The chat feature allows you synchronous (same time) communication with other members of your class. To use a chat room, find the chat feature in your particular program and open it. Although programs differ in their appearance, most chat areas have the same basic elements. Once you are inside a chat room there are usually three distinguishable areas. One area lists the names of the people in the chat room. Another area is a large text box where the comments of various participants are posted. A third area is a small text box where you type and edit your ideas before posting them to everyone in the chat room. In order to arrange a chat with another user, some programs allow you to invite other users if they are online at the time. In most cases you should schedule your chat times in advance, so you can be sure the other people involved will in fact be online.

Notice the smaller text box. Place your cursor here and type your message. When you are ready to send your message, press 'Enter'. You message will then be broadcast to everyone in the chat room. You will also see your message in the large message box with your name next to it. You may find that the chat environment is very different than a spoken conversation or notes. Because others cannot see when you are getting ready to speak (by typing, in this case) you may want to type short sentences and send them individually. Doing this allows others to see that you are saying something, and allows them to read part of your statement while you type the next part. This prevents interrupting one another and overlapping on different topics. It might be a good idea to set up a practice chat with a classmate before meeting with the group as a whole to get used to the environment if you have not used chat rooms before.