Chat

Chatter for Salesforce

Chatter is a Salesforce real-time collaboration application that lets your users work together, talk to each other, and share information. In Resco mobile apps, you can display chatter feeds directly on object forms, where app users can share information about a particular record.

This function requires release 13.3.

Enable chatter in Salesforce

1. On the Salesforce server, go to Setup.
2. Go to Chatter Settings and enable the following parameters:
   • Enable: Required for chatter in general.
   • Rich Text Posts: Required for chatter in Resco mobile apps.
   • (Optional) Emoticons in Feed: If you want to enable emoticons.
3. Go to Feature Settings > Chatter > Feed Tracking and enable feed tracking for all objects for which you want to have chatter.

Add chatter to Resco forms

1. Log in to Resco for Salesforce.
2. Start Woodford and update your metadata.
3. Edit a form of the object where you want to add chatter.
4. From the Tabs pane, drag Chatter to the Designer pane.
5. Optionally, select the chatter tab and configure it on the Properties pane.
   • Select or upload a custom icon for your chatter tab.
   • Set Width to Large to make the tab bigger.
   • Set Online Refresh to configure the behavior when the app is in offline mode.
     • Always: As long as your device is connected to the internet, the app automatically displays chatter feed from the server. Similarly, chatter posts, comments, and likes that you make (even in offline mode) are immediately saved to the server.
     • On Click: Users can tap the refresh button to download fresh chatter feed, and optionally also to upload existing offline posts and comments. The chatter tab effectively switches to the online mode until you close the tab.
     • Never: Chatter is only updated during synchronization.
6. Save changes and publish the app project.

Behind the scenes, adding a chatter tab to your form performs some configuration changes for your project:

• When you add your first chatter tab, the objects Feed Item, Feed Comment, Feed Attachment, and Feed Like are added to your app project. Do not disable these entities.
• For the object with chatter tabs, the entity configuration setting Synchronize entity feed is automatically enabled.

See all images in offline mode

If you use chatter in offline mode and you want to make sure that you see all the images, not only those that you posted, you have to enable the option Synchronize all linked Salesforce Files for the object Feed Item. This may result in higher API call consumption.

Chatter in the app

When you open a record on a form with salesforce chatter attached, you will notice a new form tab. You can use rich text formatting in the posts, and include emoticons or attach images.

Restrictions

• Resco mobile apps support chatter for entity (Entity Feeds), such as accounts, opportunities, work orders, etc. General channels or feeds are not supported.
• Due to API limitation, the app only syncs 1.000 posts per entity in the offline database. Older posts won't be available offline.

Chat for Dynamics and Resco Cloud

When used with Dynamics or Resco Cloud backend, Resco mobile apps can include a chat.

Using chat in Resco Mobile CRM

Tap Chat from the Home menu to access the chat function. You can chat in public or private channels, or directly send private messages to a particular user.

Note	If you don't see chat in your app, contact your administrator.

Channels

Channels are ideal for sending messages to a group of users. Channels can be public or private: public are available to all, private are invite-only. You can join or leave channels (except the default, General channel). You can create new channels: tap on Channels, then tap on the plus symbol.

Direct messages

Tap on a name to start chatting with that person. Tap on Direct Messages to display the list of users; use this option to initiate a chat with a person that you have not chatted with yet.

Message functions

To send a message, either to a channel or to a particular user, type a message and then tap on Send. You can add smileys and also attachments. Attachments can come from multiple sources: You can capture a new picture, you can select from existing pictures, you can select a file, or you can send a link to any record in Resco Cloud.

Create simple surveys

You can create a simple survey by typing it into chat. Use the following format:

/poll "Question" "Answer 1" "Answer 2" "Answer 3" ...

Chat members can tap an option to vote for it. They may vote for each option once.

Resco Cloud: Enabling chat for your organization

To enable chat for an organization:

1. Log in to your organization at Resco Cloud.
2. Select Tools & Settings > Admin Console from the menu.
3. Select Settings > Organization from the Admin Console menu.
4. Find Chatter and click Enable.

Setting up chat for your app project

Enable chat in Woodford.

1. Edit an app project.
2. Select Social from the Project menu.
3. Check Enable chat and click Save.

To access chat for all records that you follow, place chat to your home screen.

1. Select Home from the Project menu.
2. Select Chat from the Available Items pane and add click Add.
3. Click Save.

To configure your chat:

1. Select the Chat entry on your Home screen in Woodford and click Properties.
   • As Name, enter the label of the chat entry that should be displayed on the home screen in the app.
   • As Chat User Entity, use "User". (For external projects, you might use also other entities, such as Contact.)
   • In general, there should be no reason to Disable encryption for direct messages.
2. Save changes.

To restrict the number of records of the chat user entity (usually, it's the User entity), create a custom view.

1. Select the User entity from Project menu.
2. Click Show UI to display a list of views, forms, and charts for this entity.
3. Create a new view called "ChatUsers". The visual is irrelevant.
4. Click Edit Filter and set up a filter that should be applied to your user records visible within chat.
5. Save all changes.

If you want to be able to use chat to comment on records, you need to place the Chat Wall on the entity form.

1. Select the entity from the Project menu and click Show UI.
2. Double-click the form to open it for editing.
3. Drag Chat from the Tabs pane to the Designer pane and save all changes.

Don't forget to enable the N:N Relationships plugin for the following entities:

• Chat Post <-> Chat User
• Chat Topic <-> Chat User

See also

Webinar: Summer Release 2016, Winter Release 2016