Muting Group Chat:

As the owner of a couple large groups, where I have never had the intention of allowing open group chat(group IMs), I would love to see that a feature is added where the owners of groups can simply press a button or check a box to disable group chat for their groups. There are *many* large buisnesses with groups out there that would love this feature. It would kill a lot of the annoyance of spamming. Yes, it is easy to just shut out of the IM, usually. Yet, in many cases they keep popping open, over and over. And, sure..you can kick the person from the group. Then what? Should we suffer losses of people that wish to join freely, by closing open enrollment? Or just let the person keep joinning up and doing it over and over...? I beleive there is a vote, in one of the sections for this feature or similar. Would be great if someone could post the link and let LL know that this is a wanted improvement by voting on such. Simply just allow owners/officers of group disable the chat. Notices are the prime usuage of my groups and many others. There is no need for open spamming. Most that do such are just trying to be cute and annoying everyone. So, everyone that would love for this feature to be considered by LL, feel free to leave a post explaining such and supporting this.
Thank you,
Charles Montale

This is one feature I love to see done. Because some groups when they reach 2000 or EKKKKKKKK 5000 the spam and the owners continuesly throwing Land Marks, etc........problem is Charles the owners themselves spam the ````` out of the memebers. Maybe LLABS can do some sort of work around and get this feature done!

That is true, with owners spamming it. But, in the cases of my groups and a few others, it is what the group was built for. Tossing out events and such. So, most in it expect spam of notices, to an extent. Group chat is more of an annoyance, imo.

yes you are right. Problem is members in those groups do the spamming as all large groups do ( it happens). BUT if the owner is doing 2 to 3 times as much say throwing 3 to 5 land marks a day. Then bitching about members spamming in the groups. Doesnt not show a good example to members with in the group. But when owners starts saying don`t spam the group when asking questens ( within members guide lines of the groups rules )etc is when you know one needs to get out of a group. We need a better system within the group IM. Since we are nolonger a with populations of 100,000 but instead alomost 8 millions. We need better and more workable system.

i would love to see an option to mute group chat but not just from the
group owner side, the members should have an option as well to mute
group chat from their side as well.

Those who want to be able to mute group chat might want to vote for the jira issue on this topic:

https://jira.secondlife.com/browse/MISC-64

If you have a blog, you could make a post and suggest that SL members reading it vote for this Jira issue.

I just started a thread at the slexchange forums about it at http://slexchange.com/modules.php?name=Forums&file=viewtopic&p=102190#102190 . You could drop by there and voice your support.


I also made a thread to support the jira issue in the SLUniverse forums at
http://www.sluniverse.com/php/vb/showthread.php?t=409

I'm not sure you're completly following the dillema I am saying, heh. When someone creates a group, they usually know if they want to or not to, allow group IMs. So the thing is, when you have groups, that are open enrollment, allowing anyone in, as should be allowed in many groups. You will get a series of *bored* people, that will spam with useless stuff such as "hi" "I have a big *$#%&" "Anyone want sex?"...ect. After that, there is a string of comments, that light up everyone's screen in the group, pointless ones. The thing is, us owners, should not be forced to have to close our group's open enrollment, because of these people. Yes, we can kick them, and then...they can just come back. My groups are purely for notices sent out by myself, or assigned officers. Everyone is in the group, knowing this. I do agree with what the other person said, sure, maybe members need to be able to disable it as well, but the owners should have first priority, as they know the intentions that the group was made for. Thank you for posting that link, btw.

I also wanted to add in and see what people thought of a feature that would, allow banning of people from the groups. Like a banlist. Would solve some of these issues as well.

oh PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE give us this option! We can turn off 'Receive Group Notices' (which I don't mind getting), but WE CAN'T TURN OFF IM !!!

Oh God, if there is one loathsome hateful thing about SL its the dreadful spam chat morons who wash their dirty smalls in a group chat and plague the rest of us with it, who just want to be left in peace.

Give us an option in Groups: 'Receive Group IM' - which we can uncheck.

WE ALL KNOW WHICH THE BAD GROUPS ARE FOR THIS. (Mentioning no names, HippiePay...)

go one better give us the the option to mute group chat AND opt out of group notices

Bad, I beleive we can opt out of group notices already. You should have a setting in your group that allows such.

Here's another two that might be of interest:

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http://jira.secondlife.com/browse/MISC-65

An option for group owners to forbid some or all roles of users from taking part in group IMs. Analogous to current role functionality for group notices.
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and:

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http://jira.secondlife.com/browse/MISC-38
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Group functionality for owners and users is seriously lagging other areas of control in Second Life. As the owner of a group very significant for SL commerce (Fashion Consolidated), I would like to submit a set of feature requests that will greatly help group cohesion so vital to Second Life community and commerce.

Top priority:

1. An option for group members to suppress group IMs (suggested: tickbox "Receive Group IMs" complementary to the "Receive Group Notices" tickbox.

This is the most asked-for issue with groups: a way for a busy user to opt out of receiving group IMs. Very often these group IM sessions are lengthy and off-topic, and as a group owner I try to strike the balance between group community and sympathy for those for whom this is an interruption, but my only control with 560 members is constant sympathetic vigilance and trying to intervene when use is excessive to meet the balanced wishes of the community.

Important missing functionality:

2. An option for group owners to suppress group IMs. Again, this is complementary to the current ability to allow or disallow group notices to some/all group members.

3. Group owner's ability to delete archived notices and determine timespan for archived notices retention. This is partly an attempt to mitigated bug RT#650671, where multiple notices are necessarily sent due to errors, but would generally be very useful.

4. Group owner's ability to ban specific users from joining. This is important to prevent IM spamming, a common problem. Clearly alt accounts will get around this but I've seen the same resident av spamming, leaving, the rejoining and spamming again. A blacklist would make this at least somewhat harder for IM spammers.

5. Inclusion of timestamps as well as datestamps in archived notices, member's last login times, etc.

6. Larger Group Charter text allowance, or "attach charter notecard" option on group front page. Very often a charter needs to explain in more details group content, rules etc.

Desirable:

7. Group member's ability to request "digest" version of a group's notices. This would allow a busy resident to suppress popups as is currently (usually) working, but still receive a summary of all notices at a time they desire, rather than delving into the archive.

and/or

8. Group owner's ability to set a "digest" periodic time for all notices sent to be resent to members.

I hope these suggestions are helpful, and would welcome comments and progress on these, especially item 1.
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This i really would like to have! AGREE!

This has been one of my biggest gripes for a long time now. Group owners should be able to disable group chat for their groups, since some people are just to stupid to read the group charter and understand its not for chatting. Then they wine and complain because they got ejected.

Yes, Yiffy, I agree with you completly! Well, obviously. So, can we by chance get it so that owners of groups can mute group chat, like next required update. *grins*.

I was also thinking, that...perhaps an easier solution might be to just make people have the option of creating a group with/ or without group chat. So, that way, there would be less programming and such. Thought maybe the Lindens could just use the base for groups as is, and take out the strings that attach to group chat. I'm not a programmer though and know nothing of it, just something I had in mind, that MAY be an easier solution.

Thanks again for the above links. We really need more people to vote and let LL know this is something that would be a great addition to Second Life. So, if this is something that irritates you, your support counts in the issue! Don't just read it and agree, let your voice be heard, the more, the better. The Lindens look through these postings, obviously. So, lets show 'em we really want this.

Clearly groups fall into two kinds - one is the help groups, where the more members that can contribute to solving someone's problem, the better. This I'm sure is what group IM was designed to do.

The other kind - like many of the popular nightclubs and groups such as HippiePay - seem to have no real reason for group IM at all and just end up as annoying spam which can't be turned off without leaving the group.

The easiest solutions to these are one or both of the following:

1. individual group members to be able to 'Stop receiving Group IM' just like they can currently opt out of group notices.

2. Group owners to be able to disable group chat for all members except maybe their officers.

Anything that would help eliminate the idle chit-chat from groups in the IM feature would be helpful.

I do not mind at all getting the "banner notices" for a function sent from the group, but to have individual members clog up and confuse the IM feature is extremely distracting when I am carrying on a conversation or doing something - and not at all involved in that group's functions.