Now you can add LIVE CHAT to your web site easier than you ever imagined. The VolanoChat system is a combination of server and client side Java programs. The client side Java applet (46 KB to 57 KB depending on browser) is downloaded by the browser and then executed on the user's local machine. The client applet then communicates with the software located on the server to create a live real-time chat environment.

Note that the downloading of the chat applet and any custom images you create for the applet are counted as data transfer. To implement the chat applet on your site follow these two simple steps:

Create an HTML file called chat.html in your root directory with the MyVolanoChat applet tag below in it and save it in the root directory of your site. Make sure you edit the applet tag to replace http://www.your-domain.com with your full domain name.

<param name="color" value="#FFFFFF">

This parameter changes the color of the space on your chat.html Web page that appears around the enter button. The color values are defined in the format #RRGGBB, where RR is the red hexadecimal value, GG is the green hexadecimal value, and BB is the blue hexadecimal value. The default color is white, #FFFFFF.

<param name="group" value="Chat Room Name">

This parameter changes the name of your chat room. It is displayed as the window title at the top of your chat room.

<param name="text" value="english.txt">

This parameter changes the user interface language of the chat room applet. The language value can be any of the following: english.txt, french.txt, german.txt, italian.txt, portuguese.txt, or spanish.txt. For example, to change the language to Spanish, replace english.txt with spanish.txt.

Add a link on your home page to point to chat.html. For example:

Note: You must reference your full domain name for your account, including the www., or the chat will not work. You also cannot reference the chat using a machine name or a domain pointer. Users are only allowed one chat room per account. Also, the chat.html page with the above applet code in it must be located in the root directory of your account and must be named chat.html.

That's all it takes to add LIVE CHAT to your site!

Note: The MyVolanoChat applet is a third party product and, as such, we do not provide direct support for customizing its interface.

Customizing VolanoChat involves modifying and adding parameters to the applet tag on your chat.html Web page. You can modify the default parameters to change just about everything including the room color, the font color, the font type, and the banner ads. Modify the parameters you wish to change or add new parameters inside the MyVolanoChat applet tag. If you are not sure about what you are doing, it may be best not to change or add any new parameters to the applet tag. Other parameters are listed in the chat room customization chapter of the VolanoChat Administrator Guide.

<param name="color.background" value="#C0C0C0">

This parameter changes the color of the chat room window with color values defined in the format #RRGGBB, where RR is the red hexadecimal value, GG is the green hexadecimal value, and BB is the blue hexadecimal value. The default background color is gray, #C0C0C0.

<param name="color.foreground" value="#000000">

This parameter changes the color of the chat text and the chat room borders with color values defined in the format #RRGGBB, where RR is the red hexadecimal value, GG is the green hexadecimal value, and BB is the blue hexadecimal value. The default foreground color is black, #000000.

<param name="font.default" value="TimesRoman-15">

This parameter changes the font name, style and size. The font specification is in the format "Name-Style-Size". For the best support on all browsers the name should be limited to Helvetica, TimesRoman, Courier, or Dialog. The style is one of italic, bold, or bolditalic, and should be omitted for a plain style. The size is the font point size. For example, you could specify "Helvetica-bold-13" or "Helvetica-italic-14". The default is "TimesRoman-15". Be sure to use the correct cases as shown in this example.

<param name="banner.code" value="COM.volano.BannerPlayer.class">

This parameter points to the ad banner player applet that rotates banner ads in your chat room. To turn your banner ads off, add this parameter but leave it blank like the following: <param name="banner.code" value="">

<param name="banner.param.banner.1" value="60 welcome.gif http://www.volano.com/">

This parameter changes the first banner ad that shows up in your chat room.

Banners can be GIF images or JPEG images. The numeric suffix on each property (banner.param.banner.1, banner.param.banner.2, ..., banner.param.banner.n) must be sequential and start with the number 1. This suffix gives the sequence of the advertisement banners.

Each banner must have three items, separated by spaces or tabs. The first item is the time (in seconds) to display the ad. Specify a time of zero (0) to display a banner with no time limit. The second item is the path to the image file (relative to the applet codebase URL). The third item is the location of the Web page to display when the user clicks on the banner.

When using your own banner ad images, make sure to specify the full URL to the image file after its display time, such as "60 http://www.your-domain.com/banner.gif http://www.your-domain.com/index.html".

<param name="banner.param.banner.2" value="60 help.gif help.html">

This parameter changes the second banner ad that shows up in your chat room.

<param name="banner.param.banner.3" value="60 chatwithme.gif http://www.volano.com/">

This parameter changes the third banner ad that shows up in your chat room.

<param name="image.button.width" value="88">

This parameter defines the width in pixels of the button image that appears on your chat.html Web page to allow entry into your chat room.

<param name="image.button.height" value="31">

This parameter defines the height in pixels of the button image that appears on your chat.html Web page to allow entry into your chat room.

<param name="image.button1" value="button1.gif">

This parameter defines the button image that appears on your chat.html Web page to allow entry into your chat room. The image may be in GIF or JPEG format. Make sure the size parameters (image.button.width and image.button.height) are set to match the actual button sizes or the image may be displayed improperly.

<param name="image.button2" value="button2.gif">

This parameter defines the button image that appears on your chat.html Web page when you move your mouse cursor over the button. The image may be in GIF or JPEG format. This image should have the same dimensions as image.button.1.

After making your desired changes, upload the HTML file called chat.html with the customized applet tag on it and save it in the root directory of your site.

To make sure that you are viewing your most recent chat room changes. Hold your "Shift" key while clicking the "Reload" button on Netscape, or hold the "Ctrl" key while clicking the "Refresh" button on Internet Explorer, to ensure that you load the latest applet when you reenter your chat room. You may even need to clear your browser cache or temporary Internet files.