What is a network chat software? it chat (from the English "Chat", conversation) or messenger (the program that transmits messages).
Modern chats and instant messengers can not only send messages, but also exchange pictures and files, make audio and video calls.
Some programs necessarily need the Internet to work, some do not, they work using their own server, which works for you, within the company. This is of course much safer.
Let's talk about one of these programs. What it can be used for and how.
First, a short video to briefly explain why this program is needed:
And now in more detail:
1. For messaging
Despite the obviousness, it is worth noting that messages must be encrypted, and not by some self-made algorithm, but by a serious, open library,. The message history should be stored on its own server within the company, and not somewhere on the Internet. And finally, for the program to work, there must be.
MyChat is fine with this, so let's move on.
Here the developers of the on-net messenger MyChat took an interesting path, they did not reinvent the wheel and use the WebRTC engine, the most progressive call technology in the world at the moment. You can make calls not only between MyChat client programs, but also between the program and the WEB-chat, which works in the Chrome, FireFox, Opera or Edge browser. All modern browsers already support WebRTC technology.
Calls, of course, are unlimited, no one needs to pay for them, communication goes through existing communication channels or via a local / corporate network.
MyChat voice compression works with the Opus codec. Its algorithms operate with low latency, from 2.5 to 60 milliseconds, support variable bit rate, very good audio data compression, better and better quality than MP3, Vorbis, AAC LC, AMR-WB and Speex.
In a non-technical language, you can call MyChat even through mobile GPRS connections, and these are really very low speeds.
It is very important that it all works automatically, the administrator does not need to understand the black magic of codecs, sound levels, bit rates, noise reduction, equipment settings and other things. Everyone who has configured Jabber servers and a zoo of clients for them, and everyone with their own nuances and incompatibilities, will understand me.
3. For group communication
Popular programs such as Skype or Mail.ru Agent, and using retro software like IRC in a modern office is simply not serious because of the complexity of the settings, weak capabilities and the halt in the development of the IRC protocols (its last RFC dates back to April 2000).
In MyChat, text conferences (they are also called channels) have been around since the very beginning of the messenger, since 2004, and have been developing all this time. For September 2016 came out. Already by this indicator, one can understand how seriously the developers develop and support it.
Any number of people can be in conferences at the same time (there are real examples of comfortable work of several hundred people). You can close them with a password to separate user groups into different projects or departments. You can prohibit leaving important conferences, then users simply cannot leave them, accidentally or deliberately. The conferences look pretty nice:
There are even special locks and punishments (kicks and bans, old school will appreciate :) as well. On the server of the messenger, you can create as many conferences as you like and include the right people there automatically, fortunately, the WEB admin panel can do this:
4. Communication in a local network without the Internet
Probably, it makes no sense to engage in preventive intimidation, that, they say, you cannot use ICQ, Skype and hengouts at a corporate party, because their servers are located overseas and your messages are stored there, filtered and read by no one understands (for anyone interested, I recommend the article " there everything is laid out "on the shelves").
Adequate company executives and system administrators, let alone computer security specialists, understand this perfectly.
However, you cannot simply take and throw away an already familiar program. If you are looking for something to replace, then you need to choose software that will at least be no worse in functionality in order to transfer employees to it without unnecessary losses.
Curiously, many initially started using. Here the developers have an interesting original approach: they abandoned the classic trial version for 30 days, the program is free immediately after installation, the limitation is only on the number of online connections. But 20 people online is really enough for the eyes, for tests - that's for sure, I'm not talking about the real work of small companies.
There is a good introductory article on how to launch the MyChat messenger in your company and "tie" employees into a single network, especially if there are geographically scattered offices: "".
In general, there is even more in the messenger than you need. You will rather have the task of which services should simply be banned so that users' eyes do not run up :) The plus is that this is all done through a convenient structure in the admin panel, it is called "Rights Groups", all changes are applied instantly and the user interface applications immediately displays:
Roughly speaking, they banned graphic emoticons - even the icon for calling emoticons disappeared from users. Disabled video calls - Video call buttons disappeared from the toolbar. Instantly. Without restarting the application. You cannot use conferences, but only one-on-one communication in private - the program is instantly transformed.
An interesting approach, and very visual, it's worth trying - do you get used to it so much that you think how it was possible to work without all this before?
5. Program for communication in the office, how it works
Office messengers usually have their own set of requirements, in addition to a user-friendly interface, preferably one that is as similar as possible to MS Office. Because everyone is already accustomed to it, you don't have to waste a lot of time telling users many times what and how.
Getting people used to certain programs and switching to others is a difficult process, but that's not all.
Since we are choosing a messenger for the office, this is not for you to exchange cats in social networks. This is a real working tool. And here MyChat shows itself in full force, it is clear that the emphasis in its development was placed just on the work of companies.
At first, it works integration with Active Directory... Users are dragged out of the domain, via LDAP, with all their names, phone numbers, emails and God knows what + transparent NTLM authorization works. MSI package for deployment via GPO. In the official help.
Secondly, there is . Honestly, it is difficult to find a company that does not use this accounting program in the vastness of our vastness. So, you can easily "tie" an already working 1C with a corporate chat, I wrote about this recently on Infostart in the article "1C: Enterprise + corporate chat, how to establish prompt notifications in 10 minutes," I recommend reading.
Thirdly, a rather powerful file server is built into MyChat. Both native MyChat Client and any FTP client can connect to it. For example, I prefer FAR and Total Commander, while the employees prefer FileZilla. Everything is working. Convenience is that this server works "out of the box", each user who is in the chat is automatically created an account on the file server + there is a general, public access. He, of course, does not hold out to specialized servers, but, in all honesty, even his capabilities are enough in most cases.
In the fourth, Kanban board for project management... If you recognize from the picture a large whiteboard that hangs in many offices, you will understand me. This is the same board, only in electronic form.
You can start any number of projects, assign stages, performers, track deadlines. Move tasks between stages, comment on them, supplement them, apply filters for search, and the like. In general, "see the project" as a whole. Super thing, it will be useful in almost any company. It looks like this in operation (it works in a browser, by the way):
It's convenient to use on a desktop, on a tablet and a phone, of course, it's not that, but over time, I think the situation will improve for the better, given that new versions are released on average every month or two.
6. Sending messages and files offline
Sending messages and entire folders with files to users who are currently disconnected from the server (located offline) has always been a strong point of MyChat. Unlike Skype, where offline messages are received in a mysterious way, as if at the behest, in MyChat everything is usually clear.
Messages are stored on the server for an unlimited time, files and entire folders can be sent and not worry that they will not reach.
By the way, there is no way to send large folders with files by email. Even if you archive them, the message size will be one and a half times larger than the archive itself. And there are no guarantees whether the letter reached the recipient or not. There are no such problems in the MyChat messenger.
At any time, you can go to the message history, select the interlocutor, date range - and calmly read the history of the correspondence:
In light of the fact that Gmail, for example, refuses to accept executable files in attachments, and sometimes simply ignores archives with a password (of course, he also cares about my safety, yeah), sending messages and files in a corporate office chat will be a good help.
As one user said well, "".
Summing up all that has been written, it should be said that the program is actively developing, despite its decent age. , there are several tens of thousands of messages on it and the developers respond promptly even to those who use the free version of the program.
Once, when I was still a young green software engineer who came to work in a company where there was no "Internet", I was very surprised when I saw what a "corporate chat" is. Technically, everything was simple - somewhere in some city in Ukraine an IRC server was set up on a voluntary basis, in the network of the company, which was spread between the cities, a cracked mIRC (or PIRCH, who liked which more) worked. Everything worked in a large internal corporate network, built on leased lines, "forwarded" throughout the country.
I didn’t see ICQ “live” then, I didn’t use e-mail - due to the non-prevalence of Internet access in our city at that time. But I realized how effective chat communication between company employees can be, especially when something happened and there was no one to ask for advice on the spot. Then, using chat, the problem could be solved in minutes. Because there was always someone on the net who could help. From another city, from an unknown division of the company, a person whom I have never even seen in my life.
Now this is perceived as the norm. But then for me personally it was a technical miracle. The chat was extremely simple and ascetic, it was impossible to exchange files in it, from all the information about a person you could see only a nickname, and the "@" sign in front of this nickname, which said that this person was exposed by some authority of the "operator" chat. But even that was more than enough.
Why do you need an internal corporate chat, and not an Internet messenger?
There are many reasons for this, and we have written about them more than once. I will give here only a part of the problems that are solved by the communication program, the server of which works directly in your company, under control.
What now?
Now there are a lot of chats for the local network, both paid and free. Free programs, as a rule, are programs created with pure enthusiasm, with little features, with errors and other legacy arising from the inexperience and lack of time of the programmers who created these programs.
Free serious products like OpenFire stand apart, but to install and configure such programs you need an experienced specialist who understands well how and what to do.
There are also a lot of paid products, there are plenty to choose from. However, as a rule, the prices for such programs are very "bite". Especially if the developer is eminent, such as Microsoft or IBM. And most of the functions of such programs are simply not needed by small firms.
SYYYYYYYRRRR! Or Chip and Dale rush to the rescue
For small companies with no more than 15 employees, the ideal option is to install. This is almost a fully functional version of it. But absolutely free and with rich functionality.
This program has everything you might need. It does not need to be configured, the program works immediately after installation. Even a blonde admin can figure it out, if there are any in the wild :) Messenger in Russian, with a large detailed and illustrated help. Although, it is unlikely that you will have to look at it right away (unless later, when you want to try different interesting functions "to the teeth"), the program is intuitive and similar to a standard office suite from Microsoft.
MyChat developers are from Ukraine and, like no one else, have a very good idea of \u200b\u200bthe specifics of domestic companies and their needs.
Free client-server chat for organizing full communication in a small office, supporting up to 20 active users.
I work in a small office, where almost every one of the 8 employees who have a computer is in a separate office. When someone needs something, we usually either call each other on the phone, or just walk from office to office. This, unfortunately, is not always convenient. Therefore, as the main technical specialist, I have repeatedly made attempts to optimize this moment of the working process. And I think I will succeed :)
And the free version of the chat, quite well-known on the RuNet, for local networks will help me with this. MyChat Free Edition.
Key features
The program allows you to deploy a full-fledged local chat with the following features:
- support for up to 20 active connections on the server;
- exchange of text messages and files;
- voice and video communication;
- implementation of local FTP (file) and SMTP (mail) server;
- flexible configuration of general and local chat rooms;
- availability of chat for all platforms, including a good web interface;
- the ability to access the server via the Internet.
And that's not all of the chat features! It also has a built-in system for advertising, assigning tasks and tracking their progress. And, if this is not enough, then it can be integrated with almost any software solutions that are used in your office (although this will require basic programming and API skills).
Comparison with the paid version
The situation is only darkened by the fact that we, after all, are talking about the free version, which has certain limitations:
That's all the difference. The only serious limitation of the free version of MyChat is that no more than 20 clients can connect to the server. For small offices like mine, this is quite enough. Large offices will have to pay $ 40 for every additional 10 connections.
Server installation and configuration
To make MyChat work in your local network, you first need to install a server program on one of the computers. There will be no difficulties with this. You just need to run the MyChat Server.exe file from the downloaded archive and follow the prompts of the installer:
After installation, the server is already running and you can already connect to it. And a window with statistics appears in front of us. It displays information about the work of the server itself, clients connected to it and running services. By default, only SMTP e-mail sending protocol did not work for me. In principle, I was not particularly interested in him, but everything can be customized if desired. Actually, we have nothing else to do in the statistics window, so let's move on to the settings. To do this, press the button "Administration":
Server management (as well as execution of some other tasks) in MyChat occurs through the web interface, so a browser window with the address of the local host (http://127.0.0.1/admin) will open in front of you:
A small pop-up window will inform us that we can use the localhost address for further quick access to the server control panel and will give us a temporary login with a password ("admin | admin"). For security reasons, it is these data for entering the server admin panel that must be changed first. To do this, in the left side menu, look for section "USERS" and open the item in it "A list of users"... Here we select the "admin" account, press the button "Change" and change the name, password, and, if desired, other parameters:
Actually, this is where all the preliminary settings can be completed. If desired, in the future you can add an additional password to log into the server, configure the work of anti-flood and mate filters, add additional chat rooms, etc. But for a start, what you have already done will be enough. All the main functionality of the server is available to us and we can start communicating by installing the client program on our or someone else's computer (although, you can get by with the web version of the chat if you don't want to install anything).
Client connection
Installing the MyChat client is not much more complicated than installing the server. Here you will not need to enter any data at all. In fact, the entire installation is reduced only to the choice of the interface language and pressing the "Next" buttons. In addition, you can choose not to install anything by downloading the portable version of the client from the official website. At the first start, a special step-by-step wizard will appear in front of you, which will allow you to step by step connect to the newly created server:
At the first step, we need to decide on the option to connect to the server:
There are only 4 of them:
- Automatically find a server on my local network - allows you to automatically scan the network and find an active MyChat server in it. The item is selected by default and is the easiest way to connect.
- I know the server address and will enter it manually - makes it possible to enter the server address yourself. Suitable, for example, if the client to be connected is located in a different local network or you need to create a connection via the Internet.
- I have a settings file obtained from admin - opens a dialog for selecting a file with settings, which can be created by the server owner for simplified client connection. The configuration file already contains both the server address and the required access passwords, which minimizes client-side actions.
- I want to connect to a developer server on the internet - implements fast communication with developers through their server on the Internet.
For a simple connection within a local network, the first option, selected by default, is usually suitable. If you leave the choice on it, then at the next step we will be offered a list of detected servers:
For some reason, at this stage, two identical servers were displayed. Without further ado, I chose the first. By the way, at this step we will see the first mention that we want to connect to an unregistered version of the server. But these are trifles.
The last step is registration on the server:
Here we will see a traditional form, in which you must enter your username, password (twice), e-mail address and a secret question with an answer to it to recover your password if you lose it. After that, press the "Finish" button and complete the connection stage.
Client interface
If everything went well, we will see the interface of the MyChat client itself:
For those who have ever used instant messaging programs like ICQ or QIP, the appearance of the MyChat messenger will be familiar in many ways. The upper part of the window is reserved for the traditional menu and toolbars (we will talk about some of them later). On the left is a list of contacts and online users. The central part of the window is set aside directly under the field of displaying chat correspondence and entering your own remarks.
Note also that there is a panel with buttons and drop-down lists above the text input field. With their help, you can insert emoticons (including animated ones) into messages, attach files, add quick phrases (up to 10 pieces) and activate the text formatting panel (the button on the right above the "Send" button).
Also take a look at the row of tabs below the input field. By default, you have access to a tab with a list of all public conferences open on the server and a tab with a general chat "main", which can be written by all users connected to the server. If you want to chat with one of the users in private mode, click on his name in the left list and you will have another tab with the name of the contact you have chosen:
In private mode, the left panel does not display a list of contacts, but the profile data of the user you selected. There are also audio, video and screen sharing buttons here. However, all these functions only work on Windows 7 and older. Otherwise, everything is the same as in the general chat.
Additional functions
As I said just above, in MyChat, not only server configuration, but most of the functions are available through the web interface. It also has its own online chat client, the ability to create forums, a message board, and even some kind of CRM! Let's talk about some of these possibilities.
Online chat client
The MyChat server can be called a kind of "thing in itself". Despite the fact that it is more convenient to communicate with it through a special client, nevertheless, it is possible not to install anything! For basic textual correspondence, the web version of the client will be enough!
To open it, you need to know the exact IP address of the computer on your local network where the server is installed. If you don’t know it or have forgotten it, you can always see it in the client settings (or ask the administrator who installed the server :)). We enter the address into the search bar of the browser and get to the following page:
Here we see links to download clients for almost all popular operating systems. And on the right, at the very edge of the row, there is a button "Web", which opens the web interface we need. We press it, enter our login-password in the form that appears (or register as a new user) and get into something like this:
The workspace is divided into three main columns. On the left is a menu that allows you to switch between conferences, as well as access additional Kanban tools and a Notice Board. Looking ahead, I will say that Kanban is the analogue of CRM I mentioned earlier, but the Bulletin Board is a kind of analogue of a mailing list that can only be created by the server administrator, so there is no point in going there for an ordinary user.
The right column is analogous to the left column of the client program. Here you can see information about users in the current chat room, or data about your specific interlocutor in private mode. Tellingly, under the avatar there are buttons for audio call, video call and screen sharing, but for some reason they did not work for me (it may be necessary to make some additional server settings).
The central column is dedicated directly to the chat. True, there are much fewer possibilities here than in the client program. Of the entire arsenal, only the function of sending files is available to us. There is not even a button for inserting emoticons, not to mention formatting text and adding quick phrases. However, if you just need to quickly discuss something, the available options are quite enough and you do not need to spend time installing and connecting the client.
Kanban
The strange name caught my attention even when I first started the client program, which had a similar button on the toolbar. As Wikipedia says, kanban is one of the principles of effective work organization, which implies an equal distribution of the load on all participants in any production process with a clear control of the time allotted for a particular task. By the way, the word itself is Japanese and literally means "signboard", and the technique was developed by the Japanese automobile manufacturer Toyota back in 1959!
Kanban is implemented quite well in MyChat and has flexible settings. When you start kanban for the first time, you will see an empty space with a single button "Create a project"... If you click it, a window will open with a number of parameters. You can set a title and description for the project, specify deadlines for its completion, and break the final task into logical stages. By default, 4 classic stages of kanban are created ("Task", "In progress", "Checking" and "Completed"), however, if you wish, you can delete the standard ones and add your own:
After the project is created, "signs" with tasks and a side panel to monitor the progress of the planned work will appear. In the list, select the required project, add tasks for it, describe their essence and assign performers. As the assignment is completed, it can be transferred to the next stage of execution until it is completely and within the specified time frame:
There are no restrictions on the number of tasks in the project (as well as the projects themselves). Therefore, you can simultaneously give tasks to different employees and track their progress, without embarrassing yourself in convenience.
Advantages and disadvantages of the program
- minimum server settings;
- rich functionality and choice of communication means;
- availability of clients for almost all operating systems;
- the ability to transfer data and store files (FTP server);
- a bunch of additional features.
Disadvantages:
- support for no more than 20 active clients;
- storing the history of correspondence only for the past month.
conclusions
Before finding MyChat, I tried several similar chat programs for the local network. However, none of them had such a rich set of features and at the same time was not so easy to install and configure. The chat server is ready to work almost immediately after installation.
You, as an administrator, can create accounts for the required users yourself, and then organize their connection using configuration files, which minimizes actions on the client side. In addition, clients can be distributed in the form of already configured portable versions or even simply provide a link to access the web version of the chat.
I think even the most non-advanced users will find this solution convenient. In the meantime, the experience of using MyChat in my case can be called positive. Almost everything works as it should and does not cause any particular difficulties. Therefore, with a clear conscience, I can authoritatively recommend a program for organizing communication and file exchange in small offices and government offices.
P.S. It is allowed to freely copy and quote this article, provided that an open active link to the source is indicated and the authorship of Ruslan Tertyshny is preserved.
Sooner or later, in any corporate or large home network, the question arises of what means of communication to use, how to organize effective notification of all employees and the delivery of files. Of course, you can use commercial instant messaging systems, deploy a mail server, and organize shared data stores. But what if the network is not that big?
In this case, Network Software Solutions has developed a client-server messaging program that is a chat. In the chat, you can create various channels (for example, within a department), conduct a private conversation without clogging up the general chat, transfer files and much more.
MyChat Server
It should be noted right away that there are two versions of the chat server: commercial and free. For small networks, the free version of FREE MyChat is enough. The main differences can be seen on the developer's website, of the major restrictions we can note - the lack of integration with Active Directory and the limitation of the number of connections to 15 people - for the Free MyChat version.
As for the server installation, there should be no difficulties here, the installation is carried out in an automatic mode and does not require significant efforts from the user. At first glance, setting up an application may seem complicated, as there are quite a few options. But, all settings are well categorized, for each section there is a good reference material in Russian. In addition, a hint about its purpose is provided for each option, which greatly simplifies the search for the desired tool.
Server functions:
- Actually the server itself, keeps statistics of users, active time, traffic, connections, etc.;
- FTP server, used as a shared data storage;
- User management, management of groups and access rights, appointment of Administrators, operators and other servers;
- Creating filters: filtering users by IP, filtering by MAC, anti-flood, filtering obscene expressions in chat;
- Creation of scripts to automate repetitive actions, etc .;
- Fine tuning the server (backup, logging, timers, remote control);
- Creation of ads;
- Web access for server administration;
MyChat client
MyChat client is used for direct connection to the server. Allows you to connect to individual channels, register in channels, conduct private conversations, transfer files, view bulletin boards, search for users, create alerts with various parameters. Plugins built into the program deserve special attention, which allows you to expand the client's capabilities.
In summary, we can say that MyChat is an excellent choice for small and medium-sized organizations, especially ideal for home networks. If it were not for the limitation of 15 connections, the program could be safely used in large corporate networks. MyChat interface is available in three languages: Russian, Ukrainian and English. Free version license provides for non-commercial use. To get a free version of MyChat, you need to go to the developer's website and fill out a simple questionnaire.