How to Initiate a Private Chat

If you come across someone particularly intriguing in a chat room and would prefer a private conversation to communicating via the public chat forum, a private chat may be in order. While the specifics of the procedure vary depending on where the chat room is, the basic process is relatively straightforward.

Instructions

Difficulty: Easy

Things You’ll Need:

• Internet Access
• Web Browsers

1. Chat for a while in the public room to see if there's anyone you're interested in conversing with privately.
2. Select the name of someone you're interested in from the list of users and view a profile if available. This will help you decide whether to initiate a private chat.
3. Follow the specific chat room instructions for sending a private message to the person. In most rooms, this can be done by double-clicking the name in the user list.
4. Introduce yourself politely to the person and ask if he or she would like to chat.
5. Answer any questions the person may have before agreeing to chat (most likely age and sex) if the questions aren't too nosy or inappropriate.
6. Form a private chat room if possible. In some chat environments, this can be done by establishing a chat room of your own and protecting it with a password.
7. Continue chatting via instant messages if no private chat-room feature is available, or if your chat partner also wishes to continue chatting in the public room or carrying on other private chats.

Tips & Warnings

• If a user isn't contributing to the public chat room, it's likely that he or she is already involved in one or more private chats and may not wish to be further disturbed.
• Don't give out any personal information to someone you've just met online. Avoid providing your last name, phone number, home and work addresses and any other information.
• The anonymity of Internet chat often impels people to lie about things such as age, occupation, lifestyle and, yes, even gender. Try not to take burgeoning Internet relationships too seriously.