Google Talk (GTalk) is the Instant Messaging choice for many of us, and we all have different reasons for it. Some like it because of its minimalistic design & wide usage, some like it because it connects them with most of their friends, since most of us have Gmail accounts now a days, and some like it because it isn’t disturbing/annoying like some other IM clients, when it comes to ads (don’t know how google left a chance here).
Below is a list of some handy Tips & Tricks, that will enhance your experience with Gtalk.
Beginning with the Tricks
1. Multiple Messenger Trick
This trick/hack allows you to use multiple instances of Gtalk. It can be very useful when you are handling multiple gmail accounts.
- Right click on Gtalk shortcut/Desktop icon and open Properties.
- In the target field, type ” /nomutex ” after the existing code.
- You can now open multiple Gtalk clients.
2. Always Appear Idle on Gtalk
Gtalk only allows you to appear available or busy to other contacts, and idle status is brought in only when your gtalk client not used for sometime. So, there is no way to handle idle status by yourself. But, using gAlwaysIdle you can appear idle forever, or never or as per regular time limit set in Gtalk.
This nice little app embeds the extra options within the available options, on Right Clicking the Gtalk icon in system tray.
Download gAlwaysIdle.
When i checked their website, it wasn’t working. So, you face similar problem, you can download it directly from our database. Link to galwaysidlesetup.
3. Shortcut to Contacts
Generally, we connect with our friends on gtalk by searching their name in our list. This can be annoying when the list is really long, and we frequently need to contact. For this, the simplest way to connect with them is by creating a desktop shortcut.
- Right click on desktop and create a new shortcut.
- In the URL field, type “gtalk:chat?jid=user@gmail.com“, where user will replace your friend’s gtalk ID/Username.
- Change the shortcut icon as per your liking, and Double click to start Chatting!
4. Useful Gtalk Startup Parameters
- /nomutex - Allows you to open multiple instances of GTalk.
- /forcestart – Forces gtalk to start no matter what option was set in gtalk options, related to starting on windows startup.
- /S upgrade – Used when upgrading Google Talk.
- /mailto:email@host.com - Opens the compose mail window to send mail to diresteg email id.
- /checkupdate – Checks for new version of Gtalk.
- /factoryreset – Used to reset settings to default.
- /diag – To run GTalk in diagnostic mode(error check and sending).
- /log - Prepares a log of recent errors in diagnostic mode.
Some useful Tips
1. Keyboard Shortcuts
Keyboard shortcuts can be really handy at times. And, when some actions can be performed with just a push of a button, one should look forward to it! Here are a few shortcuts-
- ESC – To close the current window.
- ALT + ESC – To minimize the current window.
- TAB / CTRL + I – Switch between multiple chat window.
- SHIFT + TAB / CTRL + TAB - Same as TAB but the order is reverse.
- Windows + ESC – Open GTalk if minimized, or in system tray.
- F9 – To open Gmail to send an email to your friend.
- F11 – To start a call with your friend.
- F12 – To stop the current call.
2. Formatting Tips
These formatting tips will make your chatting experience unique and better! Unlike other messenger, Gtalk doesn’t have any formatting buttons, yet you can make use of text formatting.
- Single message on Gtalk can be 32767 chars long!
- Smileys are recognized in Gtalk, and shown in blue colour.
- Write a text in bold by inserting it between asteriks (*). Like *Tecktickle* gives Techtickle
- Write a text in italics by inserting it between underscores ( _ ). Like _Techtickle_ gives Techtickle
- Special characters - ♥♫☺ can be inserted in gtalk by inserting them from Character Maps.
3. Share Music Feeds With GTalk Friends
If you are using Windows Media Player to listen to your favourite music, then it has an inbuilt add-on which allows you to share music feeds with your friends on Gtalk.
- Start with your favourite music in WMP. Press ” CTRL +F ” and go to ” Tools ” . Then ” Plugins ” and then move your mouse to ” Options “.
- In the options window, under ” Plugins ” option, go to ” Background “, where you will see Google Talk Music Plugin.
- Click on the check-box and as soon as you press ok, Gtalk will start sharing your music feeds, and you will receive a pop-up notification for that.
4. Change your GTalk Nick Name in Gmail
Your nick name becomes your identity in Gtalk. Other users view your id by your nick name or by your email id in thier client. You can edit the gtalk nick name from gmail only. For this-
- Open Gmail and go to Settings.
- In the Accounts Tab, press edit info, to make changes in your nick name.
- Save settings and you are done!
5. Play Games in Google Talk
This feature is currently in its Beta phase, and is available on web based Google Talk Sandbox. It is expected to come out of its beta phase, and then it will be launched for Gtalk desktop client users.
To play games-
- Open Google Talk Sandbox
- Click on a friend’s name in the web based Gtalk friend list.
- Click Options > Start Application….
- Now, enter URL of game gadget and start gaming!
To play Chess, use the URL-
http://code.google.com/apis/talk/examples/chess.xml
To play Rock Paper Scissors, use the URL-
http://code.google.com/apis/talk/examples/rps.xml
For details on playing games in google talk, read googletalk blog.
That’s it!.
This was a list of some Google Talk Tips & Tricks that will enhance your experience in Gtalk. Hope you find them useful. If you have any such GTalk related Tips or Ticks, share with us through comments. We will try to include them in the above collection.
![[Update] Google Voice and Video RPM packages now Officially Available](http://www.techtickle.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/screenshot-e1282471488468.png)
![Google Voice and Video Chat Now Available for Ubuntu and Debian Linux [Update: Debian Error Fixed]](http://www.techtickle.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/gmail_voicechat.png)
[...] here: TechTickle – Tips & Tricks to Enhance your Google Talk Experience March 13th, 2010 | Tags: background, check, gtalk, plugin-, plugins, sharing-your, the-options, [...]
thanks thanks a lot……
I have noticed of the wealth of content you’ve on this web page and I have found it quite informative
Thank you! Keep visiting