[KLUG Members] live chat software

[Adam Tauno Williams]

>> > How does this get through a firewall?  I understand how someone can
>> > initiate a connection to get through their own firewall, but how does
>> > the recipient get notified/connected?>>
>> They run the client;  in the case of Exodus (what we use on Win32) it
>> sits in the system tray and pops up upon receipt of a message.  So the
>> internal people run the client and it awaits connections.
> Got it.  Then set up a listening port through the firewall, all
> copasetic.
> In our scenario, all connections would be one to one.
> What if there's a dozen reps, each running the client, would each one
> have it's own port or is there some other means to distribute incoming
> connections to specific computers/users?

Nope, it is like mail - everything goes through the XMPP servers,  XMPP is a
client/server setup not peer-to-peer.  The reps have a username on the server
so you can contact a specific person, or everyone, or a group.

>> The external
>> people either run a client, either installed or downloaded on-demand
>> from the site,
> Does this mean non-technical people (the human clients) have to manually
> download and install something?

Unless you run a webstart Java client from the page.

> Is the client software related to the browser?

Depends on the client.

>> > client - firewall - internet/server/etc - firewall - recipient
>> You port forward the XMPP port through the firewall to the XMPP server.
> So the XMPP server (on the internet) would initiate connections,
> forwarded through the firewall, to the listening client(s).

Yep.

-- 
Adam Tauno Williams - http://www.whitemice.org