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Other Users and XML ticker

by ZZamboni (Curate)
on Jun 02, 2000 at 01:20 UTC ( [id://15911]=monkdiscuss: print w/replies, xml ) Need Help??

Hi,

This is a problem I had been thinking about in the last few days, and the XML tickers may make it easier to solve.

One problem with chatbox scripts like mine is that they continually load a page, which when using cookies means that I'm seen as "logged in" by the Other users nodelet. However, it may be that I just left the script running and went to lunch, so that gives misleading impression (someone may type a message addressed to me, but not using /msg, that I will not see because it'll be gone by the time I come back).

So what I was thinking is if it would be possible to have the Other users nodelet not include you if all you are doing is polling the XML tickers. That way, I could leave my chat script running all day, but yet I would only appear as logged in when I actually browse the site, or post something to the chatbox.

Does this make sense? Vroom, what do you think? What do others think?

--ZZamboni

Replies are listed 'Best First'.
RE: Logged in chat clients
by mdillon (Priest) on Jun 02, 2000 at 09:36 UTC
    man was it difficult to reply to this node. but i have done it! (the trick was to specify the 'title' param manually in the URL; i just put 'foo' then changed it after)

    as for ZZamboni's problem, i was thinking about this myself. when i get more time to work on my chat client, i'm going to overhaul the cookie/login stuff. as part of that, i'm going to make it so that the chat client can remove the cookie jar from its user agent to go into 'lurk mode'.

    i think that any time a user's cookie is used to grab a page, it should affect the Other users nodelet. make the clients smarter.

      Thanks for going through the trouble of replying to this node. I hope vroom can fix the title soon :-)

      as part of that, i'm going to make it so that the chat client can remove the cookie jar from its user agent to go into 'lurk mode'.

      The problem if you do this is that you cannot get personal messages until you go out of "lurk mode". What I would like to do is be able to leave the client running, and every once in a while check and see if there's anything interesting going on, or if I have any personal messages. The moment I post something, the posting script will see my cookie again and list me as logged in.

      This can only be done if accessing the XML tickers (both for personal and general messages) does not update Other Users. I still think this could be a very cool feature. As long as you are participating in the chat, or browsing the web site, you'll be considered as logged in. But if you are just retrieving messages from the XML tickers, you'll be considered to be "lurking" and not show up in "Other users".

      --ZZamboni

      Making chat clients smarter is undoubtedly a good idea. I think though that ZZamboni's idea is a better solution as it will fix everybody's script all at once.

      An added benefit is that if at some point in the future, someone else writes a script similar to your's, then they wouldn't have to add this logic, because the site already does it. It just seems like a cleaner solution to me.

      My vote: make it a feature of the site.

      Nuance

      Baldrick, you wouldn't see a subtle plan if it painted itself purple and danced naked on top of a harpsichord, singing "Subtle plans are here again!"

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