Instant Messages on the forums?

[Laura F.]

It sounds like we could run a pilot of the private messenging system for those interested.  Private messaging can be disabled by individual users if they prefer not to receive private messages. 

I will investigate the feasibility of this and keep you all updated.

Thanks,

Laura

[Ray.R]

I used to Admin at some other forum.

Back in the days, we had a setting which was "friends of username".

Basically, I think the same exists here somewhere, not this forum, but the community site(??), where I have Christian as a friend.

What we could have is a mechanism that only allows Private Messages amongs friends.  That means if I did not accept you as a friend, then you cannot send me IM's / PM's.

That would prevent spam and other abuses.

So if I want to send Private / Instant Messages to Ben, he would have to accept me as a "friend" first. 

I do not know if it is necessary for Private Messages to be logged in to receive PM's, but it might make sense for Instant Messages..  😉

[aeastet]

This sounds like a good idea. It might not help in the instance where I helped someone and went back to see if things were going ok. But I do like that Idea.

[Laura F.]

To give a quick update on this topic:

Private messenging (not instant messenging) can be implemented for our community.  It's pretty easy for me to switch on and you will be able to disable it for yourself if you do not wish to receive messages.  You can also set up your email subscriptions such that you get an email if someone sends you a private message.  I'm finishing up the logistics of turning on the feature and would like to know if there are other questions I can answer about it and what sort of guidelines I should publish when enabling the feature.

Thanks!

Laura

[aeastet]

SO do we have this as a default of on initially and you have to opt out or do you have to opt in for this feature. I think that would be one thing that should be decided. We might want to decide how to announce the new feature so that everyone can see the new feature easily. Maybe some how to info.

[Laura F.]

Unfortunately, I can't default the private messenger setting to off, once it's turned on you will need to turn it off for yourself if you desire. 

[Dennis_Knutson]

Laura,

Earlier you mentioned that you could turn it on or off for certain groups. Does that mean something like those who only have 'member' status?

[altenbach]

Laura,

One prime example where instant messages would be very useful is Shane's thread here. I would think that some members would be hesitant to reply in the public thread.

Another example is if I notice a thread where I know that one of the veterans knows the answer, but he might have missed the thread (misleading title, scrolled off the front page, etc.). I could IM him, pointing to the thread.

[Laura F.]

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@Dennis Knutson wrote:

Laura,

Earlier you mentioned that you could turn it on or off for certain groups. Does that mean something like those who only have 'member' status?

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Dennis - that's the basic idea.  However, one problem with this is that if I turn it off behind the scenes, then if you try to send a message to someone in that group you are not notified that they won't get the message.  If an individual users turns it off for themselves though, others will get a notice that their message won't be received.  This would make me hesitant to disable the feature behind the scenes.

[JackDunaway]

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@Laura F. wrote:

Dennis - that's the basic idea.  However, one problem with this is that if I turn it off behind the scenes, then if you try to send a message to someone in that group you are not notified that they won't get the message.  If an individual users turns it off for themselves though, others will get a notice that their message won't be received.  This would make me hesitant to disable the feature behind the scenes.

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I'm reading into Dennis' sentiment - but if he's suggesting Messaging privileges (sending, specifically) should only be permitted after achieving a certain rank, I agree with him. The level of activity could be relatively low (10 posts?) and still be effective in eliminating spam and abuses such as a brand new member attempting to directly contact the "experts" without attempting to resolve their issue on a public thread.

I think its great Laura is looking into this feature. I have received many private messages through LAVA, the NI Communities, and email, but it would be more natural for others to contact me directly through the forums.