IM Status

An IM Status object displays your availability for an Instant Messaging (IM) service. Visitors can click on the IM Status to open a chat with you. The IM Status supports iChat (AOL/AIM), Skype, and Yahoo! Instant Messenger.

An IM Status for an iChat account.
An IM Status for a Skype account.
An IM Status for a Yahoo! account.

IM Status Settings

To edit IM Status settings:

  1. Click the object to select it
  2. Open the Object Inspector
  3. Select your chosen IM Service from the pop up menu

Service & Username

Select the IM service (iChat or Skype or Yahoo!) that you wish to display. Then enter your username for that service.

Important: If you are using an IM Status with iChat, it will only display online or offline. If you set your status to away, it will still appear as online. So be sure to set your status to offline to avoid being disturbed.

Please note for Skype, there are issues when viewing your website from Firefox. When clicking on the skype badge, viewers of your site may be prompted to install Skype, even if it is already installed on their computer. (We have reported this issue to Skype.)

Badge Labels

If you have selected iChat as the service, the text that appears on the headline can be customized.

Privacy Settings

Before you can use an IM Status, you must ensure your AOL or Skype account is set up correctly to allow it.

If you use Skype:

  1. Open the Skype application on your computer. (You may need to download and install it first)
  2. Choose "Preferences…" from the "Skype" menu.
  3. Go to the "Privacy" controls.

  4. Check the box marked "Allow my status to be shown on the web."

    Skype privacy checkbox

If you use iChat:

  1. Launch iChat and choose "Preferences…" from the "iChat" menu.
  2. Go to the "Accounts" controls and select your account in the column on the left.

  3. In the "Security" tab, set your privacy level to "Allow anyone" or "Block specific people."

    iChat privacy level

If you use AOL/AIM with Adium:

  1. Launch Adium and choose "Privacy Settings…" from the "Adium" menu.
  2. From the "Account" popup button, select "All" or your AOL/AIM account.

  3. Set the privacy level to "Allow anyone" or "Block certain contacts."

    Adium privacy settings

Related Articles

Keywords: im, instant, message, messenger, messaging, messages, ichat, av, chat, chats, chatting, skype, skypeout, state, status, online, offline

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