Getting Started

This chapter describes how to talk to a running matrix-jitsi-bot from a Matrix chat room. Its examples use the bot hosted at @jitsi-bot:chat.pycal.org, watching https://meet.hosted.quelltext.eu/matrix-jitsi-bot - if you're running your own instead (see Self hosting), everything below works the same, just with your own bot's user ID and conference URLs.

• Try it out
• Track a Jitsi Conference
  • 1. Get the bot into a room
  • 2. Only moderators can configure it
  • 3. Start tracking
  • 4. Undo a setting, or stop entirely

Inviting the bot

Invite the bot's Matrix account into a room, the same way you'd invite any other user, e.g. by its user ID (@jitsi-bot:chat.pycal.org) in your Matrix client. The bot automatically accepts the invite and joins - unless the room's name contains "no-bot", in which case it leaves right away instead. Once it's in, it says so - a message like "This room isn't configured yet…" shows up if nobody has set anything up in it yet.

Talking to the bot

The bot only reacts to messages addressed to it - mention it first, either by its full user ID or a shorter name, both work the same way:

@jitsi-bot:chat.pycal.org: hello

jitsi-bot: hello

A bare hello with no mention at all is not addressed to the bot and gets no reply.

It replies in kind:

jitsi-bot: hello

Hello!

Commands currently understood - each one links to its full reference, including any implementation notes:

You say	The bot replies	Who
hello	Hello!	anyone
track status of / open status of / close status of / who is in / who joins / who leaves / who starts a URL	Starts tracking that aspect of a conference.	moderators
don't track / do not track a URL	Stops tracking just that one aspect, keeping the rest.	moderators
don't track / do not track a URL	Stops tracking one conference entirely.	moderators
don't track any / do not track any	Stops tracking every conference in this room.	moderators
check	Checks a tracked conference (or all of them) now and reports its status.	anyone
status	Lists tracked conferences and their last-known status (no network check).	anyone
pause tracking	Pauses tracking, keeping the room's configuration.	moderators
unpause tracking	Resumes tracking after a pause.	moderators
leave	The bot leaves the room and forgets it.	moderators
help	Lists every command, always in full.	anyone
anything else	❌ and a short reminder to say "help" - never the full listing, so a busy room isn't flooded with the same wall of text for every typo.	anyone

A URL in any of these can also be a hostname or short name - see Track a Jitsi Conference for what that means and how it saves typing once a conference is already being tracked.

Moderator-only commands

Commands that change the bot's settings for a room only take effect for a room Moderator (Matrix power level 50 or higher - the person who created the room, or anyone since promoted). Every such command also gets a ✅ or ❌ reaction on the message that triggered it, on top of any reply - and so does a message the bot doesn't understand at all, always ❌.

As a Moderator:

jitsi-bot: pause tracking

✅ Tracking paused.

As anyone else:

jitsi-bot: pause tracking

❌ Sorry, only room moderators can do that.

While a room is paused

A paused room keeps its configuration but stops reacting to anything except unpausing:

jitsi-bot: hello

This room is paused - tracking is off, but its configuration is kept. Say "unpause tracking" to resume.

Have a look at the command reference.