I think that if special guests are actually trading, sharing and applying particular set-ups or analyses of ongoing market action, maybe supplying llustrative charts directly related to what's actually going on, then that might be interesting. If they're giving canned presentations or anything other than something "real-time," then I think that should either take place in a room for that purpose, or outside of regular market hours. I agree that having a single room in which people are trading diverse vehicles is a good thing, though I guess that might change if the numbers became too unwieldy. I happen to trade Nasdaq stocks and index e-minis, but that doesn't mean that I might not want to try something else sometime, so I like hearing how others are approaching whatever they're trading. In fact, the chat - through a couple of the regulars especially - was a major inspiration for me in finally taking up the minis. And I like the total effect of a window on the broader market - with input from swingers, scalpers, OTC traders, listed traders, small cappers, options players, beginners, veterans, and so on. It's also a place where we can just kid around or discuss whatever's on the news or on the TV or just on our minds when taking a break. Of course, if other people wanted a room all to themselves focusing on just one style or narrow set of vehicles, that's their business. You could try setting the rooms up and see if enough people showed up, but I'm pretty sure I'd stick to the "main" chat as long as it kept its current character.
I'm with the general sentiment expressed thus far...the chat is pretty good as it is! It's proved useful many times just to pick up on something going on that I might have missed. People in chat have been really helpful. I like the chat diverse, as it gives me a broader sense of the market. More than 20 people may very well get unwieldy too, but having a general chat is important. Of course having seperate rooms, as is available now, is nice. If people want to talk about something specific, they can always form a room for it. Seems like a few people do that anyway. If you have guests, I'm of the opinion that they should open up a seperate room specific to what they are talking about so they aren't drowned out by the general chit chat. One thing you should do is move the chat button back to the main page and make it obvious. I think it is relatively hidden at this point and less inviting.
Ninja, we loaded 4.0 last night. We've been testing it all day. Folks who haven't had the problem, can still access the room the old way, with the Sun Java plug-in UNchecked. But the good news for IB users is that with the Sun Java v1.4.1 option checked... you can now get in! André