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Containers

TabSRMM V3 This article has been updated for TabSRMM Version 3. The information it contains may be inaccurate for earlier versions of TabSRMM.

Contents 1 Containers 1.1 Configuration 1.2 Identifying containers 1.3 Auto opening message windows 1.4 How to assign contacts to a container 1.4.1 Use contact list group names for organizing container names 1.4.2 Maximum number of tabs per container 1.4.3 Use single window mode (one tab per container) 1.4.4 Default container mode (manual assignment) 1.5 Related reading

In tabSRMM terminology, message windows are often called containers. So whenever you see this term, it basically means a top level message window. It is called a container, because it acts as the top level parent window for the actual message session windows. The container implements a tabbed user interface and can hold any number of children and each child can be either a standard IM window (for 1:1 instant messaging chats) or a group chat window.

TabSRMM also supports multiple containers. You can have as many as you want and there are 3 different ways for assigning a chat session to a particular container. A special case is the single window mode which disables the tabbed user interface. When active, each chat session will get its own top level window and any container window will hold exactly one child.

Configuration

Many options in tabSRMM are implemented on a per container basis, which means that different container windows can act or look different from each other. This is useful when you want to group and organize your chat sessions in one or another way.

Identifying containers

Any container is identified by its name, which must be unique. How container names are assigned depends on the way container windows are used in the plugin:

• The default container. It always exists and its name is always "Default". You cannot rename or delete the default container. Any non-assigned chat session will be opened in the default container
• Container names correspond to contact list group names. This happens when you use the option to organize chat sessions with the help of your contact list groups. Whenever you open a chat window, it will open inside a container that inherits its name from the contact list group.
• Manually assigned names - this is the standard way. You are responsible for creating new (named) containers and assigning contacts to them. In this mode, all new chat sessions will open in the default container until you assign them to another one (which is completely optional, by the way).

Auto opening message windows

There are a few methods to configure the way, new message windows are opened when a message is received from some contact. By default, tabSRMM will not automatically open the message window. The message event will flash in the system tray until you click the tray icon or manually open the message window for the contact from whom you received the message.

Some people find it more convent to have message windows created automatically when new messages arrive. You can configure this behaviour under Message Sessions->Tabs and layout[tab] with the following settings, all of them in the section "Message tab and window creation options:

1. ALWAYS popup and activate new message windows - when this option is active, tabSRMM will automatically open and activate the message window for any incoming message. This option will 'steal' the focus of the current active desktop window and should therefore be considered the most aggressive option. Also, this option has priority over the others, so it will always override any other window creation mode.
2. Automatically create new message sessions windows without activating them - when active, new tabs will be created (but not focused) automatically, but only when the parent container to which the tab should be added is already open. This option will only create allow automatic creation of new tabs in already existing containers.
3. New windows are minimized - when active, new message windows are created minimized on the task bar (discreet mode, the message window will never steal the focus). Option 2) must also be enabled to make this work. Basically, if you disable 3) while 2) is enabled, no new windows will be created automatically, but new tabs will be automatically added to existing windows.
4. Pop up a minimized window when a new tab is created - if enabled, a minimized message window will be restored to the desktop when a new tab is added to it. Also, when a new container is created on demand, it will put itself to foreground. This option is should be considered aggressive, because it will steal the input focus.

How to assign contacts to a container

As mentioned, you can have multiple containers which may or may not be wanted and can help you with organizing your chat sessions. In a fresh install, only one container is defined and it is called the default container. Also, there are 4 different methods to tell tabSRMM how it should assign chat sessions to a container. These modes can be chosen under Message Sessions->Containers[tab]

Use contact list group names for organizing container names

This option will tell tabSRMM to automatically create one container for each contact list group and add chat sessions as tabs. Let's assume you have a contact list group with the name Friends which holds a few of your more important contacts. Whenever you open a message window for one of the contacts in this group, tabSRMM will open the container with the name "Friends" and add the chat tab to it. If the container is already open, the chat window will be added as a new tab. This mode is fully automatic.

When you move a contact from one contact list group to another one, the message tab will not move to the new container immediately. This will be done the next time you open a chat session for this contact.

Maximum number of tabs per container

This mode, which is also fully automatic, will just limit the number of sessions per container window to the given number. Whenever a new session is created, it is added to the current container, unless this container already has reached the session limit, in which case, a new container will be created.

Use single window mode (one tab per container)

This mode will effectively disable the tabbed user interface. When active, each message session will be opened in its own top level window.

Also, in this mode, container settings are global for all message windows. Only the size and position of the window will be saved individually for each contact or chat room.

Default container mode (manual assignment)

This is probably the most flexible method of using multiple containers. In this mode, you have full control over how many different containers you want to use and in which container a given contact should be placed when you open a message session. In a fresh install, only one named container is available. This is called the default container and it is used for any new message session, unless the contact had been assigned to a different container.

However, you can change the assignment for any contact

Related reading

• session managment
• how to configure the look and feel of a container window

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