Running Microsoft Chat in GNU/Linux

Unfortunately, it seems that it is only with techniques currently beyond the domain of this blog that Microsoft Chat may be run in GNU/Linux or other operating systems under Wine, the usual method of running Windows applications in Unix-like operating systems.

It is possible to install Microsoft Chat 2.1, the older version of the program, on GNU/Linux systems via Wine. The result, however, is not functional. The executable can successfully be loaded, but comic pane and speech bubble borders are so thick that they distort the presentation and render the conversation completely unreadable, if it is generated at all:

As Microsoft Chat 2.1 is limited to the default black and white characters (and is unable to display any of the many thousands of user-made AVBs or character files generated in the Microsoft Chat Character Editor, it is considered obsolete by Comic Chat users. Generally speaking, it would not meet the demands of most users attempting to use this software on their own operating system.

While I am able to install the later Microsoft Chat 2.5, I am unable to run the installed executable. Wine-dbg yields the error:

err:seh:setup_exception_record stack overflow 976 bytes in thread 0039 eip 7bc70340 esp 00240f60 stack 0x240000-0x241000-0x340000
Process of pid=0038 has terminated

As I do not have a lot of experience troubleshooting in Wine (truthfully I do not desire to run many Windows applications), my planned efforts will not involve running Microsoft Chat on Linux per se, but emulating or imitating the experience of Comic Chat in a GNU/Linux environment, in such a way that appears functional and compatible with Microsoft Chat from the perspective of all users involved. As I am not a developer, I can only provide hints and some of the steps necessary toward building a native Linux client; I cannot create own myself. Such a project would depend on other interested parties. I will attempt through various means to see how Microsoft Chat works behind the scenes, and I will share that information here. As I gradually learn more information about running Microsoft Chat under Wine, that information will be posted here as well.

In the mean time, you may consider running your own copy of Windows under Linux via virtualization software such as VirtualBox. This is how I currently access Microsoft Chat. Or, if you're interested in intellectual mating with my creative spirit à distance, consider following my project to "port" a mostly cross-compatible "Comics Mode" to Linux.

While Microsoft Chat has finally removed the download from their own website, you can still download it (in multiple languages) from Mermaid Elizabeth's still regularly updated website, where you can also follow links to download characters and backgrounds and find out where Comic Chat users continue to lurk to this day.