See if Someone Is Invisible on Gmail Chat

Have you ever been talking to someone on Gmail chat when they suddenly say "bye" to you and then Google says that the person is offline? If you're curious to know whether they're still about but "invisible" or actually offline, here is how to determine which.

Steps

  1. As soon as the person you're chatting with tells you that they have to go, put the chat off the record. (This is an optional Step. You can start with step #2, but whatever you say will be recorded in both your and the recipient's Chat History)
    • You do this by going under the Actions panel in the right corner of the chat box.
  2. After a notice appears saying that the person has signed off, send them a message.
  3. If you send a chat message and it doesn't say anything, that means they are invisible and could actually be logged into Gmail still.
  4. If you send a chat message and it says "[name] did not receive your chat" (in red letters), that means that they are really offline.
  5. Don't make too much out of this. Snooping around trying to figure out if someone's hiding from you doesn't really reflect well on your ability to respect their boundaries and wish for privacy. Only do it for fun. Respect the fact that people like to work quietly without evidence of their online status being obvious all the time. Avoid turning it into anything that it probably isn't!

Tips

  • Don't do this all the time. People will soon realize how sneaky you are because they will receive your chat if they are invisible.

Warnings

  • This also doesn't account for the fact that some people leave their Gmail account open even when they are away from their computer. The person may actually go invisible because they aren't available to chat and then physically leave their computer.
  • Just because they are invisible doesn't mean they don't want to talk to you. However, if you were in the middle of a conversation, they probably are trying to avoid you. Don't push them if you are in the middle of a conversation when they go offline!

Things You'll Need

  • Gmail account

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