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Protocol Specific Questions
- AIM (OSCAR) Protocol
- Can I set my profile?
- Can I set a buddy icon?
- I just changed my buddy icon and I can't see the new one!
- Why are some of my buddies are not showing up as online?
- Can I use AIM URI's such as "aim:goim?screenname=seanegn"?
- Does Pidgin support DirectIM and IM Image?
- Can I send SMS messages?
- Can I add SMS numbers to my buddy list?
- ICQ (OSCAR) Protocol
- IRC Protocol
AIM (OSCAR) Protocol
Can I set my profile?
Yes, you can. Go to Accounts->account name->Set User Info.
Can I set a buddy icon?
Yes. There are two ways to do this:
- Global - This will affect all of your accounts. On the Buddy List window, beside the status selector at the bottom, there is an area that will have a generic photo icon if you have no icon set. You can click that and select an icon from there. The icon will take effect for all accounts you have configured in Pidgin.
- Per-account - This will affect only the account you modify. Go to Accounts->your AIM account->Edit Account. On that dialog, check the box labeled "Use this buddy icon for this account:", then click the leftmost button below that checkbox. Select your buddy icon.
In either case, the file must be smaller than 4KB. It can have any dimensions, and can be in any format. However, if you wish Windows users to see it, it must be in a format Windows understands, such as .bmp, .gif, and .jpg. Pidgin will attempt to scale icons to fit within these constraints, but it is not always possible to do so.
I just changed my buddy icon and I can't see the new one!
First, try IMing yourself a few times. Buddy icons are checked when you IM people, so that may work. If it still doesn't update, check the file size (buddy icons must be smaller than 4kb) and the image size (it should be 48x48 or 50x50 in most cases). Also, check the file type. GIF or JPEG images are best supported. If all of that checks out and it still doesn't work, try restarting Pidgin.
Why are some of my buddies are not showing up as online?
AOL has set a limit for the maximum number of people you can have in your buddy list. This number is currently 500. If you don't think you are anywhere near that limit, it is possible that your server-stored buddy list is corrupt. If you think this might be the case, you can try signing on with an official AIM program from AOL. This will usually correct any problems with the list.
Can I use AIM URI's such as "aim:goim?screenname=seanegn"?
Yes; you need to register purple-url-handler in your browser. This requires that Pidgin be built with dbus support, otherwise purple-url-handler will not be installed.
Does Pidgin support DirectIM and IM Image?
Yes, absolutely. Keep in mind that you must establish a DirectIM session before you're able to insert a picture into the conversation.
Can I send SMS messages?
Yep, just send an IM to the person's phone number. For example, if the phone number is (919) 555-1234, you would message +19195551234 We think this should work for countries with a country code of 1 (the United States and Canada).
Can I add SMS numbers to my buddy list?
Yes. You should be able to add phone numbers to your buddy list using the same format as explained in the previous question.
ICQ (OSCAR) Protocol
Important note about ICQ FAQs
The entire AIM section applies to ICQ as well. Information in this section is in addition to the AIM section above.
Can I send SMS messages?
You can using the AIM method as described above in the AIM section. The ICQ method for SMS messages is not yet supported.
Why do my buddies' messages display incorrectly?
ICQ has no comprehension of character sets or encodings. It simply sends (almost) any random chunk of data a user enters. Pidgin by default assumes everything is UTF-8. If this is not the case, you will need to edit your account (Accounts->your ICQ account->Edit Account) and change the Encoding setting on the Advanced tab. You will need to enter the correct encoding for your buddies' messages there. You can specify multiple encodings in a comma-delimited list, such as UTF-8,ISO-8859-15, to cause Pidgin to attempt multiple encodings. In this case, each encoding is tried in succession until a successful decode happens or all encodings listed are exhausted.
IRC Protocol
How do I join a channel?
Create an IRC account and then sign on. After you have signed on, you can use Buddies->Join A Chat on the buddy list to join a channel. In any window, either a conversation or a chat, in which your IRC user is the sender, you can also use /join to connect to a new channel.
Is there a way to make Pidgin automatically identify me on login?
Add NickServ to your buddy list and place buddy pounces on him/her/it. Do not include "/msg nickserv" as part of the message to send. If your IRC network uses a different services bot to authenticate, add that bot to your list and pounce it instead.
Can I automatically join channels on login?
On the buddy list, select Buddies->Add Chat. Use this dialog to add the chat to your buddy list. Once the chat appears in your list, right-click on it and select Auto-Join. The channel will auto-join whenever you sign onto your IRC account.
Is it possible to change the user name that appears in username@hostname?
Go to the Accounts menu. Select your IRC account and click Edit Account. Click the Advanced tab. Enter a name in the Username field.
How can I set/change my real name?
Go to the Accounts menu. Select your IRC account and click Edit Account. Click the Advanced tab. Enter a name in the Real Name field.
Why does text display incorrectly in channels?
IRC has no comprehension of character sets or encodings. It simply sends (almost) any random chunk of data a user enters. Pidgin by default assumes everything is UTF-8. If this is not the case, you will need to edit your account (Accounts->your IRC account->Edit Account) and change the Encoding setting on the Advanced tab. You will need to enter the correct encoding for your channels there. You can specify multiple encodings in a comma-delimited list, such as UTF-8,ISO-8859-15, to cause Pidgin to attempt multiple encodings. In this case, each encoding is tried in succession until a successful decode happens or all encodings listed are exhausted.
