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Frequently Asked Questions


We hope our answers to these Frequently Asked Questions will tell you what you need to know about Pathfinder Chat the iChat software. If you're using an Internet Relay Chat (IRC) client instead of iChat, please consult the manual or contact your software's technical support office.

What is Pathfinder Chat?

Setting Up the Software

Getting Oriented in Chat Problems in Chat

What is Pathfinder Chat?

Chat is a great place to meet, befriend, rant with, argue with and romance others who share your interests -- and those who don't. It all happens live, in real time, at Pathfinder Chat. Drop by the Cafe to talk about any old thing, and visit the other chat rooms to speak your mind 24 hours a day. You'll see a list of chat rooms and scheduled special events on the Chat Calendar.

Setting Up the Software

  • What is a chat room? Pathfinder offers a number of chat discussion areas on a wide range of topics. These discussion are called chat rooms. To see a list of Pathfinder's available chat rooms, visit the Chat Calendar. If you're using iChat and are in a Pathfinder chat room, you can see a list of Pathfinder's chat rooms by clicking on the site map button on the iChat navigational bar.

  • What kind of software do I need to use iChat? To use iChat, you need Netscape 2.0 or later, Internet Explorer 3.0 or later or any browser that supports Java or HTML.

  • What is iChat and how do I install it? iChat is the software, made by iChat, that allows you to best use Pathfinder Chat. For information on how to install iChat, please refer to How To Set Up Chat.

  • Can I use iChat from my America Online account? iChat currently is incompatible with the Netscape browser offered through America Online. To use iChat you need to download either Internet Explorer 3.0+ or Netscape Navigator 2.0+ and set one of them up as a default browser. "Go Internet" on America Online for more information.

  • Can I use iChat if I'm logging in from work? You should be able to use iChat if you aren't behind a firewall. iChat is not a security risk to your corporate network. Please ask your system administrator if you are uncertain about your own company's policy. If you're behind a firewall, you can try to use the iChat HTML client instead of the iChat plugin or Java client.

  • I've installed the plugin; now how do I connect? The first thing you do after you've installed the iChat plugin is exit and restart your browser. Browsers load plugins when they start up; iChat's software will not be loaded until the machine is restarted. Once you've restarted your browser, you're ready to chat: just point your browser to an iChat-enabled site. To use Pathfinder Chat, go to http://pathfinder.com/chat. When you get there, just click the Chat On/Off button, which is also found throughout the Pathfinder Network.

    After you've clicked on the On/Off button or on one of the chat rooms' names, you'll be asked to log in with your Pathfinder member name, so be sure you've already registered as a Pathfinder member -- it's easy, and free!

  • I can't get the plugin to work! What should I do? If you can't successfully download or use the iChat plugin (a recognized problem with Macintosh platforms), we recommend that you use the Java client.

  • Do I have to register for Pathfinder in order to chat? Yes. When you try to enter Pathfinder's chat server, you will be prompted to log in with your Pathfinder member name, or, if you haven't got one, to join Pathfinder. For more information on Pathfinder membership, see our Member Information.

    Once you're registered and/or logged in with your Pathfinder member name, you'll be taken to the Chat Preferences page and asked to tell us a little about the way you'd like to use iChat.

  • How do I connect to Pathfinder chat using an IRC client? Pathfinder's iChat server supports most varieties of IRC software. If you choose to use IRC, we'll assume that you already have an IRC client that intend to use. The very first time you use Pathfinder Chat, you'll need to tell us that you'll be using an IRC client, and you'll need to choose and enter a password to use IRC; otherwise, you won't be able to access our chat server. This password can be the same as or different from your Pathfinder member name password -- whatever you choose, be sure you remember it! If you've used Pathfinder Chat with iChat before and you decide to try using an IRC client, you'll need to tell us about your client change on the Chat Preferences page. Go to the Chat Calendar and click on Preferences in the upper-right hand corner.

    The information you need to connect to Pathfinder Chat with an IRC client is:

    Server: chat.pathfinder.com
    Port: 4067

Getting Oriented in Chat (Note: For more advanced chat options, please refer to iChat's Help site.)

  • How do I get to the chat area of Pathfinder? On the Pathfinder home page (and most pages on the Pathfinder network), click on the Chat button. This will take you to the Chat Calendar, which is a convenient jumping-off point for Pathfinder Chat.

  • What will I see when I get to chat? Pathfinder's Chat Calendar lists all of the live chat events that feature celebrity guests. The Chat Calendar also lists the chat rooms that Pathfinder offers. You can click on any of these rooms to join a chat in progress.

  • What will I see when I enter a chat room?

    The iChat window contains a number of functional elements:

    1. The large text window at the top of the screen is the web page associated with the chat room. You can change the URL you're viewing by using the commands found on the iChat navigational bar.

    2. The large text window at the bottom of the screen. is where you see what other chatters are saying in the chat room. Messages are preceded by the name of the person who typed it.

    3. The two scrolling list boxes on the far right show the nicknames of the chatters in the chat room and the emotion list. You'll notice the nicknames changing as people join and leave the chat room. To display an emotion to your fellow chatters, double-click on an emotion and the rest of the chat room will see it.

    4. The rectangular box at the bottom of the screen is the command line. This is where you type what you want to say. Once you've finished typing, simply hit return or enter to submit your text to the chat.

  • How do I send a message to everybody in the chat channel? To send a message to everyone in the chat room, type your message on the command line and hit return or enter. This will submit yourmessage to everyone participating in the conversation.

  • How do I send a private message to just one person? There are two ways to send a private message to just one person. First, you can double-click on the name of the person (in the list of names in the chat window) to whom you want to send a private message, and a new field will appear. Enter your message in the dialog box and click on send. (If you're on a Macintosh, simply hit enter or return to send your message.) Or you can double-click on the name of the person (in the list of names in the chat window) , then click on the Main Menu Button, go to the Users Menu and select the Send a Private Message To option. A new field will pop up; here, enter your private message.

  • How do I switch from one chat room to another? There are two ways to switch from one chat room to another. First, you can click on the Site Map Button found on the iChat navigational bar. When the site map appears, you can simply click on any of the rooms displayed and instantly jump to that room. Or you can use the command /join, followed by the name of a room, on the command line to move to new a room. Or you can click on a room name in the iChat Remote Control.

  • How do I see what other chat rooms are available? To see the other available chat rooms, click on the Site Map Button found on the iChat navigational bar. When the site map appears, you'll see all the rooms that are available. There's also a list of rooms in the iChat Remote Control.

  • How do I create my own chat room? To create your own chat room, click on Make a Room on the iChat Remote Control. Or, you can click on the Main Menu Button (the upside-down triangle) on the iChat navigational bar, go to the Commands menu and select the Create Private Room option. Whichever method you use, the browser window will show you a page that will allow you to create a private chat room. You canmake the room public so that any users may join it, or you can make it private and privately invite people to join you.

  • How do I find out more about the people with whom I'm chatting? To see more information about someone with whom you're chatting, first click on that user's name in the list of chatters in the chat window. Then click on the Main Menu Button (the upside-down triangle) on the iChat navigational bar, go to the Users menu and select the Who Is option. A dialog box will appear and allow you to see the information that the user provided.

  • How do I view a new web page while I'm chatting? Click on the Open URL Button on the iChat navigational bar and enter a URL in the new field that appears in the chat window. Or you can go to the Main Menu Button (the upside-down triangle) on the iChat navigational bar, go to the Navigate menu and select the Open URL option. A dialog box will appear. Enter a URL here and hit enter or return. That URL will then appear in the top frame of your browser.

  • How do I change my personal information and chat preferences? To change your preferences, first go to the Chat Calendar. In the upper right-hand corner, click on Preferences. Once you get to the Chat Preferences page, you can make changes to your optional user information here, as well as select another chat client.

Problems in Chat

  • Help! Somebody keeps sending me annoying messages. How can I stop them? There are two ways to ignore someone who is sending you annoying messages. First, to ignore incoming messages from a particular user, click on that user's name in the user list in the chat window. Select the Main Menu button on the iChat navigational bar, go to the Users menu and select the Ignore Messages From option. Second, you can ignore a user by typing /Ignore, followed by the user's name, on the command line.

  • I have Windows 3.1 and iChat's plugin makes Netscape crash with a General Protection Fault in "paige.dll". How can I fix this? If this happens, you'll need to download and install the new version of the plugin, which you can find at iChat's download site.

  • I have a Macintosh from the Performa series. I have the iChat PPC file in my Plugins folder, but I still can't get into a chat room. Is there anything I can do? For some unexplained reason, the Performa series likes the 68K version of the plugin. Please download that version from iChat's download site.

  • When I log into Pathfinder Chat, I keep getting a white screen in the browser's window. What's wrong? If you're in Netscape, go to the Options menu and select Network Preferences. Then select the Languages tab and place a check-mark in the box next to Enable Javascript. This should solve the problem.

  • I've tried to download the iChat plugin and it seems to time out or fail. What can I do? You may not be receiving a complete copy of the software because of your geographical location or connection speed. If you're unsuccessful several times, you may want to connect to iChat's ftp site. If this still causes you problems, please email help@ichat.com.

  • When I try to connect, all I see are some graphics and a large blank gray area. Where's the chat? This problem is caused by your browser failing to locate iChat's software. As a result, the browser connects to an iChat-enabled site without any means of utilizing the software. Here are a few of the most common causes of this problem.

    1. Incompatible Netscape and Windows versions. There is a 32-bit version and a 16-bit version of Netscape. The 32-bit version is for Windows 95/NT users, while the 16-bit version is for Windows 3.x users. The iChat plugin for each one is different. Make sure you have the correct match.
    2. Incorrect version of Internet Explorer (3.0 or higher). Version 3.1 is highly recommended. The version of Internet Explorer that comes with Win95 is NOT the correct version. It must be upgraded in order to work with iChat.
    3. Multiple copies of Netscape installed on the same machine. If you are using multiple copies of Netscape you must use the version of Netscape that has iChat installed, otherwise you must install iChat in every version of Netscape on your machine.
    4. iChat's software has not been downloaded or installed completely. Make sure that you have the iChat software loaded, and that it's appropriate for your browser. See the iChat help area for more information.

  • When I try to install the plugin, I get "Error During Read of Input File" with the title "Cannot Run Unpacker." Something went wrong during the download procedure. Try downloading a new copy of the iChat plugin and then re-running the installation.

  • When I'm connected to Pathfinder Chat, I see only my username in the userlist. I know there are other users chatting in the room with me, so why aren't their names appearing in the text? This happens with the plugin for Netscape as well as the Active-X control for Internet Explorer and is specific to users of Windows NT. This is a known bug, and iChat is working on it. For now, Windows NT users can get a list of people in a room by typing: /look.

  • When my Netscape window isn't the "active" window and a new chat message appears, I hear the sound of a door being opened and closed. What is the sound? This is the Monitor feature in the iChat plugin. When active, it generates sounds to alert the users of activity in the current chat room. The alert sound is that of a door opening and closing.

  • I previously installed Global Chat on my Macintosh. I have Netscape installed along with the Mac iChat plugin appropriate to my platform (68K or PPC). When I go to Pathfinder Chat, Global Chat comes up instead of the iChat plugin. How can I fix this? To resolve this conflict you will need to manually configure Netscape to recognize when it needs to load the iChat plugin. To do this:

    1. Open Netscape.
    2. Click on Options.
    3. Click on General Preferences.
    4. Choose the Helpers tab.
    5. Scroll down the Description column until you find the file-type application/x-chat.
    6. Click on application/x-chat to highlight it.
    7. Click the Edit button on your right.
    8. In the Handled by section of the newly formed dialog box, select the plugin option.
    9. Choose the iChat plugin in the drop-down menu box located next to the plugin option.
    10. Click OK.
    11. Click OK again to return to the Netscape window.
    12. Close and restart Netscape.

  • I previously installed Global Chat on my Windows 95 system. I have Netscape 3.0 (or greater) installed, along with iChat's plugin for Windows 95. When I go to Pathfinder Chat, I see an error message that refers to Global Chat and says I can't use iChat. What can I do? This is quickly fixed by making an adjustment in the Windows 95 registry. You'll need to do the following:

    1. Click on Start.
    2. Click on Run.
    3. Enter "regedit" in the provided field and press the Enter key.
    4. When the registry editor comes up, click on Edit.
    5. Click on Find.
    6. Enter application/x-chat in the provided field.
    7. When the registry information has been located, double-click on it.
    8. Delete the contents of the Value Data section.
    9. Click on OK.
    10. Close the Registry.
    11. Restart Netscape.

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