Nicknames and Avatars

There are four options for user avatars in Watchers' chats:

• to go with Watchers' default set of user avatars, or upload your own branded preset;
• activate an opportunity for users to upload their own image as an avatar;
• activate both options and give users a choice: they will be able to select an avatar from your preset, or upload their own picture;
• transfer users' avatars from the main platform via GET parameter.

Moderators and admins can upload special avatars through the admin panel even if an opportunity to upload a picture for users is turned off.

In-Chat Profile Setup

Users can choose an avatar and set a nickname for a chat. It’s suitable if you don’t have them in your in-app/ web authorisation, or if you want to allow users change their names and avatars for chats (and not make them share their main data in chats).

We offer pre-sets of avatars. You can explore our existing variants here. You can modify them (e.g., changing the colours).

Also, clients can upload their avatar pack to the admin panel directly—in the Chat customisation section.

If the client activates the option for users to upload pictures for avatars, users will be able to do so via a chat interface. When this feature is active, the AI moderation system pre-moderates pictures before showing them in a chat. Also, admins and moderators can additionally check the avatars and block them if needed.

A nickname must be no longer than 255 characters and can consist of any character. When users create nicknames, the system checks them with the pre-moderation block lists. Also, the particular block list for nicknames exists: it allows clients to restrict some words from using in the nicknames while the exact words can be typed as messages.

Learn more about moderation in chats: https://docs.watchers.io/update/docs/advanced-moderation#/

Using Platform Profiles in Chats

Users can join chats with avatars and nicknames from the main platform's profile. In this case, we take avatars and nicknames users set on the main profile. So, they join chats avoiding the authorisation step. If they want to change their nickname or avatar, they should do it through the main profile on the platform.

Passing Avatars via GET Parameters

Partners can choose from two methods to integrate user avatar information via GET parameters:

• Image ID Method: Utilize the imageId GET parameter to supply a unique identifier corresponding to each user's avatar image within your application. This identifier enables our system to fetch the user's avatar image directly from your backend.
  To facilitate this, partners are required to provide a URL to their backend that hosts the avatar image database. For instance, the URL could follow this format: https://api-gw.example.com/social/file/v1/cache/profile/avatar/[picId]?size=small, where [picId] should be replaced with the unique imageId of the user's avatar.
• Direct Image URL Method: Use an image GET parameter to supply a direct URL to the image that will represent the user's avatar on our platform. The format should follow: https://url_to_img.

Select the integration method that aligns with your operational preferences and adjust the corresponding setting in the Admin Panel under Settings > Functional Settings.

Passing Names via GET Parameters

To integrate user names, utilize the following GET parameter:

Nickname: Employ a nickname GET parameter to pass the user's nickname as it is recognized within your system. This nickname should not exceed 255 characters and may include Latin, Cyrillic, or special characters, with no restrictions on character types.

Admin Panel Adjustments for User Identity Consistency

After selecting your avatar integration method and configuring the setting for user nicknames, please adjust the following settings in the Admin Panel to ensure consistency in the presentation of user identities:

Navigate to Admin Panel > Settings > Appearance. Disable the following options:

• Name/Avatar Change: Once disabled, this setting prevents users from changing their names and avatars within the chat settings, thus safeguarding the integrity of the integrated user properties.
• Onboarding: This option turns off the ability for users to set their name and avatar during their initial session, thereby preserving the pre-established user identities from the partner system.

Special Avatars for Guests and Admins

Clients can upload specific avatars for their users. To do that, they need to enter a particular room through the admin panel, open the list of participants, click on the avatar of the needed user, and upload a picture.

Also, clients can upload branded avatars for moderators who communicate in rooms.

The admin panel user can upload specific avatars for themselves: to do so, they need to open profile settings in the left corner below.