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Add timestamp display option for chatbox/console #4568

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50d6d68
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Xenius97 Nov 22, 2025
d11e7a8
Merge branch 'master' into new/chat_timestamp
Xenius97 Nov 29, 2025
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1 change: 1 addition & 0 deletions Client/core/CClientVariables.cpp
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Original file line number Diff line number Diff line change
Expand Up @@ -323,6 +323,7 @@ void CClientVariables::LoadDefaults()
DEFAULT("chat_text_alignment", Chat::Text::Align::LEFT); // chatbox horizontal text alignment
DEFAULT("server_can_flash_window", true); // allow server to flash the window
DEFAULT("allow_tray_notifications", true); // allow scripts to create tray balloon notifications
DEFAULT("show_time_in_chat", false); // show time prefix in chat messages
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@qaisjp qaisjp Jan 18, 2026

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@SpeedyFolf's feedback is valid:

It'd be nice if chat and console were separate options, I'd like to have timestamp shown in console but not chat, I don't want to clutter chat too much but console is a bigger window

DEFAULT("text_scale", 1.0f); // text scale
DEFAULT("invert_mouse", false); // mouse inverting
DEFAULT("fly_with_mouse", false); // flying with mouse controls
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17 changes: 15 additions & 2 deletions Client/core/CConsole.cpp
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@qaisjp qaisjp Jan 18, 2026

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No need to change Console to support toggling. (mainly because the console is implemented as simply appending raw text to m_pHistory / a CGuiMemo, and I don't want to introduce another copy of the buffer)

Original file line number Diff line number Diff line change
Expand Up @@ -66,8 +66,21 @@ CConsole::~CConsole()

void CConsole::Echo(const char* szText)
{
// Add to add buffer
m_strPendingAdd += szText;
std::string finalMessage = szText;

// Prepend timestamp for console display
if (g_pCore->GetCVars()->GetValue<bool>("show_time_in_chat", true))
{
char szTime[16]; // HH:MM:SS
std::time_t t = std::time(nullptr);
std::tm* tm_info = std::localtime(&t);
std::strftime(szTime, sizeof(szTime), "%H:%M:%S", tm_info);

finalMessage = std::string("[") + szTime + "] " + szText;
}

// Add to console buffer
m_strPendingAdd += finalMessage;
if (!m_strPendingAdd.EndsWith("\n"))
m_strPendingAdd += "\n";

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23 changes: 21 additions & 2 deletions Client/core/CGUI.cpp
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@qaisjp qaisjp Jan 18, 2026

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Toggling the setting should show/hide the time in the chat and the console.

The current implementation conditionally modifies the chat string to include the time.

Instead I suggest you save the timestamp string + message string separately, and include the timestamp string conditionally at render time.

Original file line number Diff line number Diff line change
Expand Up @@ -584,10 +584,29 @@ bool CLocalGUI::IsChatBoxInputEnabled()

void CLocalGUI::EchoChat(const char* szText, bool bColorCoded)
{
if (m_pChat)
if (!m_pChat)
return;

std::string finalMessage;

if (g_pCore->GetCVars()->GetValue<bool>("show_time_in_chat", true))
{
m_pChat->Output(szText, bColorCoded);
// Get current time
char szTime[16];
std::time_t t = std::time(nullptr);
std::tm* tm_info = std::localtime(&t);
std::strftime(szTime, sizeof(szTime), "%H:%M:%S", tm_info);

// Prepend timestamp to the message
finalMessage = std::string("[") + szTime + "] " + szText;
}
else
{
finalMessage = szText;
}

// Output to chat
m_pChat->Output(finalMessage.c_str(), bColorCoded);
}

bool CLocalGUI::IsWebRequestGUIVisible()
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12 changes: 12 additions & 0 deletions Client/core/CSettings.cpp
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Original file line number Diff line number Diff line change
Expand Up @@ -411,6 +411,7 @@ void CSettings::ResetGuiPointers()
m_pChatLineFadeout = NULL;
m_pFlashWindow = NULL;
m_pTrayBalloon = NULL;
m_pChatShowTimestamps = NULL;

m_pLabelBrowserGeneral = NULL;
m_pCheckBoxRemoteBrowser = NULL;
Expand Down Expand Up @@ -3246,6 +3247,11 @@ void CSettings::CreateInterfaceTabGUI()
m_pChatTextBlackOutline->SetPosition(CVector2D(vecTemp.fX, vecTemp.fY + fLineSizeY + fLineGapY));
m_pChatTextBlackOutline->GetPosition(vecTemp);
m_pChatTextBlackOutline->AutoSize(NULL, 20.0f);

m_pChatShowTimestamps = reinterpret_cast<CGUICheckBox*>(pManager->CreateCheckBox(pTabOptions, _("Show timestamps in chat messages")));
m_pChatShowTimestamps->SetPosition(CVector2D(vecTemp.fX, vecTemp.fY + fLineSizeY + fLineGapY));
m_pChatShowTimestamps->GetPosition(vecTemp);
m_pChatShowTimestamps->AutoSize(NULL, 20.0f);
}
}
}
Expand Down Expand Up @@ -4168,6 +4174,8 @@ void CSettings::LoadData()
m_pChatNickCompletion->SetSelected(bVar);
CVARS_GET("chat_text_outline", bVar);
m_pChatTextBlackOutline->SetSelected(bVar);
CVARS_GET("show_time_in_chat", bVar);
m_pChatShowTimestamps->SetSelected(bVar);

{
int iVar;
Expand Down Expand Up @@ -4202,6 +4210,8 @@ void CSettings::LoadData()
m_pFlashWindow->SetSelected(bVar);
CVARS_GET("allow_tray_notifications", bVar);
m_pTrayBalloon->SetSelected(bVar);
CVARS_GET("show_time_in_chat", bVar);
m_pChatShowTimestamps->SetSelected(bVar);

// Browser
CVARS_GET("browser_remote_websites", bVar);
Expand Down Expand Up @@ -4636,6 +4646,7 @@ void CSettings::SaveData()
CVARS_SET("chat_text_outline", m_pChatTextBlackOutline->GetSelected());
CVARS_SET("chat_line_life", GetMilliseconds(m_pChatLineLife));
CVARS_SET("chat_line_fade_out", GetMilliseconds(m_pChatLineFadeout));
CVARS_SET("show_time_in_chat", m_pChatShowTimestamps->GetSelected());

CVARS_SET("chat_position_offset_x", m_pChatOffsetX->GetText());
CVARS_SET("chat_position_offset_y", m_pChatOffsetY->GetText());
Expand All @@ -4658,6 +4669,7 @@ void CSettings::SaveData()
// Interface
CVARS_SET("server_can_flash_window", m_pFlashWindow->GetSelected());
CVARS_SET("allow_tray_notifications", m_pTrayBalloon->GetSelected());
CVARS_SET("show_time_in_chat", m_pChatShowTimestamps->GetSelected());

// Set our new skin last, as it'll destroy all our GUI
pItem = m_pInterfaceSkinSelector->GetSelectedItem();
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1 change: 1 addition & 0 deletions Client/core/CSettings.h
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Expand Up @@ -356,6 +356,7 @@ class CSettings
CGUIEdit* m_pChatLineFadeout;
CGUICheckBox* m_pFlashWindow;
CGUICheckBox* m_pTrayBalloon;
CGUICheckBox* m_pChatShowTimestamps;

CGUILabel* m_pLabelBrowserGeneral;
CGUICheckBox* m_pCheckBoxRemoteBrowser;
Expand Down