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[[Main_Page | Main Page]] > [[Application_Development_Team | Application Development Team]] > [[System_Manual | System Manual]] > [[ROCKET CHAT | ROCKET CHAT]]

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== Rocket Chat User's Guide ==


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=== Setting Up Rocket Chat on Zimbra ===

=== Login your Account ===

=== Channels ===

Conversations in Rocket.Chat occur in <b>channels.</b> Channels are chat rooms with useful features designed to increase communication and collaboration.

There are three kinds of channels: public channels, private groups, and direct (1-on-1) messages.

====Public channels====

:<b>Public channels</b> (also called <b>channels</b> for short) act as a base for all channel types. Use channels for conversations that are open to :your entire team. Anyone on your team can join a channel.

:Channels make it easy to find what’s going on with your team. New team members can join a channel and read all the information previously shared by :other users.

:When in doubt, create a channel. Public conversations help you build a knowledge base of your organization with minimal effort. For example, create a :channel for a company department or to discuss a specific programming language.

====Private groups====

:<b>Private groups</b> are closed channels. They are visible only to their members. Use private groups for subjects that are sensitive, confidential, :or limited to a small group of team members.

:Private groups are joined through invitation only. The administrator sets the permissions that determine who can invite others to a private group. By :default, only administrators, room owners, and moderators can invite others to private rooms.

====Direct Messages====
:<b>Direct messages (DMs)</b> are a private 1-on-1 conversation between team members. They can be sent to any user on your server.

====Listing channels====
:Find public and private channels that you are watching in the left sidebar under the <b>Channels</b> sections.

:Public channels are represented by a hash symbol next to the channel name, and private channels by a lock. Public channels appear first above private :channels below them and alphabetically ordered.

=====Unread messages=====

:Channels with new messages appear bolded.

:When using the <b>Unread Mode</b>, a new section called <b>Unread</b> appears on the left sidebar. All channels with unread messages move to this new :section until the messages have been reads.

:To activate Unread Mode, go to <b>My Account</b> > <b>Preferences</b>. Change the <b>Sidebar channel list mode</b> setting to <b>Unread Rooms Mode.</b>

=====Mentions=====
:When someone mentions you with <i>@username</i>, <i>@all</i> or <i>@here</i>, a symbol or a number will appear alongside the channel name. When mentioned, an <i>@</i> symbol appears next to your name. If someone mentions <i>@all</i> or <i>@here</i> a number will show up showing the number of :times the mention is specific to you.

=====Notifications Preferences=====
:There are several notification settings a user can customize to channels. To find notification settings for a specific channel, go to the channel and click the <b>More</b> symbol at the top-right of the chat view. Then, select <b>Notification Preferences.</b>

:*<b>Mute/Receive alerts:</b> Receive or mute any notifications from a channel.
:*<b>Mute/Receive mentions:</b> Receive or mute notifications for mentions while receiving notifications for messages in a channel.
:*<b>Hide/Show counter:</b> Show the number of unread messages for a channel.
:*<b>Notification sound:</b> Choose a sound for notifications besides the alerts default <b>Desktop</b>. Mobile currently supports only the alerts :inside your mobile device. You can also select when to play the alert, duration of the alert, and the alert itself.

====Joining new channels and starting direct messages====

There are three ways of joining a public channel; through search, invites, or mentions.

:For starting a direct message, you can either search the user you want to talk or click on that user’s avatar and click on the <b>Conversation Button</b>.

:To search for channels and users, use the search bar under your account box. Alternatively you can press Ctrl/Cmd + k to access the search bar :quickly.

:A search will find channels (including the ones you are part of) and users. You can not search inside private channels.

:When you click on a search result, the following can happen:

:*If the result is a channel, and you already aren’t part of it, you will join that channel;
:*If the result is a user, you will start a direct message with that user;

====Leaving channels====
:There are two options for leaving a channel:

:1. <b>Hide:</b> Remain a member of the channel but remove it from your list of channels on the left-hand pane.
:2. <b>Leave:</b> Remove the channel your list of channels and abdicate membership.

:Every channel has an <b>owner</b>, and the owner of a channel cannot leave a channel until setting someone else as the owner of that channel.

:To leave a channel, enter the command <i>/part</i> or <i>/leave</i> in the message window. Alternatively, hover your mouse over the channel in the :list of channels on the left-hand side and click on the <b>leave channel</b> button.

:To hide a channel, hover your mouse over the channel in the list of channels on the left-hand side and click on the <b>hide channel</b> button.

====Creating Channels====

:To create a channel, you need to click on the plus <i>+</i> button that is alongside the channel search bar.

:A pop-up opens. You can set the name of that channel, choose if the channel is public or private, set the channel to read-only, broadcast the :channel, and invite users.

:In read-only channels, messages can only be sent by users with write permissions. All users can react to messages in this channel. Read-only channels :are most suitable for announcements and voting.

:Encrypted channels, messages will be end to end encrypted. See: <i>End to End Encryption</i> for details.

:Broadcasted channels behave like read-only channels, with only users with the right permission being able to post there. The differences to a 
:read-only channel are:

:*Users without permission (the same one to post on read-only channels) inside this channel won’t be able to see each other in the user list.
:*Users without permission won’t be able to react to messages.
:*Every message contains a reply button that redirects the user to a direct message with the user that posted the message.
:*This channel cannot be converted to a read-only or open channel again.

=== Messaging ===

====Compose messages====
To compose a message in Rocket.Chat, go the channel or user you want to send a message. Type the message box and press <b>Enter</b> or the Send Button.

If you want to add new lines of text, press <i>Shift + Enter</i> to add a new line.

====Cursor movement====
:While writing or editing messages, you can move the cursor using the arrow keys. Where the cursor moves depends on the wrapping of the text.

:Hold <i>Alt</i> or <i>Command</i> while pressing the right or left arrow keys to move the cursor to the beginning or end of the message.

====Notify other team members====

:To get the attention of a specific team member in a channel, type <i>@</i> followed by their username, for example, <i>@username</i>. The mentioned :user sees a red badge on the channel or is notified via email or their mobile device if they’re not online.

:You can also notify everyone in a channel by typing <i>@all</i>. We recommend using <i>@all</i> sparingly. Although notifying everyone in the channel :is useful for announcements, not every message requires this.

====Send attachments====
:You can send a variety of attachments on your messages, like files, audio, links, videos, and many more.

:To access the attachment menu you can, click on the <b>plus</b> (+) icon on the message input.

=====Files=====

:You can select files using three methods:

:*By choosing the <b>Select Files from Computer</b> option from the attachment menu
:*By dragging and dropping the file on Rocket.Chat
:*By pasting an image from the clipboard

:After selecting the file, add a name and a description of the file and press <b>Send</b>.

:<i>Remember that the server administrator can block certain file types from being uploaded.</i>

=====Audio=====
:When using Rocket.Chat through a web browser give Rocket.Chat permission to use your microphone.

:To start recording, click on the <b>Create new Audio Message</b> or the option in the attachment menu or the microphone inside the message box. To :stop recording, click the green checkmark. The audio message automatically sends. You can choose to pay or download the message.

=====Video=====

:When using Rocket.Chat through a web browser give Rocket.Chat permission to use your webcam.

:To start recording, click on the <b>Create new Video Message</b> option in the attachment menu, then click the red circle icon.

:While recording, a stop button appears. To end the recording, press <b>Stop</b>.

:Preview the video you recorded by pressing <b>Ok.</b> A window appears where you can watch, download, and name the video. To send the video, 
:click <b>Send</b> or click <b>Cancel</b> to discard the video.

====Interacting with Google Drive====

:<u><i><b>Note:</b> Google Drive features available only if the server’s admin has enabled Google Drive access and provided the correct API keys. For :instructions to obtain these keys can see the Administrator guides.</i></u>

=====From Google Drive to Rocket.Chat=====
:Files can be uploaded from Google Drive to a room by selecting the <b>Select Files from Google Drive</b> option on the attachment menu. This opens a :Google Drive file picker GUI with search and view modes. Select the required file, enter a title and description, and then click <b>Upload</b>.

:Files upload in the same format to Rocket.Chat as they are in Google Drive with exception to Google docs, slides and sheets which convert to pdfs upon :upload.

=====From Rocket.Chat to Google Drive=====
:Files uploaded as a message attached to a room can be uploaded to Google Drive. Click <b>Save to Google Drive</b> above the file attachment. The file :saves to Google Drive in its original format.

=====Create Google Docs, Slides and Sheets=====
:Create Google docs, slides, and sheets by clicking to corresponding file type in the attachments menu. The file saves to that user’s Google Drive :account and posts on the message or channel from which creation occurs. The sharing setting for the file shall remain default. It can be changed by the :file owner via the link to collaborate with other users.

====Links====
:URL’s to other sites automatically generate a preview of that site’s content. Copy and paste the link into the message box to create the preview.

====Location====
To share your location, click <b>Share My Location.</b> A message generates a link to a Google Map of your location.

====Emoji====
:To insert an emoji, click the <b>smiley face icon</b> in the message box. Browse through emoji using the icon categories or through the search box.

:You can also insert emojis by inputting an <i>emoji code.</i>

=====Emoticons=====
:Rocket.Chat changes common emoticons, or symbols used to represent emoji, to the equivalent emoji. For example, <i>:)</i> converts to the <i>:smiley:</i>:emoji.

===== Disabling emojis=====
:Emojis can be enabled/disabled in Your Account settings under the <b>Messages</b> section.
:When graphical emojis are disabled, emoji keywords and shortcuts display as regular text.

====Formatting====
:Use the following symbols to format text as desired:

:*Bold: <i>*Lorem ipsum dolor*</i>
:*Italic: <i>_Lorem ipsum dolor_</i>
:*Strike: <i>~Lorem ipsum dolor~</i>
:*Inline code: <i>`Lorem ipsum dolor`</i>
:*Image: <i>![Alt text](https://rocket.chat/favicon.ico)</i>
:*Link: <i>[Lorem ipsum dolor](https://www.rocket.chat/) or <https://www.rocket.chat/ |Lorem ipsum dolor></i>

=== Message Actions ===

=== Channel Actions ===

=== Managing your Account ===