Frequently Asked Questions

SchildiChat Next for Android

What are the differences compared to Element X Android?

I'm maintaining a list here, but note that this may not be complete and partly outdated.

How do I set up UnifiedPush?

Follow the guide at unifiedpush.org to set up UnifiedPush. Once you have that working, SchildiChat should pick it up automatically. To test whether the your push distributor was successfully picked up, let someone send you a message which triggers a notification, then check Settings/Turtle Tweaks/Push Info.

If you want to use ntfy, and don't want to self-host a server yourself, feel free to use ntfy.schildi.chat.

Why is UnifiedPush not working?

Here are some common reasons for UnifiedPush not working:

For debugging UnifidedPush setups, first try to get the "UP-Example" application to work, which you can get on F-Droid. You may also get help at #unifiedpush:matrix.org.

Is there any way to find (and join) public rooms?

No, this has not been implemented in Element X yet, and will not be added to SchildiChat Next before Element X adds it.

Where to report bugs and request features?

Feel free to support existing issues, or file new issue on GitHub.
In case you experience bugs that require logs to debug, such as app crashes or other bugs not commonly reproducable, send a bug report from the app's settings ("Report a problem") and make sure to have the logs option enabled. Also make sure to always provide a concise description of what your issue is and what you did in order to observe it.

What does the name mean?

Schildi = Schildkröte = German for turtle. So "Turtle"-Chat. Feel free to call it Shieldy-Chat (shield for security?), if that's easier to pronounce for you.

What does the icon depict?

A turtle with a post horn.

What is the goal of this Element fork?

We mainly focus on tweaking the UI to our likings and usually do not want to go deep into architectural changes to reduce merge conflicts with upstream.
Sometimes, we like to play with additional community-based features that Element does not prioritize, which means we might support a few more MSCs than Element do.
It may also happen more often than expected that we include additional bug fixes compared to Element, if the Element team misses some bugs which become apparent in our internal testing. Of course, this does not imply that SchildiChat has less bugs, since we're not safe from introducing new ones either.

To summarize, the main goal of the SchildiChat clients is as following: we want to take a Matrix client that is good, and tweak it just to match our taste, since Element's design team has a different taste than we have, and our priorities do not always align with those upstream.
We are not trying to please any particular kind of target user group, except those who share our taste :)

What version of Element is SchildiChat based on?

When you have a look at the SchildiChat version, the part before "sc" is the upstream Element version that your current SchildiChat build is based on.

What is this "upstream" that people keep mentioning in issues/chats/...?

Since SchildiChat is a fork of Element, "upstream" refers to "Element".

How can I help to translate SchildiChat?

You can translate SchildiChat-specific text at translate.schildi.chat! For Element-specific translations, visit their weblate and localazy websites, and we will get it for our next upstream merge.

How can I donate you something?

Thanks for asking! However, we currently do not accept donation. Our goal is not to make money with this project, but just create a chat client that we enjoy using. As a result, we also do not feel any obligations to satisfy user expecations or wishes - this is a hobby project, after all. Feel free to donate to a charity of your choice instead, or to matrix.org directly for maintaining the matrix specification.

How to get in touch?

Matrix is a chat network, and so you can use it to get in touch with the SchildiChat community! Feel free to join any of the following:

How to get notified of updates?

We have announcement rooms that you can join: