chat-examples

chat examples

Examples of how chat transcripts are marked up currently, with the idea of moving towards a

Authors

• Kevin Marks
• Robert Boyce

IRC transcripts

These are plantext logs with space separated fields, so are posted wrapped in <pre>

12:06 Tantek: what does the datetime stamp represent?
12:07 KevinMarks: in iRC, when it was said
12:07 Tantek: is it a point in time *before* they started speaking?
12:07 Tantek: or *after*?
12:07 Tantek: or somewhere in the *middle*?
12:07 KevinMarks: usually it is quantised to seconds
12:07 KevinMarks: and it is time the msg was received
12:07 Tantek: but the second they started typing or pressed return?
12:08 KevinMarks: prssed return i think

Or as plaintext + <br> (eg http://chocnvodka.blogware.com/blog/_archives/2005/8/25/1169654.html)

(22:20) gturneruk: oh, i just remembered. windows 95 is ten years old today
(22:22) Suw: good god. i mean, i shouldn't be surprised, it being 2005 and all. but still, where did that time go?
(22:22) gturneruk: lost clusters
(22:23) Suw: i obviously need to defrag

xChat2 log format

**** BEGIN LOGGING AT Wed May 14 04:36:29 2003

May 14 04:36:29 -->     You are now talking on #test
May 14 04:36:29 ---     Topic for #test is Test Topic
May 14 04:36:29 ---     Topic for #test set by nick1 at Thu May  8 18:45:05
May 14 04:58:45 ---     You are now known as nick1
May 14 05:03:44 -->     nick1 (~nick1@2.1.3.narf-42905) has joined #test
May 14 05:05:48 <nick1> test message
May 14 05:10:24 *       nick1 test action
May 14 05:11:19 <--     nick1 has quit (quit)

**** ENDING LOGGING AT Fri Jul  4 00:28:22 2003

Snak log format

Log file opened at: 5/26/04 12:00:11 AM
[12:00:11:] nick1: test message
[12:10:29:] * nick1 test action
[12:13:16:] ***: nick2 (~nick2@test.net) has joined the channel
[12:20:35:] ***: nick2 has quit IRC ("Computer going to sleep...")
[12:21:31:] ***: You have joined the channel
Log file closed at: 5/26/04 2:29:08 AM

iChat transcripts

iChat handles timestamps differently, inserting them between statement blocks, every 5 minutes.

12:25 AM
Reconnecting to tantekatwork…
Kevin Marks: So, iChat shows timestamps between entries
Tantek: yes
Tantek: what about Adium?
12:30 AM
Kevin Marks: my copy is 230 days old...

Bash.org

Bash.org and other QDBs collect funny IRC transcripts and let people vote on them. They use plaintext + <br />, wrapped in <p> http://bash.org/?23396

<Donut[AFK]> HEY EURAKARTE
<Donut[AFK]> INSULT
<Eurakarte> RETORT
<Donut[AFK]> COUNTER-RETORT
<Eurakarte> QUESTIONING OF SEXUAL PREFERENCE
<Donut[AFK]> SUGGESTION TO SHUT THE FUCK UP
<Eurakarte> NOTATION THAT YOU CREATE A VACUUM
<Donut[AFK]> RIPOSTE
<Donut[AFK]> ADDON RIPOSTE
<Eurakarte> COUNTER-RIPOSTE
<Donut[AFK]> COUNTER-COUNTER RIPOSTE
<Eurakarte> NONSENSICAL STATEMENT INVOLVING PLANKTON
<Miles_Prower> RESPONSE TO RANDOM STATEMENT AND THREAT TO BAN OPPOSING SIDES
<Eurakarte> WORDS OF PRAISE FOR FISHFOOD
<Miles_Prower> ACKNOWLEDGEMENT AND ACCEPTENCE OF TERMS

Log Library

Log Library displays a tabular format with divs

<div class="row" name="GusVanNos">
   <div class="timestamp">18:36:28</div>
   <div class="nick"><GusVanNos></div> 
   <div class="message">.+. is a lazy way of saying .{2,}</div>
</div>

<div class="row" name="jawong">
    <div class="timestamp">18:36:48</div>
    <div class="nick"><jawong></div>
    <div class="message">your model is waaaay better, xal.</div>
</div>

Adium X

Adium X is currently developing an XML-based log format. This is version 0.3:

<chat date="2005-11-20" account="mactigerz" service="AIM" version="0.3">
    <event type="windowOpened" time=""/>
    <message sender="chz16" time="">'sup?</message>
    <message sender="mactigerz" time="">trying to get to work on the the new XML log format</message>
    <message sender="chz16" time="">Doesn't sound bad.</message>
    <message sender="chz16" time="">Providing you have the log specs, of course.</message>
    <message sender="mactigerz" time="">that's what I'm creating.</message>
    <status type="offline" sender="chz16" time=""/>
    <status type="online" sender="chz16" time=""/>
    <status type="away" sender="mactigerz" time="">brb, working on the XML log format</status>
    <event type="windowClosed" time=""/>
</chat>

This format remains under development, so this page may not reflect the current version of the format.