<p>Many Jabber/XMPP instant messaging clients provide special processing and presentation of the string "/me " at the beginning of a message body. This specification describes the recommended handling of this "command".</p>
<p>The /me command <note>The string "/me " is usually pronounced "slash-me".</note> is a text string that enables a human user to type an action phrase and have it be presented in a special way within an instant messaging client. The text string is followed by a verb or verb phrase, such as "/me laughs" or "/me is logging off now". This command does not result in the generation of any XMPP protocol. Instead, the command is sent as-is (e.g., <body>/me laughs</body>) and the receiving client performs string-matching on the first four characters of the data included in the &BODY; element to determine if the message begins with the string "/me ". If the client finds a match, the receiving client will show the message with a special presentation. It is RECOMMENDED for the client to show the receiving client's understanding of the sender's user name, nickname, or handle <note>On the difference between user names, nicknames, and handles, see &xep0165; and &xep0172;.</note> followed by the verb phrase in italicized text, prepended by the "*" character.</p>
<p>If the receiving client does not find a match on the string "/me " in the first four characters of the message body, it SHOULD NOT present the text in a special way. For example, the following message bodies do not match:</p>
<section1topic='Integration With XHTML-IM'anchor='xhtml'>
<p>&xep0071; describes a method for lightweight formatting of a message body using a subset of XHTML. For example, the stanza shown above might be formatted in the color green, as follows.</p>
<examplecaption="XMPP Stanza With XHTML-IM"><![CDATA[
<messagefrom='olympians@chat.gods.lit/Atlas'
to='olympians@chat.gods.lit'
type='groupchat'>
<body>/me shrugs in disgust</body>
<htmlxmlns='http://jabber.org/protocol/xhtml-im'>
<bodyxmlns='http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml'>
<pstyle='color:green'>/me shrugs in disgust</p>
</body>
</html>
</message>
]]></example>
<p>The XHTML-formatted version of the message MUST NOT modify the "/me " command string (e.g., in this case to something like "* Atlas shrugs in disgust") because the recipient might have a different user name, nickname, or handle on file for the sender.</p>
<p>This specification describes the /me command in terms of visual presentation. A receiving client that presents messages aurally MAY modify its presentation of /me commands and SHOULD at a minimum transform the string "/me " into the user name, nickname, or handle of the sender.</p>
<p>&xep0045; rooms send XMPP presence stanzas when people leave and join the room, and receiving clients typically show these presence changes as the equivalent of in-room messages, such as the following transformation of a presence stanza of type unavailable:</p>
<examplecaption="Presentation of In-Room Presence Notification">
<p>A sender could attempt to spoof such a leave message by sending an XMPP groupchat message stanza whose body text is "/me has left the room". Although the presentation of presence joins and leaves is determined by the receiving client and therefore such a notification cannot be universally spoofed for all receivers, a client SHOULD differentiate between presence notifications and /me commands (e.g., with different colors and different prepended characters, such as several asterisks for presence notifications and one asterisk for /me commands).</p>
