I've had a look through various forums (forii?) but haven't seen anything like this yet.! After a few minutes of chat, when I press send, the screen sort of greys out and no buttons or names work (apart from the create room button!) I then have to just shut the chat window down then am unable to log in for a few minutes. This happens everytime we are in chat. What am I doing wrong?
Ta in advance Rocco
btw, I am running windows XP through firefox on both PC and lappy,from NTL broadband.
IT would be good to know if it is just people on wireless networks that are having this problem or those that are running through cables.
That may be the wireless connection itself... The chatroom s/w is very much more intolerant to drop-outs. Try it in the Forum and if the network drops out and comes back in again, you will find you can still access the Forum without having to log back in.
Another work-around I have tried here is when the console greys out, right click on the mouse and select back. Wait a while (20 seconds perhaps) then right click and select forward. That sometimes re-establishes the screen without the 5 minute lock-out.
Other than that, if it doesn't work - spend the five minute wait in the Forum!
When the chat room greys out, this simply means that you have been disconnected from the chat room. The normal culprit for this problem is a firewall.
If you find this problem occurs on a wireless network, check the router to see whether the firewall is enabled. If so, turn it off and test your access.
Hi admin thanks for that,but I find it is purely a chatroom problem,I can roam the rest of the site to my hearts content checking profiles,making searches,and it is only trying to send a message or change rooms/server when in the chatroom that causes me to be disconnected.
I fear that it may be that the delay inherent in the wireless network,possibly under fluctuating signal strength,that causes the disconnection from the chatroom,as the chatroom continuously updates itself on receipt of a new message or person joining/ leaving and the delay causes the information sent to miss its allotted connection,therefore if I try and send a message or change rooms whilst someone else in the chatroom on the same server sends a message or joins/leaves a room I will be disconnected and this is what happens.
This also fits in with the fact that in quiet times I can stay connected for ages but when the chatrooms are very busy, I log on and get logged out immediatley if I change room/server/try and send a message,but if I do nothing I can sit there twiddling my thumbs and not get disconnected.
I am off to strip down my lappy and get a new antennae,or is there another way to boost the connectivity of my lappy???..maybe via a plug in??
If anybody has any other ideas,I am all ears.......
Hi Guys
I get exactly the same problem mine is on a cabled network without any firewall this happens whether i am using Internet explorer or firefox. Only way around it is to shutdown the chatroom window and wait the 5 mins before connecting again it is a real pain.
Thanks Scan,thats interesting to know,just out of interest are you on broadband?
Some time ago it happened all the time, and I've noticed it starting to happen again. One idea is to right click for menu and then click "play", it will tell you you're already logged in, keep right click - left clicking away and you may be lucky to drop back in, works for me maybe 50% of the time to do it say 10 times until you get bored.
is not firewall...it is the dreadful service of the servers and lack of respect for paying menbers......this should not happen, there is no reason. and 5 minutes out time is unreasonable and unacceptable.
What happened to the new chat room due months ago?
normal software problems i expect
lol
oh well
maybe will keep trying to still stay in there
I have the same problem.
I have windows XP pro.
Firewall disabled.
Traditional cable (not wireless)
ADSL router
The locking is so frequent 10 seconds - 3 minutes, it extremely frustrating that I cannot use the chat room. There is only ~15 users in the pool chatroom.
Simon
I have been chatting to people about this problem and I am trying to narrow down the cause!!...not an easy task as I am not a computer genius...but....
...it appears that the problem is only apparent when a router is used,and that the problem could well be down to a difference in the way information is updated.....,being in the fact that the router to laptop/PC on the network connection is a constantly open one (ie constantly has information flowing along it,,and the laptop/PC to router connection is a closed connection until it is opened by pressing a button on the laptop(information is only sent from the laptop/PC to the router when we press a button in the chatroom,ie if we want to initiate an action maybe send a message or change rooms or view a profile or switch our cam on or change server or switch the mic on)
Basically what is happening is that when we are in the chatroom and we want to action something,(for ease of explanation,lets say send a message,but the principle is the same for all the actions listed above),there is a time delay and we are disconnected.
This could be down to two things;
1)We write a message in the chatroom and then press 'send',because we are connected via a router the information is sent in much the same way as a text message is from our mobile command to 'send' opens the channel,but there is a small time delay while our laptop/PC reads the message,converts it and sends it to the delay in opening the channel and sending the information is outside the tolerances of the chatroom software therefore we are disconnected.
This would tie in with the fact that it only happens in busy times,and I am assuming that the software for the chatroom has been written along standard guidelines and adapts the servers performance to optimise it during busy periods.
2)The same delay COULD be down to the users network or laptop/PC in two ways;
i)Poor connectivity - a weak network signal strength (or a wavering one) can cause this delay... I run a - router on a wireless network and have high signal strength.
ii)If the users laptop/PC processor is running your laptop/PC is constantly running programs you dont need and is full of files you dont need this will slow it is well worth clearing your PC/laptop weekly of things you dont need,de-fragging it,clearing history,temp files,keeping security up to date etc,all of which can be pre-set so you dont have to manually do it and it will keep your processor running at max possible speed.
I have completley cleared my laptop so that it only runs my security,firefox,my cam and photo software and nothing else to see if this helps,and I do all the points above (and more) to maximise my processor.
In quiet times I find that I have no problem in the chatroom,but when it is very busy I can get disconnected on a continual basis.
Given all this information and my amateur guessing (which may be wrong),would it be possible to contact the person(s),responsible for writing the chatroom program and asking them their opinion as to a possible cause and any steps that we as users who suffer from these grey outs could take at our end to minimise/eradicate this problem?
I fear that this may just be an inherent problem due to the use of routers,but if a tolerance adjustment could be made or we could change something and the problem then be solved,it would be a great help.
many thanks.
This email has been written in good faith and as a way of trying to find a possible solution to a common problem for some users.......please help mods/ops/tekkies !!!
I find it very strange for the problem to be soley associated with a router, since the internet is made up of them.
But I would agree that the company (software developers) who wrote the chat program need to be approached to fix the problem.
I use other chatting software without a problem.
Question: What network port does the chat software use? For example if it wants to ping the client via that port to see if it is still there. You don't currently publish any ports in the chat room faq.
Thanks
Simon
When experiencing difficulties, it is best to start with the basics.
Have I got the latest flash software?
Click here to download the latest flash.
Have I got an issue with my communication?
Click here to test your flash communication
The communication test should show all successful. If this does not and you have problems with the chat room, the problem is because of a firewall. This could either be installed via software or could be enabled in a router.
If you are an advanced user, you may want to just open ports 443 and 1935 on your firewall. If not, I would suggest temporarily de-activating your firewall to test the chat room.
If you are still having problems, you can submit a support ticket so we can go through your system set up further and it is much easier to keep track of the information supplied rather than in a forum. Please be as informative as possible – every PC has different settings, whether there are programs installed or devices in place. The more information supplied, the quicker the root of the problem will be found.
Problems are extremely frustrating but trial and error is the only way to resolve them. Naturally, without looking direct at a PC, suggestions and instructions are what we can provide so please be patient.
As some users are aware, we are currently finalising a brand new chat room which we are informed will be a lot more stable than the current one. Whether this will resolve some current issues we are yet to acknowledge. However this will be able to identify whether your connection is the issue with an indicator shown.
