Global Chat does not connect even tho I'm playing Foldit online with no problem

Started by EmmaLives

EmmaLives Lv 1

Foldit can't connect to Global Chat You seem to have been disconnected from IRC
Not once since I started playing Foldit a couple of weeks ago has Global Chat worked.
I have a brand new PC with Windows 10 - no other problems with any other app on my computer.

LociOiling Lv 1

First, you get to have only one Foldit connected to chat at a time.

If you are running just one Foldit, try the "Reconnect" button in the chat window.

If that doesn't work, you may be out of luck, but one option is to try external IRC.

There's web based IRC at mibbit.com. Click on "Launch IRC client" to start, then click on "Server" next to "Connect". A "Server" box should open up, put in irc.fold.it in that field, your Foldit user name in the "Nick" field, and #global in the "Channel" field, then click the "Connect" button.

I tried it just now, and it seems to be working. Sometimes mibbit has problems, however.

See also: mibbit setup on the Foldit wiki.

If mibbit doesn't work, it may be that your service provider is blocking IRC, which can be the domain of problematic low-lifes. (Or maybe mibbit is having a bad day again.)

A newer option is Discord, see Foldit has a Discord!. Discord is a free chat app that's popular with gamers. It offers a lot of features, like voice chat and video chat, that IRC can't touch. Discord runs on many platforms, and allows a given user to have multiple connections at the same time. Even if you're disconnected for a while, Discord lets you scroll back to see what you missed. The Foldit Discord only started a week or so before the first coronavirus puzzle, and so far it seem to be working out.

jeff101 Lv 1

I've been disconnected from Chat a few times this week,
but each time so far I've been able to reconnect my
disconnected Foldit client without quitting and
restarting it.

EmmaLives Lv 1

Thank you for all your suggestions. I think I hit a down reply by accident to one of the people who replied to me so so sorry about that - I thought it was a reply button. I'm working from home not on a campus. I'll try mibbit and see if that works. Anyway chat is not essential although I think it will be stimulating to see what people are talking about. I'm just doing Foldit for intellectual curiosity; I like puzzles and I want to eventually take part in the contests if I ever get that far.