I can see your point. Maybe a plugin that will allow you to specify what type of file formats are allowed for avatars. Coding gurus start your engines.
At last, there is the Client Control plugin available, with some interesting features. But there is no transcripts disable option. So it could be a feature request.
I have the client control plugin installed and working. Was a little dissapointed in that there aren’t any options to control Spark preferences or customize away messages. Could any of that be Spark features/improvements? Or would that be a separate plugin on Openfire?
Keep in mind that the client control plugin can only -suggest- most of these things. Spark is built to abide by what the client control plugin tells it to do, but there’s absolutely nothing preventing someone from building a custom Spark build or simply using another client. Clearly there’s no way the server can -force- a client not to log transcripts for example. =) It’s primarily helpful in a controlled environment IMO, where you know everyone will be using Spark and you know your rules will be abided by. So for any feature, both Spark and the client control plugin would need to be updated to reflect the new options.
I am not an IT person but I do have a feature that I know at least our office would really appreciate. I don’t know how hard it would be to create. But…We used to use an “In/Out” program for all of the employees in the office. The Receptionist could change the employees’ status if they left and forgot to do so. We are now using Spark as our “In/Out” Board. Each employee sets a status message when they go into a meeting, leave the office for lunch, etc. This is extremely helpful because it helps us assist our clients quickly and efficiently when they call. It also helps if someone in the office is trying to locate you, they look at Spark and know whether you’re available or not. No more looking for an employee and wasting our clients’ time only to find out they’re out of the office. But…if an employee forgets to sign out…which happens often…there is no way to change their status other than going to their desk and updating their status from their computer. As I said before, with our old “In/Out” program…you could right clich the employees name and change their status. I don’t know if this would be possible but it would be a HUGE benefit to us. Thanks for your time!
MSA wrote:
As I said before, with our old “In/Out” program…you could right clich the employees name and change their status. I don’t know if this would be possible but it would be a HUGE benefit to us. Thanks for your time!
You mean changing the status by admin in Admin Console, or just by anyone in Spark client? If this should be done via Admin Console, this is the Openfire feature request. As about doing it in Spark. Additional programming would be needed, but i doubt that this feature would be needed by most of the users. Why cant you use auto away to determine that user is not at the computer right now?
No, just using Spark. I could right click on a user’s name and change their status from “Available” to “Job Site until 4” . We don’t use the Auto Away feature because if someone is away from their desk and is say…out in the hallway talking to an employee for too long…their status would change to “Away”…when they’re really not. So, let’s say if “Betty”…Bob’s assistant heard my page Bob for a phone call and she knew he was in a meeting, she could right click on his status and change it to “In a meeting”. I would hope everyone would have a need for office communication.
Errica Swartwood, Office Manager
MSA, P.C.
Celebrating 35 Years of Client Success
Environmental Sciences • Geosciences • Planning
Surveying • Civil/Site Engineering • Landscape Architecture
757-490-9264 757-490-0634
Offices in Hampton Roads and Virginia’s Eastern Shore
MSA (or Errica), well, then you have a very trustful collective I cant see such thing working in our environment. As about implementing this (i’m not a developer), this is a bit tricky. Btw, how about controlling this? E.g. “Who has changed my status to “I hate my Boss!!” ? You, you?” This cant be done just in hope everyone will play by the rules. And another point is that this is definitely not a xmpp standard feature, and this could be a potentially security breach. Because i think some additional coding should be done on server to support that (or maybe not), and if there will be some errors left it could make much harm for Openfire users. Anyway, the best way to achieve that should be a custom plugins (for Openfire and Spark, or just for Spark). Maybe this could be achieved by Spark sending some custom packet through a server which only a Spark with according plugin installed can convert to a command to change a status. But who will make such a plugin? Hm
Is there any way to have Spark auto-reply based on status, i.e. if idle
for x minutes or away/extended away? This is currently in AOL IM, and in Yahoo messenger, the user gets the message(s) when they next login.
Now who am I going to be able to butter up to do that?
Errica Swartwood, Office Manager
MSA, P.C.
Celebrating 35 Years of Client Success
Environmental Sciences • Geosciences • Planning
Surveying • Civil/Site Engineering • Landscape Architecture
757-490-9264 757-490-0634
Offices in Hampton Roads and Virginia’s Eastern Shore
MSA wrote:
Now who am I going to be able to butter up to do that?
You mean here? Well, there are some coders in these community, but i think better way is to find your own programmer (java).
I was referring to my IT Manager…I better start being nice!
Errica Swartwood, Office Manager
MSA, P.C.
Celebrating 35 Years of Client Success
Environmental Sciences • Geosciences • Planning
Surveying • Civil/Site Engineering • Landscape Architecture
757-490-9264 757-490-0634
Offices in Hampton Roads and Virginia’s Eastern Shore
modulok wrote:
Sometimes users like a very skinny (in width) buddy list. Right now it will not get smaller because of the icons ( add buddy, join conf room, view downloads, broadcast, … also the gateway icons) Maybe a way in options to only show certain icons, or put them on separte lines so a user can make the buddy list smaller.
I have found that checking the preference ’ use system look and feel’, enables the width of the buddy list to be skinny enough. Can this be updated in Spark look and feel, because, after all, its much nicer looking.
The current search box is searching the server for users that may or may not be in your roster, which is why it opens a new window. The Control+F key is what you are looking for.
I would love to have the ability to hide the offline group or at the very least have it not auto-expand on every launch of spark. All other groups remember state on windows (not on the mac version though).
mtstravel wrote:
I would love to have the ability to hide the offline group or at the very least have it not auto-expand on every launch of spark. All other groups remember state on windows (not on the mac version though).
Well, i have created a ticket some time ago SPARK-928 and there were a discussion and my poll about do we need that group at all.
Okay, yeah, that’s a good improvement although we do need group chat.
User settings should be stored in %APPDATA, not %USERPROFILE%, which should help get around this bug I think:
jeffreyvsmith wrote:
User settings should be stored in %APPDATA, not %USERPROFILE%, which should help get around this bug I think:
Definately needs to be fixed. But I think you left off the last percent…should be %APPDATA%
When a client with the old path is updated, the Spark folder should be MOVED into %APPDATA%.
Yes, I left it off…But yeah, this is holding me up tremendously. I am okay moving files here or there with scripts, but because of that java bug, our spark folders are getting placed on the redirected share, not in %USERPROFILE%, which messes things up…Has this been filed already perhaps as a bug to be fixed at some point ?