Jabber

From StackWiki

Stack operates a Jabber (XMPP) instant messaging server, which can be used by all Stack members.

Contents 1 Jabber 1.1 Stack server 2 Client Configuration 2.1 Pidgin 2.2 Bitlbee 2.3 Kopete

Jabber

Jabber is the name of an internet protocol used for private or group chats, as an alternative for MSN Messenger or IRC. Jabber, or rather XMPP, is an open standard and all Jabber servers can freely connect with each other and exchange messages between users. All you need to get in contact with a Jabber user is their JID (Jabber ID). For Stack members this JID is the same as their Stack email address: username@stack.nl

Stack server

The Stack Jabber server can be accessed using the server name stack.nl. Users do not need to create a new account: every Stack member can log in directly with their regular Stack username and password. All connections to the server should use TLS encryption (e.g. using STARTTLS). Most clients will automatically detect that encryption is required. At the moment the Stack Jabber server is still experimental: it may be restarted occasionally to improve its configuration.

Client Configuration

Pidgin

Pidgin is a popular graphical chat client for Unix systems. The image below shows an example configuration to start using a Stack Jabber account in Pidgin. Change the displayed settings to match your own details.

Modern versions of Pidgin will automatically determine that TLS is required for the Stack server, so there is no need to enable this in the advanced tab. However you might still need this when using older versions.

Bitlbee

It is also possible to connect with the Stack Jabber server, using the Bitlbee server. This requires the following commands:

account add jabber username@stack.nl password
account set username@stack.nl/tls true
account set username@stack.nl/server jabber.stack.nl
account on username@stack.nl

Kopete

Kopete does not support STARTTLS; nor does it understand automated server detection via DNS. So you will have to configure it explicitly to use jabber.stack.nl and use the 5223 port for SSL-connections. Support for the (old-style) SSL-only connections will likely be dropped in the future well all common clients support STARTTLS.

Messaging and discussion services:

Bitlbee · Forum · IRC · Jabber · Mailing lists · Newsserver