt+168, Alt+147
~¿~…Sleeping..Alt+638, Alt+168, Alt+638
:Þ…..Sticking Tongue out…. :, Alt+0222
†………….Cross……….Alt+0134
+†+………Crosses…… + Alt+0134 +
§§(^o^)§§..Bozo The Clown…Alt 789 twice ( ^ o ^ ) Alt 789 twice
|: )……….Face w/eyebrows..Alt+1478, :, )
~To make this neat angel ^Å^ you shift#6 then on number pad alt 655then shift #6 …She's a really cute angel.
~To make a solid nose smiley :•) : alt 249 on number pad then )
clown <:•) < then : then alt 249 on number pad then

®®®®®………..rolls or Rolaids
(§)(§)(§)(§)…….Raspberry frosted sugar cookies
&&&&&…………Pretzels
(o)(o)(o)………..Donuts
(#)(#)(#)(#)……Peanut Butter Cookies
@@@@……….Cinnamon rolls
c[_] c[_]……….coffee mugs
|S| |D| |P| |7| |C| |M| |G|…..various sodas
c[_]~ ……mug with tea back tag sticking out…ie.. hot tea
¤[_])…………….another tea mug
[_])……………and another
[__]D………….soup mug or really big coffee mug
[_])[_])…………coffee mugs
(_)D(_)D……….more coffee mugs
(_)/ £(_)/……….coffee and tea pots
(|_/ ([_])……….cream and sugar
<%)<%)<%)……pepperoni pizza
\ / \ooooo/ \*****/….fudge, Swedish meatballs and pop corn.
8=8 8=8 8=8 8=8…..Doggie treats.
~<] [>~……………….hersies kisses
<%)<#)<%)<$)<§)…various pizzas
|~~~~~|……………lasagne
\%*#/……………….chex mix
|====|……………..Cheese cake
(O ) (O ) (O ) (O )….deviled eggs
^<**>^ ^<**>^……Crabs
^j^………………….Angel in breeze
^^i^^………………Mature angel
^i^………………….Little angel
ci^……………….Pregnant Angel
\o/\o/\o/…………….hands raised together in praise
^i^ ^i^ ^i^ ^i^ ^i^…Hedge of angels
======{[@]}======…seat belt
{@}………………….Fluffy punt pillow
(o)_____……………Duct Tape "Riiiiiippppppppp"
}}i{{………………….butterfly
¤[_])|_|?[_]D………tea, coffee and hot choco
\ßßßßß/regular or ( ))))))))))) Pringles \~~/ chips n dip
\^<**>^/………………crab salad
— -o- -o- -o- -o-(|==0 –o- -o-Q-o- -o-Q-o- -(|==0 shiskabob
[**]D [**]D……………hot cocoa with star mini-marshmallows : )

: o#)……………..Man with moustache
}: > …………………..Devil
:Þ or :-Þ………….Sticking out tongue
>^,,^<………………cat
<:3 )~ ………………mouse
c[[]] …………………Pint of beer
(_8(|)…………………Homer simpson
@@@@8(|)……….Marge simpson
@—}—}—…………Rose
<vbg>……………….Very Big Grin
<g>…………………..Grin
<eg>…………………Evil Grin
<wg>………………..Wicked Grin
<weg>………………Wicked Evil Grin
<——–…………..Referring to yourself <~~~~~……………Referring to yourself

(*~*)
("@") <-……..A bear
O O

O
/|\
/\

Gestures

Gestures are unique to chat software. Gestures consist of either a regular graphic in .gif format, or an animated graphic in .gif format. The graphic is accompanied by a short sound file in .wav format. In other words, gestures are small pictures or animations, sometimes accompanied by a sound that can be sent along with text while you are signed in. Gestures can add a bit of color and flair to the somewhat dry emoticon Imagine if that smiley face winked at you and giggled! The challenge of chat is to make the communication as real and meaningful to the participants as possible. Sometimes, it is difficult to ascertain the actual meaning of plain text. Chatters, unless they are using voice or live chat, cannot see the people that they chat with. Emoticons and Gestures enhance the environment by adding images and sounds to a text based environment. These devices act almost as punctuation! They add emphasis and help discern the meaning or intention of the text it follows.

Graphical emoticons

The word "emoticon" is a combination of the words "emotion" and "icon." Graphical emoticons are shortcuts that add zest to the often flat text of chat or instant messaging. Graphical emoticons are used anywhere in sentences – before, after, or within, and can also stand on their own. Some chat services offer the option to automatically translate text emoticons into graphical emoticons. Here are some of the more common graphical emoticons: [link to palette]

About Instant Messaging

ICQ Instant Messenger

More about instant messaging: ICQ Instant Messenger was the first program that enabled Internet users to communicate with each other online in real time by sending text messages, links, files and greeting cards. Created in Israel in 1996 it held its place as the most popular program on download.com for 7 years and in 2004 celebrated 300 million downloads. ICQ is responsible for revolutionizing how people communicate with each other by starting the instant messaging boom. Instant messaging has become the preferred way to communicate among young people because of its immediacy and informality. ICQ is a play on the words "I seek you".

AOL Instant Messenger

About instant messaging: With AOL Instant Messenger, also called AIM, you can Instantly send messages back and forth with your buddies. Share pictures and music and send video and talk in real-time. You can share files with other users. With a PC microphone or an internet phone, you can have live voice conversations via Instant Message, or IM. If you have a webcam, you can have live video clip conversations. You can also inject some personality into your IMs. Graphics and sound options let you personalize IMs with backgrounds, animations, smileys and sounds.

Trillian Instant Messenger

Trillian is an instant messaging application created by Cerulean Studios that allows a user to connect to every major instant messaging service simultaneously. Instead of downloading and installing AOL, Yahoo, MSN, ICQ and IRC instant messengers users can download just one program that will enable them to send text messages to all of their contacts who use different instant messaging platforms. Trillian also allows sending and receiving of files, viewing profiles, changing contact names and logging user conversations. Cerulean Studios produces a free version of Trillian instant messenger as well as a commercial version dubbed Trillian Pro, which adds many useful features to an already great product.

MSN Messenger

MSN Messenger is an instant messaging client for Windows and Mac OS computers, mainly for at home use. It’s business oriented offshoot, which also uses Microsoft's .NET Messenger Service is called Windows Messenger. Users require a Microsoft Passport to connect to the service. In other words, a hotmail account. The major use of the MSN Messenger is for instant messaging. You can use emoticons to give more personality to your messages. MSN Messenger’s other useful features include voice conversations, support for webcams, and transferring files.

AOL Chat

AOL chat is a popular online chat room service. Consisting of chat rooms that cater to every interest and lifestyle imaginable AOL chat users can choose to either chat with a large group of people or create their own private chat rooms and invite only one or a few of their friends in. AOL chat allows for real-time exchange of text messages between users all over the planet.

Yahoo Chat

Yahoo chat is a popular online chat room service. Consisting of chat rooms that cater to every interest and lifestyle imaginable Yahoo chat users can choose to either chat with a large group of people or create their own private chat rooms and invite only one or a few of their friends in. Yahoo chat allows for real-time exchange of text messages between users all over the planet.

Yahoo Messenger

Yahoo Messenger is a popular instant messaging program that allows users to chat online in real time. Yahoo Messenger is provided free of charge and can be used with a free Yahoo ID that can also be used to access other Yahoo services such as email and newsgroups. By right clicking on a person’s screen name you could also immediately see their profile. Yahoo Messenger was the first to support voice chat and webcams, which has made it very popular among Internet users.

IRC Chat

Internet Relay Chat (IRC) is a form of instant communication over the Internet. Unlike other instant messaging programs IRC is mainly designed for group communication in discussion forums called channels. It still allows one-to-one communication. IRC channels are usually groups of people united by a particular interest. IRC chat was used by Russian people to report on the desintegration of the USSR from behind the iron curtain and by Kuwaitis during the Iraqi invasion in 1990.

Chat Room Safety Tips

Common sense

If someone is harassing or following you as you chat online, it is vital that you do not engage them. Most chat software offers a tool that enables you to ignore other chatters. The goal of most harassers is to make you angry or upset. Engaging them in anyway is exactly what they want. Use your common sense.You can better protect your online identity and account information by keeping your passwords private and regularly changing them. If you feel the level of harassment you are experiencing is ruining your ability to chat online it is important that you report the offending chatter to your chat company. Most chat companies have an abuse@chatco.com address for you to use. For more extreme cases of abuse go to the cyberangels website to review your options. Finally, if you ever feel that you are in any immediate danger contact your local police department. Many police departments in larger cities across the Western world now have cybercrime units.

Posers

Chat safety tips: Chatters in any chat room are not necessarily who they say they are. Just like no one on the internet really knows who you are, you can't know who others are either. People's true identity may have very little to do with their online persona. It's extremely common for chatters to lie about their age, gender, race, and/or sexual identity. Actually, anything another chatter tells you can be fabricated. Many people pose as someone else. This isn't necessarily bad or dangerous in any way. Playing with different identities can be lots of fun, as long as you're not being malicious or really misleading anyone. Be especially careful if you're looking to another chatter for advice of any kind. Remember that they have nothing to lose by lying to you. You may think "well, they have nothing to gain, either," which is true, but there are (unfortunately) lots of unscrupulous people out their who get some kind of thrill from taking advantage of others' trust. As usual, be careful never to give anyone real information about yourself while chatting.

Cybercrime

Cybercrime comes in many forms. The most common examples experienced by chatters are threats of computer hacking and stealing or hijacking account information. Many threats are just that - threats. Some chatters may attempt to scare you by showing they have an IP number for your computer. Every computer has an IP address. Every time you visit a web page or send an email you send out your IP address. Knowing this number does not enable someone to hack into your computer. People need special skills and tools to actually hack. Make sure you're running firewall software so your computer is not vulnerable to hacking attempts. You should be able to keep your accounts safe by choosing passwords that only you could know and *never* giving them out to anyone. Reports of cybercrime can be reported at. While threats are taken very seriously, you're not likely to get any immediate relief this way - your best bet, as always, is to protect yourself ahead of time.

Learn About Chat Room Software

Chat Lines/HTML

There's alot to learn about chat room software. Chat Lines is one of those terms that is being used more and more, but no one has really decided what it means. Some companies advertise chat lines, and it turns out they’re dating services that use phone lines to let you chat with potential partners. For the purposes of discussing online chat software, chat lines refer to HTML chat. This is a kind of chat that has a very low barrier to entry, in other words, if you can get online, you’ll be able to use it, even if you have a very old computer, a very old operating system, and a very old browser. Chat lines are pure html. You type into a browser, hit enter and your words appear. You have to hit the refresh button in your browser to see the most recent activity. It’s a little bit like message boards or forums this way, however the text is not persistent. New text flows onto your screen, and old text flows off.

Java Chat

Java chat is a generic term that describes a chat program written in the java programming language. This means each time you chat, your computer downloads a java applet that allows you to chat. You don't have to download, install, and launch a program to use the chat service. This means you can use the chat service on most computers, including some computers made available in public places such as libraries and schools. There are also disadvantages. A java chat program will never be as robust as a standalone chat program. The fact that the java applet has to be downloaded each time means the programmers of the chat client will do everything possible to keep it small. Therefore, usually java chat is text-only chat.

Message Baords / Forums

Message boards and forums aren’t really chat rooms, but many people refer to them this way. Message boards and forums is called asynchronous communication. In other words, rather than typing in real time and getting responses in real time, you post a message that stays put. You can even compose these ahead of time. Other people read your posts, and some will reply. Message boards and forums can get just as out of hand as a chat room, but they can also get very serious. People tend to put a bit more thought into what they type since their post will be around for a while.

Online Radio and Chat

New technology and inexpensive bandwidth has given online radio a foothold on the net. Online radio chat are a great match, because you can listen to the radio while you’re chatting, and folks running small radio stations can broadcast to folks in specific chat services or even specific chat rooms. Some online radio station software is even free. You can set up a radio station right on your PC and broadcast to a handful of people at once. Chat rooms are a great place to find new listeners. Many people set up an online radio station, go into a chat service and offer to announce chatters’ paint contests or game tournaments. The painters, in turn, tune into that radio station. It’s a great, synergistic relationship.

Virtual Places

Learn about chat room software: Virtual Places chat, or Vpchat, is standalone (i.e. you must download and install it) avatar-based chat software. It’s very graphically oriented. People sit in chat rooms that have an html background. The background might be a landscape scene or an actual image of some kind of room, or it may be someone’s home page. You can use any URL as a chat room background. The software includes 7 games, tours (group browsing), instant messaging, gestures, emoticons, file transfer, voice chat, and an auditorium.

Meaning of Chat Acronyms

Chat acronyms (G-rated)

Acronyms abound in chat and instant messaging. Since chatting is so inherently text intensive, it’s understandable that chatters would find shortcuts for the most commonly used phrases. You probably already know what acronym LOL stands for, but what about the other chat acronyms? Here is a list of common chat acronyms (also often called internet acronyms) – it’s the G-Rated version.

1HT…One-Handed Typing
AA…Alcoholics Anonymous
AAMOF…As A Matter Of Fact
AC…Air Conditioning
ACK…Acknowledge
ADHD…Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder
ADN…Any Day Now
AKA…Also Known As
AFAIK…As Far As I Know
AFK…Away From Keyboard
AIO…All in One Diaper
AISB…As It Should Be
AP…Attachement Parenting
ASAP…As Soon As Possible
A/S/C…Age/Sex/Check
A/S/L…Age/Sex/Location
A/S/S/C…Age/Sex/State/Check
ATB…All the Best
ATK…At the Keyboard
ATM…At The Moment
AWFK…Away From Keyboard
AYT…Are you there?
B…Back
B4…Before
BAC…By Any Chance
BAK…Back At Keyboard
BB…Bye Bye
BBIAF…Be Back In A Flash
BBL…Be Back Later
BBIAM…Be Back In A Minute
BBS…Be Back Soon
BC…Because
BEG…Big Evil Grin
BF…Boyfriend or Breastfeed(for the moms)
BFN…By For Now
BG…Big Grin
BIF…Before I Forget
BISS…Because I Said So
BML…Bitting My Lip
BOC…But Ofcourse
BOL…Best Of Luck
BOMM…Bored Outta My Mind
BRB…Be Right Back
BRBGP…Be Right Back Gotta Pee
BRB nc…Be Right Back Nature calls (brb nc)
BTDT…Been There Done That
BTW…By The Way
BWKOTL…Big Wet Kiss On The Lips
BWL…Bursting With Laughter
CC…Carbon Copy
C&G…Chuckle and Grin
CICO…Coffee In, Coffee Out
CID…Crying In Disgrace
CP…Chat Post or Couch Potato
CRBT…Crying Real Big Tears
CSG…Chuckle Snicker Grin
CUL…See You Later
C U L8TER…See You Later
C U L8R…See You Later
CUZ…Because
CWIM…See What I Mean?
CWYL…Chat With Ya Later
C YA…See Ya
DBD…Don't Be Dumb
DD…Dear Daughter
DS…Dear Son
DW…Dear Wife,
DH…Dear Husband
…Darling Husband
…Darned Husband (if moody)
…Demented Husband (if moody)
DIL…Daughter In Law
DITY…Did I Tell You?
DK…Don't Know
DL…Download
DLTBBB…Don't Let The Bed Bugs Bite
DOM…Dirty Old Man
DTS…Don't Think So
EC…Expecting Club
EG…Evil Grin
EMSG…Email Message
EOS…End Of Show
EWG…Evil Wicked Grin
FAAK…Falling Asleep At Keyboard
FAQ…Frequently Asked Questions
FC…Fingers Crossed
FE…For Example or From Experience
FIL…Father In Law
FTBOMH…From The Bottom Of My Heart
FWD…Forward
FWIW…For What It's Worth
FYI…For Your Information
G…Grin
G2G…Got To Go
GA…Go Ahead
GAL…Get A Life
GB…Good Bye
GF…Girlfriend
GFI…Go For It
GFN…Gone For Now
GFU…Good For You
GG…Gotta Go
GJ…Good Job
GMBA…Giggling My Butt Off
GMTA…Great Minds Think Alike
GN…Goodnight
GR8…Great
GTG…Got To Go
GTSY…Glad To See You
H&K…Hug and Kiss
HB…Hurry Back
HABU…Have A Better 'Un
HAGN…Have A Good Night
HAGU…Have A Good 'Un
HC…Holy Cow
HEHE…Lauging, or Giggling
HHIS…Hanging Head in Shame
HLOL…Hysterically Laughing Out Loud
HLOLARAWCHAWMP…Hysterically Laughing Out Loud And Rolling Around While Clapping Hands And Wetting My Pants
HS…Homeschool
HTH…Hope This Helps
IAE…In Any Event
IC…I See
ICBW…It Could Be Worse
ICCL…I Could Care Less
ICQ…I Seek You
IDK…I Don't Know/ I Didn't Know
IDTS…I Don't Think So
IFBN…I Feel Better NOw
IGP…I Gotta Pee
ILY…I Love You
IME…In My Experience
IMO…In My Opinion
IMHO…In My Humble Opinion
IMNSHO…In My Not So Humble Opinion
INY…I Need You
INYIM…It's not you, it's me
IOU…I Owe You
IOW…In Other Words
IP…Internet Protocol
IRC…Internet Relay Chat
IRL…In Real Life
IRMC…I Rest My Case
ISP…Internet Service Provider
ISRN…I'll Stop Rambling Now
ITA…I Totally Agree
IWALU…I Will Always Love You
IYD…In Your Dreams
JEJE…Lauging Or Giggling
JMO…Just My Opinion
JK…Joke
J/K…Just Kidding
JTLYK…Just To Let You Know
K…Ok
KBD…Keyboard
KEWL…Cool
KIT…Keep In Touch
KOC…Kiss On Cheek
KOL…Kiss On Lips
KWIM…Know What I Mean?
L8R…Later
L8R G8R …Later 'Gater
LHM…Lord Help Me
LHO…Laughing Head Off
LHU…Lord Help Us
LMK…Let Me Know
LOL…Laughing Out Loud
LOLOL…Laughing Out Loud On Line
LQ (lq)…Laughing quietly
LSHMSH…Laughing so hard my side hurts
LTNS…Long Time No See
LUVYA…Love Ya (you)
MB…Message Board
MIL…Mother-in-law
MTF…More To Follow
MYOB…Mind Your Own Business
N/A…Not Applicable
NADA…Nothing
NADT…Not A Darn Thing
NAK…Nursing At The Keyboard
NAYY…No Affiliation, yada, yada
NFP…Natural Family Planning
NM…Never Mind
NRN…No Reply Necessary
NTBCAMA…Not to be Construed as Medical Advice
N/T or NT…No Text
OIC…Oh I See
OL …Old Lady (significant other)
OM …Old Man (significant other)
OMG…Oh My Gosh
OT…Off Topic
OTOH…On The Other Hand
OTTOMH…Off The Top of My Head
PC/PVT/MSG…Private Chat/Messaging
PDS…Please Don't Shout
PDQ…Pretty Darn Quick
PIC…Picture
PITA…Pain in the (behind)
PLMK…Please Let Me Know
PM…Private Message
PMFJI…Pardon Me For Jumping In
PMP…Peed My Pants
POAHF…Put On A Happy Face
POOF….Left the Chatroom
POV…Point Of View
PTSS…Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome
ROTF…Rolling On The Floor
ROTFL…Rolling On The Floor Laughing
ROFLOL…Rolling On The Floor Laughing Out Loud
ROFLMOL…Rolling on the floor laughing madly out loud
ROTFLMAO…Rolling On The Floor Laughing My Anatomy Off
ROTFLMAOSHIPIMP….Rolling On The Floor Laughing My A** Off So Hard I Peed In My Pants!!
ROTFWTIME……..Rolling On The Floor With Tears In My Eyes
RSN…Real Soon Now
SAHM…Stay-at-Home Mom
SAH-HSM…Stay at Home-Home Schooling Mom
SEC…Just a Second
SETE…Smiling Ear To Ear
SIL…Son In Law or (SoIL)
…Sister In Law or (SiIL)
SITD….Still In The Dark
SNAFU…Situation normal all fouled up
SO…Significant Other
SOT…Short Of Time
SOTMG…Short Of Time Must Go
SNERT…Snot-Nosed Egotistical Rude Teenager
SS…So Sorry
SWAK…Sealed With A Kiss
SWIM…See What I mean
SWL…Screaming with Laughter
SYS…See You Soon
TA…Thanks Again
TBD OOTD…To Be Done, One Of These Days!
TCOY…Take Care Of Yourself
TDM…Too Darn Many
TIA…Thanks in Advance
TIC…Tongue in Cheek
TILII…Tell It Like It Is
TPTB…The Powers That Be
TTFN…Ta Ta For Now
TNT…Till Next Time
TOY…Thinking Of You
TTYL…Talk to you later
UFO…Un-Finished Object (a started project not yet done)
UPGS…Unfinished Project Guilt Syndrome
VBG…Very Big Grin
VDH…Very Dear Husband (see also DH)
VDW…Very Dear Wife
WAHM…Work At Home Mom
WB…Welcome Back or Write Back
WBS…Write Back Soon
WPYS…Who Pulled Your String
WRT…With Regard To
WTG…Way To Go
WWJD…What Would Jesus Do?
YBS… You'll Be Sorry
YCGB….You Can't Get Better
VF…Very Funny
YG… Young Gentleman
YL…Young Lady
YM… Young Man
YMMV…Your Mileage my Vary
YW…Your Welcome
ZZZ…Snoozing/Sleeping Pictures:

X-rated version of chat acronyms

Acronyms abound in chat and instant messaging. Sometimes it's hard to keep up with the meaning of chat acronyms. Since chatting is so inherently text intensive, it’s understandable that chatters would find shortcuts for the most commonly used phrases. You probably already know what acronym LOL stands for, but what about the other chat acronyms? Here is a list of common chat acronyms (also often called internet acronyms) – it’s the X-Rated version.

LMAO Laughing My Ass Off
LMFAO Laughing My Fucking Ass Off
ROFLMAO Rolling On Floor Laughing My Ass Off
FY Fuck You
WTH What The Hell?
WTF What The Fuck?
FUBAR Fucked Up Beyond All Recognition
PMSL Pissing Myself Laughing
NCZ No Capture Zone (used in role-play)
NKZ No Kill Zone (used in role-play)

Online Privacy Tips

Private rooms

Most chat communities offer the ability to chat in private rooms. The conversations and activities that take place in private rooms is rarely monitored although the usual Terms of Service and Community Standards rules apply. Private rooms are created by one person. The person who created the private room, then, invites other people/person into the room and gives them a room name. No one else can enter the room unless they know the room name. Private rooms serve two important functions. If you are exchanging sensitive or personal information and don't wish to be "overheard", a private room can keep other chatters out of your conversation. Private rooms are also a great way to avoid chatters that cause you trouble. Don't let the phrase "Private Room" fool you. There is no such thing as true or total privacy online. Make sure to review your chat company's privacy policy before jumping into a private room. It's important to know how closely the company monitors and logs all communications.

Sharing pictures

Sharing pictures online to keep in touch with friends and family. You can post them on your website, email them, and even share picture files and transfer them in most chat software. It is important to be aware that any picture you post online can be copied or manipulated. If you regularly post personal pictures online be sure to password protect the webpage where the pictures reside. Give the password only to people that you want to have access to your images. Many online chat sites are focused on dating, relationships, and other types of personal encounters. Make sure that you are chatting with a company that keeps your private information (name, phone number, address) secure. Making friends and other personal connections with people online and around the world is one of the greatest features of the Internet. Make sure as you make these connections that you apply the same commons sense and technical savvy you would to any first time meeting.

Personal information

The only way to be completely safe online is to never share your personal information with another chatter. Anything from your last name, social security number, or even the view out of your window can be used to locate you. Don't be fooled by friendly strangers. Sometimes the nature of an online chat warrants more personal information sharing, so make sure you have and operate chat security. If you are participating in a chat room that is based on a common interests, age, or geographic location be sure to be extra careful to share only the minimum necessary amount of information. If you do decide to share your personal information with an online contact or friend be sure to let someone you trust know that you've made contact with a person online.

Parental Control

Online privacy tips: Parental Controls help protect your kids online. You decide who they communicate with and which Web sites they access. This usually works by letting you block or approve specific web sites or categories of sites. Sometimes you can even set controls up so your child has to ask permission to access blocked sites. You set when and how long your kids can be online – usually you set controls by day, time of day or session length. With many parental control services you can also receive reports that detail your kids’ online activities. You can also help your child interact with friends by creating a list of approved e-mail addresses and user names (for instant messaging). You can create separate controls for each child, and can usually get customized levels of protection based on your childrens’ age. Some parental controls can even be accessed remotely. When you set up parental controls, the controls you've chosen for your child remain in place, even if they use a different browser on your home PC.

Tips on Avatars Online

MegaHead avatars

Megaheads are basically large avatars. You can either capture an image you like and resize it to fit a given website’s avatar guidelines or create your avatars from scratch using any graphics software such as Photoshop or Paint Shop Pro. After you are done creating the avatar that represents your online image save it as a gif, jpg or bmp file depending on a given chat site’s specifications. So why use the same avatars as everyone else when you can create your own avatar and stand out from the crowd? Think of your own avatar as your online face.

Custom avatars

Avatar is one of those words that different sites use in different ways. Some chats allow you to choose from a pre-defined set of icons that are associated with your user name. The icon sits next to your chat name or in your instant messaging windows. Other chats let you use a custom avatar that actually represents your persona graphically while chatting. Some communities, such as there.com allow you to customize your avatar with different clothing and physical attributes. Another, such as the Palace, lets you create your own avatar. These chat avatars don’t necessarily look like people – they might be pictures or illustrations of animals or places or just about anything you can think of. Each chat service has its own specifications for creating custom avatars.

Create avatars

Tips on avatars online: If you are somewhat gifted artistically you can create your own avatars. You can either capture an image you like and resize it to fit a given website’s avatar guidelines or create your avatars from scratch using any graphics software such as Photoshop or Paint Shop Pro. After you are done creating the avatar that represents your online image save it as a gif, jpg or bmp file depending on a given chat site’s specifications. So why use the same avatars as everyone else when you can create your own avatar and stand out from the crowd? Think of your own avatar as your online face.

Animated avatars

What is an animated avatar? Just like a non-animated avatar it you’re your online identity. When you meet people in real life they remember you by your face and name. Your face is unique, even if your name isn’t. Having an avatar, especially a customized one, gives you the ability to stand out from the crowd, as in real life. Animated avatars stand out even more because these are moving pictures. They can be funny, cool or scary. Whatever matches your personality better. Free animated avatars can be either downloaded or created from scratch if you are artistically inclined and tech savvy.

Tips on Chat Room Rules & Etiquette or Netiquette

Netiquette

Tips on chat room rules & chat etiquette or netiquette: People have been chatting online for over a decade. And new people come online every day. Many chat veterans have their own vernacular. Just like in real life, the chat world has its own set of social norms. Many of these rules, often referred to as "netiquette," are universal. Others are specific to the chat software or service. There are some general rules of thumb, though.
* When you enter a room, don´t just jump in and blurt "hey, what´s going on?" Take a moment to see what folks are discussing and then join in.
* Make sure your caps lock key isn´t engaged. When you type in all capital letters, you appear to be shouting. It´s a guaranteed way to irritate chat regulars.
* If you’re trying out new fonts, colors, emoticons, gestures, or anything else that might be completely irrelevant to the conversation in the chat room, go to a different room, or a private room, to test things out. Sitting in a chat room interrupting the flow of chat is never well-received.

Monitored chat

If you’re looking for family-oriented chat, or chat that is more likely to be rated PG than rated R or X, you should look for a monitored chat. It’s impossible for any chat service to watch all the chat in every chat room all the time. But chat services that have chat guides or chat hosts who help monitor chat are likely to have guidelines that support your desire to participate in friendly, clean chat. Monitored chat can’t guarantee you won’t bump up against some conversation that offends you, but at the folks being offensive know they’re breaking the rules. They will likely try to keep a low profile, and guides or hosts should be able to take care of such a situation. Another advantage of monitored chat is that these chat services tend to have strict guidelines about malicious programming (often referred to as "bots"). Bots can be extremely troublesome – they can boot chatters, lag the room, disrupt games, and do all sorts of nasty things to disrupt your chat experience. Monitored chats, especially subscription-based chat services, are not very appealing targets for chatters who use bots, since they are likely to lose their accounts if they engage in this kind of behavior.

Terms of service

Every chat room service, and in fact just about every web site, has its own terms of service. For the most part, terms of service reflect common sense guidelines. It’s a safe bet that if something is illegal in the real world, it’s against the terms of service. It’s important to thoroughly read a chat services terms of service, however, because most have some guidelines that are based on their particular service and/or their particular software. Some chat services allow adult-oriented chat subjects, and others strive to maintain a community that is suited to all ages. Usually you will be required to agree to the terms of service before becoming a member of a chat community. If you behave in a manner inconsistent with the terms of service, your membership privileges may be revoked.

Voice Chat Tips

Group voice chat

Some voice chat services let you use voice chat with many people at the same time. This type of voice chat can get rather cacophonous, but it can also be fun. Some people lose their inhibitions in a voice chat room and decide to serenade the other chatters with their favorite song, or regale the room with poetic musings. Most voice chat services allow you to ignore others on an individual basis, so if you're in a voice chat room with someone who's talking over everyone else in a manner you find annoying, you can simply hit ignore and no longer have to contend with them. Voice chat on the internet isn't quite up to regular telephone conference call standards yet, so it's not a very practical solution for important group calls. But for casual conversation with others you spend time with online, it can be a great addition to your chat experience. Keep in mind you'll probably need to explicitly adjust your firewall settings to use voice chat, and others participating in voice chat will see your IP address.

One-to-one voice chat

Voice chat tips: Most voice chat systems use peer-to-peer communications for 2-person conversations. Peer to peer means one computer to another. In other words, rather than connecting to a central server through which all the data flows, you connect directly to another chatter or chatters. When you set up a peer to peer connection with another chatter, you will be exposing your IP number to the other chatter. This isn´t necessarily a problem in any way, but do make sure you have adequate firewall protection installed on your computer. Many computers have microphones and speakers built in, but your best bet is to buy a microphone and headset, or a combination microphone/headset.

Free long distance

VOIP (Voice Over Internet Protocol) is rapidly becoming a viable option for local, regional, and long distance services. There are several companies offering customers VOIP services that use their broadband connection for voice call transmission. In this scenario, you hook up a converter box between your computer and the internet and connect your phone to the converter. In many cases you can keep your existing phone number, and some services will let you choose a new area code if you wish. Voice chat doesn’t give you a phone number, then again voice chat also doesn’t require a converter box and is often a free service.

What Are Chat Events?

Paint shops

Paint shops in chat are unique to avatar chat. Who visits paint shops in chat? Painters, of course! "Painters" refer to chatters who "paint" avatars. This can mean creating an avatar from scratch, but more often it means starting with a "pre-cut" avatar. This can be a regular size avatar or a mega sized avatar. Pre-cut simply refers to a black and white image. Painters take this image and use a paint program, such as PaintShop Pro, FireWorks, or Photoshop, and turn it into a work of art. They add color, "tubes", and special effects. Sometimes they add a chat name, so the avatar is personalized for the chatter. Paint shops are often run like small businesses, with owners, staff painters, and other staff members dedicated to bringing traffic to the paint shop, keeping order in the paint shop chat rooms, and officiating paint contests.

Room / Small Events

Most chat services offer chat events. Small chat events are often run by members of the chat community or by the staff of the chat services. These small chat events are usually held in a regular chat room that holds anywhere from 25 to 40. They often take the form of games, such as sports trivia, film trivia, and general trivia. Others are support-oriented, such as tech support chat or chats to help you build web pages. Other popular room events include poetry chat, psychic chat, and truth or dare. Room events can be lots of fun, because everyone in the room can participate. Large events usually require you to submit your questions. The questions are put into a queue and selected by the people on stage to answer at some point in the event. Room events, with everyone taking part, can get very lively.

Paint contests

Most paint shops hold paint contests on a regular basis. Some hold them once a week, and some have contests several times throughout the day. Paint contests last anywhere from 10 minutes to 30 minutes. The person or people running a paint contest start with a pre-cut avatar, which everyone can see. Everyone who has decided to join the contest takes a screen shot of the avatar, loads it into their paint program, and competes to create the most appealing avatar. Sometimes the chat rooms vote on the best avatar, other times the folks running the paint contest decide who the winners are. There are other variations to paint contests too: sometimes there is more than one pre-cut avatar used and contestants can choose which one to paint. Some paint shops also hold email paint contests, in which people mail in their entries. Paint contests are immensely popular in avatar-based chats.

Auditorium / large events

What are chat events? Auditorium events are large chat rooms that usually operate very differently than regular chat rooms. While regular chat rooms hold an average of 25 people, auditorium capacity is determined by the scalability of the chat software and hardware and the amount of available bandwidth. Robust chat auditoriums can manage 10s and even 100s of thousands of chatters simultaneously. Obviously that many people simply can’t talk all at once. Instead, people at the chat event sit in rows that function like chat rooms. Each row can talk amongst themselves and also see the text from the auditorium stage. Somewhere in the chat software is a link or a button that will let you send a question to the stage. There are folks on stage receiving these questions – they decide which ones get sent out for the guests to answer and for the audience to see.