How to join a chat at Scrapbook-Bytes.com

The chat room at Scrapbook-Bytes is a busy place! The chat rooms allow Scrapbook-Bytes members to connect and participate in a number of events, including virtual crops, classes and special happenings.

It is accessed at this address http://www.scrapbook-bytes.com/chat

The chat room is hosted on our own server and requires Macromedia Flash to be installed on your computer to access it. Macromedia Flash is often already installed on a computer. It is known as a safe and stable program and is compatible across PC and Mac and different versions of operating systems.

Your first step in accessing the chat room is ensuring you have the software installed. You can download the software for free here http://www.macromedia.com/shockwave/download/download.cgi?P1_Prod_Version=ShockwaveFlash . Instructions on installation are available.

If required you can access more information about the software here
http://www.macromedia.com/software/flashplayer/productinfo/faq/



Once the software is installed you see the image at left which tells you the software is loading. This is generally a quick process, though will be slower on dial up that high speed internet connections.

When the software has finished loading you will be met with a screen that list all the chat rooms on Scrapbook-Bytes like that below.



The chat room is intergrated with the Scrapbook – Bytes site so you do not need to register with the software.

To enter your details in the boxes, click in the box under User Name and type in your SBB user name and then click in the box under Password and type in your SBB login password.




Click Login and the screen will change to reflect your log in status.



If you prefer, you can log in as a guest by clicking on Guest and typing in your preferred username before choosing login.



You are able to set options to personalize your experience. This includes how you view messages, the use of sounds and whether or not you allow the software to remember your log in details and other preferences so it is not necessary to retype those details each time you visit the chat page. Select Submit to apply any changes, or Close to make no changes.

The message history options are in place to allow you to save a transcript of a chat. This may be particularly useful when attending classes.

The transcript is only available while you are logged in and remain in the chat room. Choose View to open the transcript. Choose select to highlight the text and then right click to copy the text and then right click and paste the transcript into a word processing file such as NotePad or MSWord.

To enter a room in the chat space, simply click on the name of the room.

There are several rooms available for different events. Use the scroll bar at right to view more chat rooms. If the event you are trying to find is not listed then it is most likely being held in the first room labeled Scrapbook Bytes Digital Crop Room. This room is for crops such as speed scraps hosted by the DTM of Scrapbook-Bytes.



Repeating events such as

The Morning Show and the Midnight Crop have static rooms.

For special events new rooms may be created.

The Open Chat room is accessible to members at any time. Scrapbook-Bytes do not take any responsibility for the use of this room. It is expected that members will be behave appropriately however.



Classrooms for the School of Scrap offered by Scrapbook-Bytes are usually last on the list. These classrooms have restricted access and require a password to access them.

When you click on a room requiring a password a small window pops up asking for it to be entered. The password is always case sensitive. When the password is correctly entered you will be given access to the room.

Once you are in the chat room there are several distinct areas.

To the right of the screen are five symbols for performing tasks, the first turns the chat room sounds on and off. The second opens the message history of the chat. The third button stops the scrolling of the window so you can read previous messages and manually move the scroll bar to read messages, while the fourth icon clears the chat screen of all messages. The last button lets you exit the room.

The large white space is where messages appear.



When you enter a room a door chime sound is played and you see a message welcoming you to the room.

As the chat progresses, you will see the screen fill with messages. A picture icon denotes each person, and the person speaking is identified by their user name such as “shelleyrae says” and then the actual message. The chat can move quite quickly, especially when busy, and its here you may wish to take advantage of the chat history or stop the scrolling.



To the left of the screen is a list of the members in the chat. This shows the number of current users and the icons and names of the users.

The drop down menu shows the names of other available chat rooms. You can easily change chat rooms by selecting a chat room from this list.

To “speak” in the chat room you type your message in the message box.



Click in the box and type. You can then click Send or press Enter on your keyboard to make your message appear. To start a new line in your message you must click Newline as enter send your message.

You can also customize your presence in the chat room. Click on the pictorial icon and you can select from a range of avatars.



You can bold, italic or underline your text by clicking on the appropriate icon.

You can choose a text color by clicking on the block of color.

The last button allows you to add a background to your chat space.



When you send a message to the chat all members of the chat can see it. You can address specific messages to specific participants though. Publicly you can highlight the name of the member in the list at right and then when you type your message it will appear onscreen as the member addressing another member. To return to addressing the whole room, choose All Users from the list.



You can also message people privately. Private messages will only be seen by the person they are addressed to. You can private message by clicking on the persons name and choosing private.

A small window appears in which you type your message. This message box will stay open until you close it using the small cross in the right hand corner.

You can also ignore a member if required. This means that you will not see any messages that person posts to all users or receive private messages from that person.

*If at any time you feel that someone in a chat is behaving inappropriately you can alert the chat host by private message or email customer.service@scrapbook-bytes.com with the details of the incident and the user name of the person.

At any time you can access the help files for details on using a function of the chat room by choosing Help.

Unfortunately there are sometimes problems with the chat for various technical reasons. Check the Scrapbook-Bytes forum Announcements thread for details or report the problem to customer.service@scrapbook-bytes.com You may lose connection to the chat room periodically while in a chat. This is usually a server reset of your ISP. If this occurs simply log back in.

At all times hosts are in charge of the chat and concerns or problems should be addressed to them.

Greeting chat room members as a group or individually, and saying goodbye is polite, as is thanking the host. Please do not bombard the hosts with requests to links or inspiration as soon as you enter the room. The host will post them very soon after you enter the room, simply wait or if after a length of time ask politely.

Internet chats have etiquette rules which are generally abided by and make use of shortcut acronyms. Some of these are listed below.


Foul language, abusive talk otherwise known as flaming, indecent or obscene references are not permitted by the TOS. Please be respectful of all members at all times.

Using CAPITALS in messages is like shouting at someone and is usually considered rude, unless making a point with emphasis.

Common Acronyms

WB = Welcome back
YW = You're welcome
TKX   or TKY or TK = Thank you
LOL = Laughing out Loud
ROFL = Rolling on the floor laughing
QU = question
GA = go ahead
IMO = In My opinion or IMHO = In my humble opinion or JMO = Just My Opinion
BRB = be right back
DH = Dear Husband
DW = Dear Wife
DD = Dear Daughter
DS = Dear Son
TTFN = Ta Ta For Now

There are hundreds more. If you are not sure what something means then ask or you can search for terms with your search engine.
or read this ARTICLE
Some further tips for chat room usage.

*You should not share personal details such as addresses or phone numbers in any chat.

* If you are not familiar with chatting you can observe until you become familiar.

* If you ask a question and it is not answered, assume that it was not seen due to heavy traffic for example and ask again. When chats are busy it is hard to keep track of every comment and it scrolls out of view much faster.

*A link shared in the chat room will generally open another window. However at other times you may want to right click the link and choose “Open in a new window” to ensure you are not accidentally removed from the chat.

* Always be friendly to others and be willing to lend a hand to other users.

Scheduled chats and or crops can be viewed here
http://www.scrapbook-bytes.com/chat/calendar.php ?
OR view the Quick Guide to Crops HERE
Chats are usually listed in US Eastern time.

To convert time zones for your location
http://www.timeanddate.com/worldclock/

Scrapbook-Bytes retains the right to remove and or ban any member who is in breach of the TOS or is otherwise disruptive during chats.