HipChat is all about teams, but it’s also about you. As an app you use to communicate all day long, you need it to feel just right.
With every update to HipChat, we’re adding more settings that let you customize your experience, like per-room notifications, dark mode, and avatars. Now it’s just about taking advantage of them.
HipChat has both account and in-app settings. To get to either from the web or desktop app, click your avatar in the top right corner. From there, either click on your name for account settings or “Settings” for in-app settings.
I think therefore I am: Account Settings
Let’s start with your account settings. When you click your avatar > your name, you’ll be taken to a web page (you may need to sign in).
Profile Settings
From here, you can do all sorts of things. Here’s what we recommend in your “Profile” tab:
Add an avatar: Add an image of yourself so your teammates can quickly recognize you. Or have fun with it and add a .gif or an image of your dog. Totes up to you.
Set your @mention name: This is how people will call you out in conversations. Make it your name, a nickname, or something silly – the choice is yours.
Check your name, job title, and time zone: You probably set these up while signing up for HipChat. But it never hurts to double check and make sure everything is how you like it.
Out-of-App Notification Settings
Then click “Notifications” on the left. Here you will choose how you want to be notified when you’re not using your HipChat app.
Enable mobile notifications: First make sure you have HipChat enabled on your mobile device. This way, you can rely on mobile notifications instead of email.
Choose when you want to be notified: There are many different times you may want to be notified. Choose any or all of the options. You may want to know when someone sends you a private message. Or maybe when you’re @mentioned.
Choose where you want to be notified: All the options can be set for email or mobile. Don’t want any email from HipChat? Just uncheck every box under “Email.” Or maybe you love email and don’t want mobile notifications. That’s cool, too.
You do you: In-App Settings
Now that you’ve set up your profile and out-of-app notifications settings, let’s move on to your in-app settings. We’ve totally revamped our in-app settings experience so it’s easier to navigate and stocked with more options than ever before.
Click your avatar in the web or desktop app, and click “Settings.” From here, you’ll be able to set your general, appearance, and notification settings.
General Settings
The “General” section has all sorts of settings you want to take advantage of.
Show joined/left rooms: Sometimes it’s important to know when people leave or enter a room, while other times it can take over the chat feed. With this setting, you can pick whether to show these messages or not.
Display time in 24-hour format: Depending where you’re from and how you work, you want your time shown in different formats.
Hide .gifs by default: People love sharing .gifs, but that doesn’t always mean you want to see them. Here you can have all .gifs automatically hidden from view.
Hide inline previews by default: HipChat automatically populates previews for images. If this doesn’t tickle your fancy, just choose this setting.
Turn emoticons into images: When any user types out an emoticon (ie. (awesome)), an image emoticon will populate in the chat feed. Don’t like that? Click this setting.
Show divider for unread messages: Anytime you come back to HipChat, you’ll see a divider line that shows exactly where you last left off. If you’re not down with this, just unclick this box.
Idle time: Choose how much time you want to pass before your status turns to “Idle,” or yellow.
Appearance Settings
It’s your HipChat, and it should look and feel the way you want. New appearance settings let you customize HipChat to fit your individual tastes.
New “themes” let you choose between light and dark mode, because, let’s be honest, we all have both sides.
You’ll also be able change text density, how you want names displayed, and whether or not to have avatars.
Global Notification Settings
In your “Notifications” tab, you’ll set your global notification settings. These will be the default for any room you enter or create. Don’t worry – you can customize per room, as well (see below).
First decide how loud of you want your room to be. You may want to be notified for every message or just when mentioned. Also choose if you want notifications for 1-to-1 chats.
Then decide how you want to be notified. You can choose any or all of the options: playing a sound, showing a popup, and bouncing the dock icon.
Lastly, you can enable or disable notifications when your status is “Do Not Disturb” (red). To change your status, click your avatar in the top right corner of your app.
Per-room Notification Settings
You can customize notifications for each room you’re apart of. In any room, click the grey bell in the top right corner to choose between “loud,” “normal,” or “quiet” notifications.
With these settings per room, you’ll feel a more focused workflow, concentrating on the rooms most important to you.
We want HipChat to feel like home. Taking a few minutes to get your settings just right will make your work day smoother and make you a happier chatter.
Let us know what settings you love or still need in the comments below!
The post Ready, settings, go! A guide to your HipChat settings