I've used the chat function occasionally, but I am not a big user. I know there are others here which really like the function. But I think there is a problem. When chat is enabled, my performance when visiting tuDiabetes is really slowed down. And this rolls over to impact my entire machine. If I leave tuDiabetes open in a browser window, the image grows to eventually be bigger than 1GB. At this point, all use of the browser becomes impossible. I can get around this by exiting all my browser windows and restarting every hour or so, but that seems like a poor solution. I think something may be a memory leak somewhere.
I am using Internet explorer.
Are there others that have run into this problem?
Is there a way to actually disable chat, as opposed to just "disconnecting" which still leaves chat running?
If we can't fix it and these problems are affecting lots of people, should chat only be turned on for certain times?
The chat isn't accessible to me at all. I only know it's on because I can hear the sound when people send messages (which I find annoying). The first time the chat was turned on, it took me the longest time to figure out what was going on. But the screen reader I use (JAWS for Windows) is unable to read the chat interface at all.
I don't know if it's from the chat, but I've noticed that the site crashes my browser a lot recently when my screen reader is running. It doesn't happen when it's not running, though. But it does discourage me from coming here since about 75% of the time the browser will crash. I'm using Firefox.
I agree with you, I wish there was an option to disable the chat.
I agree my compuer has been running slow too when chat is on...it makes it really hard to look at this site when it's extremely slow to the point that I don't want to even be on here which I definitely don't want to do! I love this site so much! :)
I don't know anything about the chat, Brian, but I use Firefox and find it really easy to keep open several windows in my browser and cruise back and forth between them.I'd never go back to IE.
I am using Internet Explorer 8, I don't have total control over the software on some of my key machines. I also routinely use several open windows. It may also be a problem with Java rather than ning. I am not sure.
I'm not good at explaining technical things, Brian but with firefox you don't have to keep moving windows up and down from the taskbar. You have one wide window with tabs that you switch between and when you sign off and then sign back on those tabs are still up which is nice too. I talk with IT at my campus regarding the software I use to teach online and they are pretty down on IE, saying it has lots of bugs. I haven't seen IE8 though, so maybe it is improved over 7, but it might be worth a try to download firefox. For awhile I used both for different things but gradually I realized I much preferred firefox for everything.
Thanks for your efforts. I have both chrome and firefox. I use both tabs and separate windows. But using another browser for most of the day is not an option for me.
I think I am able to kill the chat window when it's on but I usually get home from work at the tail end, run around making cocktails, check Tu, turn chat off and then it stops anyway so I'm not 100% sure if it's me killing it or just that it stops.
I am not a big fan of chat either. I've found that the dialogues don't seem to be as substantive as the message board threads. I have the same issue w/ FB, it seems like even if someone asks a question "my BG is yutzed up, what do I do?" the answer gets lost in the shuffle. I was @ the Gary Scheiner video thing and found the dialogue intriguing. I thought Emily did a great job moderating that and working to try to include all the folks tossing questions out but I think that the message board is far and away the best place for community research and exploration type of activities. I felt the same way about fantasy baseball. You get way better answers in a "thread" than in a "chat."
Ah. It's interesting but some people seem to have problems and some not. When chat first started I kept hearing sounds which drove me nuts, but that was fixed quickly. Now I just a little "Disconnected" tab on my screen sometimes but I don't see any slow down of speed or other impact.
I'm not a fan of chat either. I did the whole chatroom thing when I first got online in 1996; it's all pretty manic..lol. I don't even find Skype satisfying though I love the idea of it, because it's always going in and out. I had my first talk with a fellow TuD'er on Skype and after seeing each other's faces we just switched to the phone for better connection. I also like that thing where there is no technical glitches, only misunderstandings...I forget its name.
Ok speaking from the vivid chat user side) I LOVE the Chat!!!! It is there to help folks who have a question at anytime~! Yes it sloes down my computer alot but I think we need it thee to help other's out and they get an instant answer they don't have to wait to get an answer. That's all I have to say..........A little inconvenice is worth it to folks who have a question that needs to be answered right away
I don't think any of us who have had problems are advocating that the chat go away, just that there be a way to turn it off for users whose technology doesn't support it or who otherwise just don't use it.
Re what Doris is saying, and she was a person who I thought of as "I know Doris likes chat..." as I've seen your comments about it in threads, etc. is that the instant answer can be very good. What I find more useful are the ongoing threads where different people throw out different approaches to the same problem, sometimes from different angles, basal vs. bolus, low-carb vs. adjust doses or whatever and the dialogue is similar to what's in my head. I don't think I've posted too many "what do I do here?" threads. I don't think that it's that I'm "shy" or whatever, I just find that anything I have a question about there's sort of a dialogue and I like participating in the dialogues while I listen to the voices in my head that are solving my own problems.
A lot of threads sort of die out but there's a few people who aren't here all the time but have popped up every now and then and it's great to hear about someone who's made progress or worked on things and learned stuff. I don't get that from chat. One person asks another question, two people answer, both with things, then another person asks a question and soon there are several threads going. Not that there's anything wrong with that, it's sort of fun but I think that the message board will get the best answers if the participants in threads keep them going.
I always like it when there's what I call "ghost threads" that someone brings up from a couple of years ago with a bunch of people asking questions that are still very valid today, some may not be members but the thread itself still has useful tips, etc.
Same here. I add one comment on chat and it comes back up to the top. Not a frequent Tudiabetes chatter. I am not fond of chatting on FB either. I am old-school, I use the telephone to text only if I have to. Like AR, I just find the discussion threads more useful for a variety of in-depth answers/comments to questions/concerns. The chat has a good social function and I am not advocating its demise. It's just that even if I did chat, I would not use it for info, just for friendly chit chat. But then, I e-message my Tufriends, so maybe not. To each his/her own.
