Tutorials/Chatting with the Chat Activity


 * Communicate with other Sugar Learners and developers.
 * Chat is an example of a shared Activity, which allows Collaboration over a network.
 * There are many different shared Activities in Sugar
 * Collaboration is one of Sugar's strongest features.

Boot Sugar

 * The Home view (F3) appears


 * The Chat icon [[File:Activity-chat.png]] is on the right side of the Spiral of Activities
 * You must be connected to a network for Chat to Collaborate.

Start Chat

 * Click on the Chat icon.

Share your Chat session

 * Click on the 'white disc with a dot inside' icon on the Activity toolbar.
 * Click [[File:Mesh_key_f1_small.png]] in the drop-down palette menu.
 * You must run Chat as a shared session for it to collaborate.
 * You are now collaborating in a shared Activity session.
 * Your shared Chat session will show as an icon on the Neighborhood view (F1).
 * Other Learners can join your Chat session from their Neighborhood view.

Send Chat message

 * Type your message in the bottom text entry box of Chat.


 * Hit the Enter key on your keyboard.
 * Here Testing Chat is the message
 * Note that the Learner's avatar name is displayed on the line before the message.
 * In this case, Tris5-sugar:  Testing Chat
 * This becomes useful if several other Learners join the Chat session.

Use emoticons in your chat
Click on the "happy face" icon on the toolbar.
 * A drop-down palette menu appears and you can click on any of the emoticons on it.




 * Press the Enter key on your keyboard.
 * The emoticon is added to your message.



Joining a shared Chat session

 * This is an example of joining another Learner's shared Chat session.


 * Click [[File:Mesh_key_f1_small.png]] in the Frame or press the F1 key and you switch to the Neighborhood view.
 * Move the mouse pointer away from screen/window edge to retract the Frame.
 * Join another Learner's shared Chat session.
 * Hover the mouse pointer over the Chat icon.
 * Click Join on the pop-up palette menu.
 * F1_Join_Chat.png


 * You are Chatting (collaborating) in the other Learner's Chat session.
 * Shared_Chat.png


 * You can see your messages in yellow and the other Learner's messages in blue.
 * Other Learners' colors will match the colors of their XO avatar.
 * It will not always be blue.


 * Move the mouse pointer to a corner of the screen/window.
 * Wait until the Frame extends.


 * This screenshot is from a newly shared Chat session.


 * An icon for the running Chat Activity is displayed on the top bar of the Frame.
 * Avatars of the 2 connected Learners are displayed on the right bar of the Frame.
 * 1) Icon for the Learner - (Has the same pop-up palette menu as shown in the Home view version of the icon (not shown).
 * 2)  Pop-out palette menu for the Learner sharing this Chat session - Remove Friend (shown)

Stop Chat

 * Shared_Chat_stop.png


 * Click on the white octagon icon with a black square in it, on the right side of the toolbar.
 * Stop Ctrl+Q appears on the drop-down palette label.


 * Click on it.
 * You return to the Home view screen.