Chapp
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- karj
We’ve been working on a chat app (Chapp) that’s a little like IRC.
Our first prototype running. It’s buggy, but it’s coming along.
If you want to give it a try, visit: http://chapp.is
- ideaist0
Nice & snappy karj; a good start!
- karj0
Thanks—glad to hear that!
It still has a long way to go, but we're interested to see how people use it.
We opened it up to about 10 people last week, just to see how it worked. Almost immediately we saw problems with how we had approached the UX.
So, we retooled, and will continue to do so as we see what works/doesn't.
- Gnash0
nice work, karj. It has a good flow.
Like the initial screen but there's a disconnect in the transition to the main thread window. I miss the hit of colour (type and logo) from the opening -- perhaps that side tab should be open when you first make that jump. And those type colours carry through to the side tab.(btw, love the andy goldsworthy in the art thread :)
- karj0
Yes—it definitely needs a lot of refinement.
Last week I spent a fair bit of time just working on the general page treatments, and how notifications work in that context. Those updates haven't rolled out yet, but they're coming. My point is that there's a lot of change in the works.
@shelkie bears the brunt of this, as he's doing all of the development. As such, there are certain issues that have been tricky. For example, our hosting provider was providing shitty service yesterday and the whole site was awfully slow. Additionally, we're seeing that the nav is completely broken on Android devices, so we're working to fix that.
This one really is a first-stage prototype. I wound't be surprised if it looks/works almost entirely differently in the months to come.
- ukit20
Nice work karj! When you say "we" is it an agency side project, or self initiated work? I'd be interested to hear what framework or approach you used to create this.
My only feedback (based on a quick look) is that when I click the nav button, there is a scrollbar that appears alongside the side tab which seems unnecessary. Also what Gnash said about preserving the colors in the navigation.
- karj0
We have a bit of a weird set-up here, because we're so small. As such, we take on client work as necessary and then work on stuff like this whenever we get the chance. (We're never going to be wealthy with this approach, but it's fun.)
@shelkie built this using Meteor, which has allowed us to prototype really quickly. That said, we don't think it will hold up that well if the site ever gets significant traffic. For now, though, it allowed a really easy way to prototype, with the notion of rebuilding from the ground up if performance becomes an issue.
The scroll bar issue just popped up, and @shelkie noted that it will be gone shortly.
- utopian0
Looks really slick Erick...
What is the Chapp community?
What does Chapp mean?
- karj0
Thanks—glad you liked it!
Chapp is a portamanteau of the words chat and app. It's something we quickly tossed about, and it seemed to stick.
As for the community, I'm not sure. Right now, I think we'll likely see some designers try it out, just because many of our friends work in the field. Later, though, I'd hope it would expand to a broader audience.
The Private function is kind of handy, as you can create a hidden channel just for a small number of people. I'm using one to communicate with my mom, dad, and brother. It works well for this. I can also imagine some studios/businesses using it as a simple (and free) chat tool.
- ohhhhhsnap0
LIKE!
- karj0
Awesome—thanks!
- karj0
BTW. I should also note (not sure if this is implicit in the current treatments) that you can also post in sub-threads.
For example, if you go to http://chapp.is/Art and click on the Andy Goldsworthy post at the bottom, you can see more: http://chapp.is/Art/nMEkMDWBk97X…
As a result, we think folks will be able to dig into more specific conversations on topics—when they'd like.
- GeorgesII0
wow cool,
now where do I post nsfw images?
- karj0
That's easy. Just click the Create button and start a topic on anything.
Here's the link to yours: http://chapp.is/nsfw
- ********0
I've had about ten emails since I signed up.
I know I'm able to unsubscribe, which I have, but now I associate your forum with annoying emails.
- karj0
That's no good, and it's certainly not the association we want you to have with the service.
Notifications are difficult. Personally, I like getting them frequently, so I can stay in the conversation. On the other hand, I know just how irritating getting too many can be.
My first request would be that you give us some time to work things out. This is still really new, and we're working hard to make the service function naturally, and unobtrusively. That said, doing so takes time.
The second would be an offer. If you're open to it, I'd love for you to help us with notifications. I'm not talking about anything particularly involved here. I'd just like to connect you with @shelkie. That way, as we make changes, you could tell us what's working for you, and what isn't.
We want Chapp to be good, and we'd really like your feedback and help in making it so. If you're open to it, perhaps we could start a more direct conversation. Let me know. You can reach me at:
- sine0
where do i draw cocks?
- karj0
BTW: We've added some more granularity to controlling the number of email notifications you receive from Chapp. It's still crude, but should help a little in the meanwhile: http://chapp.is/profile/alerts/o…
We'll continue to work on improving this as we learn what works best.
- karj0
I was going to respond (cheekily) to the "cocks" reference above. However, I first ran it by my colleague. I thought I was being funny; he noted that I sounded like a jerk. So, I avoided posting my "playful" retort.
Regardless, this topic is something that we're really trying to resolve. On one hand, I want Chapp to be open to anything. On the other, my seven-year-old wants to use Chapp, and I'm a little weary of opening him up to certain subject matter (boobies OK; snuff films, less so).
If you're open to sharing your perspectives, I'd welcome you to chime in: http://chapp.is/Chapp/Mvgiyi5e9z…
- ( • Y • )monospaced
- http://chatttr.com/monospaced
- Interesting. So many folks trying to do something like this.karj
- I'm always curious to see what approaches others have chosen.
karj - chatttr is actually old, and created by a QBNermonospaced
- DIdn't realize that. Nevertheless, there are a lot of folks trying to solve this chat/topic thing.karj
- karj0
We pushed a number of updates out to this, last night. It's still really functioning more like a mobile web app than a desktop web app. That said, we're pretty happy with how it's improving. Once we tighten up this part of the app, we'll start to get on the full desktop app. :-)
- karj0
More updates. Still many to go, but I think it's coming. The design thread has had some good discussions—particularly some of the Carson stuff: http://chapp.is/Design