One of the advantages of playing online is that you can communicate with who you are playing. It is the modern equivalent of playing two or more with the same console in the same room. Today, you can play regardless of the distances. And to communicate, you can use text, voice and video messages . One of the most popular services to do this is Discord . It has the best of instant messaging: private conversations, group chats, voice and video conversations, and more. And you can use it on any device. Discord allows you to log in to Xbox, Twitch, YouTube or Steam .
So you can enjoy Discord and integrate it into other gaming platforms or social networks with a single account and thus talk with your friends and acquaintances from the comfort of your home, with a good internet connection and without releasing the game controller .
Let's see some tricks that will help you enjoy the game online while communicating with Discord from any connected device. You will be able to create text and voice channels for your friends and be always in contact, whether you play or not.
Integrate Discord into other services
One of the characteristics of Discord that makes it a great instant messaging app is its ability to connect your accounts with each other and thus obtain benefits from those services associated with Discord.
Specifically, you can connect with Discord and log in with your Twitch, YouTube, Battle.net, Steam, Reddit, Facebook, Twitter, Spotify, Xbox and GitHub accounts . And if all goes well, this list will add PlayStation during 2022.
Connecting your accounts is as simple as opening Discord and opening the User Settings . You will find a gear-shaped icon for it. Within the settings, you should go to Connections . And there you will see Connect your accounts . By clicking on the service you want, you will start the Discord process of logging in by opening a new window. Follow the instructions.
Each service offers its own functions. Spotify , for example, allows to share the songs that you are listening to with your friends, that they listen to those songs or play the same music at the same time in all channel devices.
Discord bots give a lot of play
Discord allows to add bots to channels . These bots are programs that can interact and perform automatic tasks. That and respond to orders or commands. There are them for all tastes and you can use them freely on your channels and servers .
There are several catalogs where you will find bots for Discord. For example, the Discord Bot List of Top.gg allows you to search and use bots on music, anime, games, memes, role-playing games, social, moderation … With them you will take work off your shoulders and you will add new features to Discord channels. Another very complete list is Bots on Discord .
How to use a bot on your Discord channels? Just invite him, as if he were any other user. Discord's bot repositories include a button like Invite this bot or Add to Server that allows you to do it easily. Discord will surely ask you to log in. You will only have to authorize the bot and approve the permissions it asks for to perform its tasks.
Later, when you get tired of the bot, you can eject it from the channel and / or the server just as if it were a normal user. By right clicking on his profile you can ban him, ban him, silence him and / or block him like other users.
Search for servers already created
Although one of the purposes of Discord is to create your own servers to talk with friends in private, there is the possibility of meeting new people and being part of groups already created that have their own Discord servers. What's more, the official repository for groups and communities can be found in the Discover tab of Discord.
Just as there are Discord bot lists for easy finding, the same is true for servers. You will find servers on sites like DiscordMe , Discord Servers or Disboard , among many others. There you can search by theme (games, anime, music), see the most popular ones and even find servers in your language .
As they are public servers, you should have no problem accessing them once you have your Discord account ready and have logged in. Moreover, the pages that we have recommended include a button Join to click on it and enter directly on the server in question.
Roles and permissions to manage your channels
Like any good instant messaging tool, Discord offers controls and security measures to better manage the day-to-day of the channels. It is not the same to manage a channel with few members than to do it with dozens of users.
So as with IRC or Inter Relay Chat, a classic of text chats, there are different roles between users of the same channel. Within the configuration of your channel ( Edit channel ), in Permissions> Advanced permissions you can assign roles to different members. For example, there will be someone who can invite others, manage the channel and / or permissions, etc.
On the other hand, you can limit the possibility of reading and / or sending messages on a channel to each user separately. Also avoid sending attachments , using external emojis and a long list of options. Returning to the channel configuration, by clicking on the gear icon to the right of the channel name, in Permissions> Advanced permissions> Text permissions you will be able to define what can or cannot be done in the channel . You will always be in time to change the configuration if there are complaints or coexistence problems.
Can you hear me okay? Does it look good on me?
Although Discord can be used simply as a text chat service, it also facilitates conversations and audio channels. And you can even make video streams and share your computer screen with the rest of the channel.
Let's go by parts. When you create a server, two text channels and two voice channels are automatically generated. Then you can invite other users to chat . But before starting the talks, you should make sure that everything will work correctly.
From the User settings , in the tab Voice and video you can choose which will be your microphone, your camera, check if they work correctly, if you want to automatically activate the voice input or do it manually to avoid surprises, etc.
You can also activate several interesting options in the tab Advanced within Voice and video . In particular, you can cancel echo, reduce noise, and automatically control gain. Thus the sound quality will be better in audio conversations even if you speak two or more at the same time.
With video you can also run tests to see if it will look good, remove something from the background before others see it, etc. And finally, you can share your desktop to show the channel what you are watching on your computer. Perfect for doing a live stream explaining anything.
To share screen in Discord you will have to start a video call with a user, if you are going to share a screen only with him, or enter a voice channel if you are going to show the screen to all the participants of the channel. In both cases, you will see an icon that says Display . The first time you will have to approve the necessary permissions in the browser and / or the operating system.
You can share the entire screen, only the window of your choice or a specific browser tab. This way you make sure to share all or only part of the screen and avoid showing something you didn't want without realizing it.
