Installation and Registration

To download to the Blabbelon Desktop App for Windows, go to www.Blabbelon.com and follow the links.

Download the desktop app from blabbelon.com. It's free for unlimited users!

Once you click the download link, follow the Windows prompts: Click “Run” on the dialogue to File Download

On the Windows file download prompt, click "Run"

Once the file downloads, an installer will automatically open and take you through the next steps. After you have finished installing, launch the software.

Upon launching the software, you will be presented with a prompt to login.

Login with the same username and password you use for any other Blabbelon app.

If you have never registered with Blabbelon before, click the “sign up” button. As usual, registering for Blabbelon is quick and simple. You need only a valid email address, and Blabbelon will immediately send a welcome email to you.

Registration requires only a valid email.

The welcome email will contain a link as well as an initial password. If you click the link, a web browser will open and immediately log you into web Blabbelon…but since you want to use Desktop Blabbelon, just use the password to login through the software you just installed.

Use the password in the confirmation email to login to the Desktop App. Clicking the link would open up the Blabbelon Web App.

Once you log into the Desktop App, make sure you change your password to something more personal easily remembered. Do this by clicking the Edit Profile button in middle panel of the user interface.

Click the Edit Profile button to change your password.

The Edit Profile page will open and give you access to your profile information. This is also a good chance to change your alias. Your alias is a name that other users will see when you are in a blab together. Also note that the system gives you fine control over what data points in your profile are displayed to others or not.

Use the Edit Profile to change your password and alias. You have fine control over the visibility of your profile info.

Setting Up Preferences Including the Push to Talk Hotkey

Once you have installed the Blabbelon software and you’re registered, you can start to set yourself up. Start by setting up your hotkeys.

Click on the Settings button to access hotkey preferences.

At the top of the middle panel, click on the Settings button. This will open a dialogue box that give you access to several settings.

The settings window.

Click on the button next to each of the hotkey selectors to set your desired keys. For example, a popular hotkey is the tilde key (~). The Officer Chat PTT allows you to set a separate keystroke to talk to only members of higher rank within a single blab room. You can again, select any key you prefer. For example, if you use the ~ key for talking to everyone, you might use SHIFT + ~ to talk to just the officers in the channel.

Lastly, there is an option to “Select Sound Card.” While most users will be able to rely on the defaults, if you use multiple sound inputs or outputs, you can specify which ones the Blabbelon Desktop App should use.

Working with Blabs

Blabs are just like rooms, where people can gather to talk. When you’re first starting out, you can either create your own blab, or accept an invite to join one from someone you know. In either case, a list will appear of all the blabs that you can access. This list is located in the middle pane of the main window view, and is labeled the Blab Center.

The middle panel of the user interface is all about blabs.

Use the Blab Center to not just exit and enter blabs, but also browse the various contents of who is in the various rooms.

To create a new blab, click the plus (+) button at the top of the Blab List. This will open a dialogue to let you enter the name of your new blab.

Enter a name for your new blab.

Another way to add a blab to your Blab Center is if you are invited. Invitations to a blab appear in Messages pane to the far-right of the user interface. Clicking on a message in your Bulletin Board will open it, and allow you to reply.

Click on a new message to view the available functions. New blab invites or friend invites will let you Accept or Decline.

If you are being invited to a blab that is not on already in your Blab Center, you will be presented with the option to accept. Moments later, the blab will appear listed in your Blab Center. Then, simply double click the name of the blab or click the button labeled “Join” to jump in.

Once you have a blab established in your list, you can right-click it’s name to bring up more functions.

Right click on the name of a blab in your Blab Center to bring up a list of other functions.

Note that one of the functions is the ability to create a Sub Blab.

Sub blabs are rooms just like blabs but they are “nested” so that member of a parent blab can see the sub blabs and the people who are inside them at any time. They’re a great way to have private conversations without disappearing from other members of a blab who might also want to talk.

Use sub blabs to create rooms within rooms where you can have private conversations while still being visible to the rest of the membership.

Lastly, if you are inside of a blab, you will see a button labeled “Make Key” in the bottom of the Blab Center.

Use the make key button to copy the blab's ID to your clipboard.

Clicking this button will copy that blab’s URL to your clipboard, so you can paste it to other people. Remember, all Blabbelon blabs are web addresses so they have easy to handle web links. Your friends who click on the links will pop straight into your blab via Blabbelon web. Alternatively, if you give your friends a URL and they already have the desktop app installed, they can paste the link directly into the text box and click “Process Key” as show in the image.

Take URL's for blabs and paste them into the Desktop App.

Adding Friends

The left portion of the user interface has everything you need to manage your friends list. Start inviting friends by clicking the plus (+) sign at the top of the Friends section.

Click the plus sign at the top of the Friends panel.

You will then be prompted to enter your friend’s email or Blabbelon alias. At the same time you can create a new blab to invite them to, or select from a already existing blab.

Enter your friend's email or Blabbelon alias. Pick a blab to invite to, or create a new one - all in one step.

Once you have sent your invitation, it requires that your friend accept. In the meantime, your friend is listed with a grey icon, indicating the invitation is pending the other party’s acceptance.

Friend requests must be accepted. Until then, they are pending, and your friend's icon is grey.

Once your friend accepts the invitation, then their icon becomes colored according to their online status.

Once your friend accepts the invite, their online status is visible to you.

The aliases of people who are on your friends list, or just others inside the same blab as you can be left- or right-clicked to bring up a menus of more functions such as the ability to mute, ban, promote to admin, etc.

Using the Transparent Overlay View

To get the most out of the Blabbelon Desktop App, use the overlay view. The overlay view is a simplified UI that is partly transparent and rests on top of any other software you might be using.

The overlay view will quietly rest wherever you put it, so you can carry on with other software or games.

To enter overlay view, click on the button labeled “Switch View” above the Blab List in the middle pane of the user interface.

Click on the Switch View button to go to overlay view.

Once you enter overlay mode, click and drag the logo in the view to position it anywhere on your screen, and right-click the logo to bring up other functions including the ability to switch back to window view or to switch blabs.

Right click on the purple logo and you will see an expanded list of functions.

Note that as people talk, you will see their name pop up as part of the overlay, so you will be able to know who is talking, even though you are using other software or games on your computer. This is especially helpful if you have not memorized everyone’s voice in the group.

When others talk, you will be able to see their name appear as part of the interface.

Installation and Registration

Once you download the Blabbelon Desktop Software from www.blabbelon.com, double click the file to un-zip it. A disk image will be automatically mounted. Simply click and drag the software icon over to your applications folder.

The Blabbelon Installer helps you move the software to your Applications folder

Once you have installed the software, open it by double clicking it’s icon. You will see a login screen with several choices, including the ability to register or retrieve a lost password. If you’re already a Blabbelon user because you’ve known us from the web software or our iPhone App, simply log in. The username you use can be either your registered email address or your online alias.

Login, retrieve a lost password, or register

If you have never registered with Blabbelon, simply click the button to do so. Registration requires only one morsel of information: a valid email address. Like many other web registrations, you will receive a welcome email with a temporary password. Head back to the software and login.

Registration requires only a valid email

Once you are logged in, make sure to click on Account > Edit Profile to change your password to something you will remember.

Use Edit Profile to change your password

Setting Up Preferences Including the Push to Talk Hotkey

Once you have installed the Blabbelon software and you’re registered, you can start to set yourself up.  For Mac users, the easiest way is by going to the Preferences panel by either using the keyboard shortcut Command+Comma [ ,] or by going up to the application menu and navigating to Blabbelon > Preferences.

The various options under preferences

You will see a new panel open for setting preferences, and at the top, a dropdown menu to assign specific hotkeys for several important functions. These are as follows:

Push to Talk: this is they key you will press to activate your microphone to talk. Unlike the web browser version of Blabbelon, the Desktop App let’s you choose virtually any key you like, with same rare exceptions (the F1 key on some computers defaults to system Help no matter what you do). At long last fans, you can use the tilde key!

Push to Talk (Admin): If you plan to set up ranks in your blabs, this is a great feature to take advantage of. Pressing the admin-level push-to-talk means that only people of higher rank within a blab will be able to hear you. This is ideal for ‘Officer Chat’ in certain multiplayer games.

Quick-mute current user: At any time, you can mute a user who is annoying you. If you set a hotkey for this, you can do so while they are talking, in an instant. This is ideal if you are using the transparent overlay view.

Switch to Transparent Interface: Blabbelon let’s you switch to an overlay view, where the app with ‘hover’ as a tiny transparent palette over any other software you are running. When others talk, their names will appear. Setting a hotkey here will let you toggle between views very quickly.

The middle portion of the preferences pane is greyed-out and labeled Echo Cancellation. This feature is currently not active and relates to two-way audio.

The bottom part of the preferences pane pertains to the transparent overlay view. You can change the font and the amount of transparency to your liking.

Working with Blabs

Blabs are just like rooms, where people can gather to talk. When you’re first starting out, you can either create your own blab, or accept an invite to join one from someone you know. In either case, a list will appear of all the blabs that you can access. This list is located in the middle pane of the main window view, and is labeled the Blab Center.

 

The Blab Center is your "control headquarters" to view all activities at a glance

 

Use the Blab Center to not just exit and enter blabs, but also browse the various contents of who is in the various rooms.

To create a new blab, navigate in the application menu to Blabs > Create new blab…

 

Blabs and Sub-Blabs are rooms where you can meet up and talk

 

This will open a dialogue to let you enter the name of your new blab.

You can also click on one of your blabs and click the button to Create sub-Blab. You will again be asked for a name. Sub-blabs are rooms just like blabs but they are “nested” so that member of a parent blab can see the sub-blabs and the people who are inside them at any time. They’re a great way to have private conversations without disappearing from other members of a blab who might also want to talk.

Another way to add a blab to your Blab Center is if you are invited. Invitations to a blab appear in your Bulletin Board and can be accessed by clicking the tab in the far-right panel of main windowed view. Double clicking on a message in your Bulletin Board will open it, and allow you to reply. If you are being invited to a blab that is not on already in your Blab Center, you will be presented with the option to accept. Moments later, the blab will appear listed in your Blab Center.

 

Access the Bulletin Board by clicking on the tab. You can then double click your messages to read them.

 

Lastly, if you are inside of a blab, you will see the appearance of a small key icon in the lower right of the Blab Center.

 

All Blabbelon blabs are accessible as internet addresses.

 

Clicking this icon will copy that blab’s URL to your clipboard, so you can paste it to other people. Remember, all Blabbelon blabs are web addresses so they have easy to handle web links. Your friends who click on the links will pop straight into your blab via Blabbelon web. Alternatively, if you give your friends a URL and they already have the desktop app installed, they can paste the link directly into the text box and click “Process Key” as show in the image.

Paste a URL for another blab and click "Process Key." The blab will appear listed in your blab center.

Adding Friends

Send friend invites by navigating in the application menu to Account > Add a Friend…

Adding a friend will send and invitation to another person

A dialogue will open and allow you to enter either your friend’s email address. If you don’t know your friend’s email address, you can also ask them for their Blabbelon ID and enter that into the invite. Then hit the button ‘Send friend request’. This will send an invitation to your friend and appear in their Bulletin Board. As soon as they accept your friend invite, they will appear on your Contacts list.

Accepted friend invites remain as part of your Contacts list

Once your friend is in your Contact list, you can click on their name, and either navigate in the application menu to Contact > Invite to a blab, or right click on their name to see a list of functions. You will then be able to choose the blab and send the invitation.

Right click on users in your list to see more functions

There is also a way to send a friend invite and a blab invite at the same time. In the application menu, navigate to Account > Send an invitation to a blab. This will open a multi-field dialogue allowing you to enter the email or Blabbelon ID of your friend, a message, and choose the blab that you wish to invite to.

Using the Transparent Overlay View

To get the most out of the Blabbelon Desktop App, use the overlay view. The overlay view is a simplified UI that is partly transparent and rests on top of any other software you might be using.

The overlay view will quietly rest wherever you put it, so you can carry on with other software or games.

To enter overlay view, you have several options:

1. Navigate the application menu to Window > Switch to overlay view

2. Use the keyboard shortcut Shift + Command + X [ --X]

3. Set your own hotkey under Blabbelon > Preferences

A handy way to swap to overlay view

Once you enter overlay mode, click and drag the view to position it anywhere on your screen, and right-click the logo to bring up other functions including the ability to switch back to window view or to switch blabs.

Right click on the overlay view to bring up a menu of functions

Note that as people talk, you will see their name pop up as part of the overlay, so you will be able to know who is talking, even though you are using other software or games on your computer. This is especially helpful if you have not memorized everyone’s voice in the group.