Open Chatbox When Typing

[Dragon Sol]

It's as simple as that.

 

The benefits of this can count in situations where you just would like to type something, even if the chatbox is either closed or has a npc dialogue or interface over it.

 

Mainly though, the benefit would be most useful, and ought to be a feature already, when in resizeable mode, if you hide your chatbox, you have to manually click one of the buttons to reopen it. It would be a lot simpler if there were some hotfixes that allowed you to open it when you type, or use a key to make it open and close, just like you can with the function keys for the inventory interfaces.

 

Otherwise, in fixed screens, you can bypass a dialogue or chat interface by just typing to talk publicly, or pressing tab to reply to a private message or by clicking message a friend. After the message is sent or discarded, it will return you to the previous chat interface if there was one.

 

Say, I'm afking, or just watching the screen. To type something, I wouldn't have to first use the mouse to click the chat buttons before I start typing, just start typing would be so much nicer.

 

This idea is very similiar to those that Jagex have been implementing just to make it easier to navigate chat options and dialogue. The pressing space and numbering of options, is just like this idea.

[Sy_Accursed]

Don't seem worth it to me for the key to open chat; chat box is hardly intrusive to have up in resized/fullscreen especially with transparency and click-through and from screenies etc I can't say I've seen many people who close it.

 

NPC thing I could see maybe, but it seems like a lot of engine work for a very small use; I mean is it *really* that hard to finish the dialogue then reply to w/e chat? Other than a few quest dialogues most chat things only go on for maybe 5 screens max and spamming space you can get through them in seconds. Would be nice I guess, but can't see it becoming a reality cause it's hardly a huge usability gain.

[Zaaps1]

Don't seem worth it to me for the key to open chat; chat box is hardly intrusive to have up in resized/fullscreen especially with transparency and click-through and from screenies etc I can't say I've seen many people who close it.

 

NPC thing I could see maybe, but it seems like a lot of engine work for a very small use; I mean is it *really* that hard to finish the dialogue then reply to w/e chat? Other than a few quest dialogues most chat things only go on for maybe 5 screens max and spamming space you can get through them in seconds. Would be nice I guess, but can't see it becoming a reality cause it's hardly a huge usability gain.

 

It's not really designating a key to open the chat box, it's for automatically opening it when you start to type. The letter keys on your keyboard don't have any function in the game other than to type (with the exception of y/n for destroying stuff when that interface is open), so it makes sense to open the chatbox when any letter is pressed.

 

I'm no java programmer, but it doesn't seem like it'll take long to code at all. If the chatbox is closed and any letter is pressed, save the letter as a string variable, copy/paste the code to open the chatbox (from where someone manually clicks to open it), then throw the saved letter into the message line.

 

I can actually see this being pretty useful for people who don't have huge screens or play on resizeable in a smaller area.

[Sy_Accursed]

But Runescape isn't written in Java, it's written in Runescript that is a custom language running in a Java framework, so it may not work that way.

[Hedgehog]

But Runescape isn't written in Java, it's written in Runescript that is a custom language running in a Java framework, so it may not work that way.

It'd have to be an engine update, and, honestly, it wouldn't take more than a day or two to write and test.

[Cheefoo]

I'd really love a way to use chat when I'm in an NPC conversation. It's especially frustrating when you get a mime random event and suddenly you can't chat anymore. You used to at least be able to private message people, but now that doesn't work anymore. And if hiding the chat box could be used to save space for smaller screen modes, I'm all for it.