Matrix at UC.Technology > Rooms > Creating rooms
Create rooms and take responsibility
New rooms are created using the + icon in the left panel under the “Rooms” category, or by clicking the "Create room" button.
Next, you need to assign a room name. You can also optionally add a topic, which can be changed later. If needed, the room can be made public, although this is not the default setting. By additionally clicking “Show more settings”, you can prevent Matrix users from outside the UCMeetChat home server (Homeserver) from joining the room. By default, all new rooms, as well as all new 1:1 calls, have end-to-end encryption enabled. If this is not desired, for example because verifying participants becomes very impractical in very large rooms, you can use the slider before creating the room to disable end-to-end encryption. The same applies if you want to create public rooms that anyone can join. Before creating public rooms, end-to-end encryption should be disabled.
End-to-end encryption in large or public spaces is a critical factor because verification can become difficult for many people. See Using end-to-end encryption.
Once end-to-end encryption has been enabled, it cannot be rolled back!
The room has now been created and is assigned a colored icon. By clicking the “i” icon in the upper-right corner and then the gear icon for “Room settings”, you can access these room-specific settings:
Here you can upload an image/icon specific to the room in the “General” tab. An important function is assigning a local room address. This address is easier for people to read than the cryptic room address, which always exists in parallel and can be viewed in the “Advanced” tab. The assigned local room address can then be easily shared publicly or with a target group, and it has the following structure:
#roomaddress:matrix.ucmeet.chat
Another important setting here is whether the room should be displayed in the room directory of Darmstadt University of Applied Sciences. You can also enable URL previews for the room here.
In the “Security and Privacy” tab, room administrators need to make important decisions: should the room be encrypted? Who is allowed to access it? And who can read the chat history?
To explain the room access options:
- “Invite only”: these are private rooms. Access is currently only possible through an explicit invitation from a moderator or administrator.
- “Anyone who knows the room link (except guests)”: this is a public room, but you can only read it after joining it and therefore becoming visible to all room members. Here you can see exactly who is in the room and when, and if necessary you can remove and ban people who should not be in the room…
- “Anyone who knows the room link (including guests)”: this is a public room, and anyone in the world can read it. Room members will never know who read it and when. It is similar to a website where everyone can take notes. This setting is often used together with the option that “everyone” can read the chat history.
“Call waiting” for private rooms is not possible yet. The closest workaround is to send a direct message to the room administrator, who can then invite you.
As a room administrator, you are responsible for the content posted in the room, such as false messages, offensive posts, and similar content. Include other people in this responsibility by assigning roles in the right panel after clicking the person icon, using the “Permission level” dropdown menu, for example Administrator or Moderator.
You can also use the administrator tools to respond to any inappropriate behavior, such as muting users, removing them, banning them, or deleting recent messages.
Additional settings:
Matrix at UC.Technology > Rooms > Creating rooms
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