FlashChat⚡

A lightning-fast, ephemeral chat application where conversations vanish when you leave

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✨ Features

• ⚡ Instant Access – No registration or login required
• 🏠 Room-Based Chat – Create or join any room with just a name
• 👻 Ephemeral Messages – All messages disappear when you leave the room
• 🔒 Unique Usernames – Username validation prevents impersonation within rooms
• 🔄 Real-time Messaging – Powered by Socket.IO for instant communication
• 👥 Live User List – See who's currently in your room
• ⏰ Message Timestamps – Know exactly when messages were sent
• 📱 Responsive Design – Works seamlessly across all devices
• 🎨 Modern UI – Clean, intuitive WhatsApp-inspired interface
• 🚪 Join/Leave Notifications – System alerts when users enter or exit
• 🔄 Auto-Reconnect – Seamless reconnection on network interruptions

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🔑 Login Page

💬 Chat Interface

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🚀 Live Demo

🖥️ Frontend (Vercel): https://flash-chat-henna.vercel.app/

🌐 Backend (Render): https://flashchat-lhed.onrender.com

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💡 The FlashChat Concept

FlashChat is built around the philosophy of truly temporary communication:

• No Accounts – Just pick a username and room name
• No History – Messages exist only while you're in the room
• No Persistence – Leave the room, lose the conversation
• Maximum Privacy – Nothing is stored permanently
• Instant Connection – Start chatting in seconds

Perfect for:

• Quick team discussions
• Temporary project coordination
• Private conversations that shouldn't leave traces
• Anonymous group chats
• Brainstorming sessions

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🛠️ Tech Stack

• Frontend: HTML5, CSS3, JavaScript (ES6)
• Backend: Node.js, Express.js, Socket.IO
• Real-time Communication: WebSocket connections
• Deployment: Vercel (Frontend), Render (Backend)
• Version Control: Git & GitHub

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🔐 Security Features

• Username Uniqueness – Prevents impersonation within rooms
• Input Validation – Sanitized usernames and messages
• Session Verification – Server validates all user actions
• Connection Authentication – Messages tied to socket connections
• XSS Protection – HTML escaping for all user content

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📁 Project Structure

FlashChat/
├── public/              # Root folder
│   ├── index.html       # Main HTML structure
│   ├── FlashChat.css     # Styling and animations
│   └── FlashChat.js      # Client-side JavaScript with validation
├── server/              # Backend files
│   └── server.js        # Express server with Socket.IO and security
├── assets/              
│   ├── login-page.png
│   ├── chat-interface.png
├── package.json         # Project dependencies and scripts
├── vercel.json          # Vercel deployment configuration
└── README.md            # Documentation

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⚙️ Getting Started (Local Development)

1. Clone the repository

   git clone https://github.com/the-vishh/FlashChat.git
   cd FlashChat

2. Install dependencies

   npm install

3. Run the development server

   npm start

4. Open your browser at http://localhost:3000

5. Start chatting!

   • Enter any username
   • Join or create a room
   • Start your ephemeral conversation

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🌍 Environment URLs

Service	Environment	URL
Backend	Production	https://flashchat-lhed.onrender.com
Frontend	Production	https://flash-chat-henna.vercel.app/
Local	Development	http://localhost:3000

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🚀 Deployment

Frontend (Vercel)

# Deploy to Vercel
vercel --prod

Backend (Render)

• Connected to GitHub for automatic deployments
• Environment: Node.js
• Build Command: npm install
• Start Command: node server/server.js

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🤝 Contributing

We welcome contributions! Here's how to get started:

1. Fork the project
2. Create a feature branch

   git checkout -b feature/amazing-feature

3. Make your changes
4. Test thoroughly

   npm start
   # Test in multiple browsers/devices

5. Commit your changes

   git commit -m "Add amazing feature: brief description"

6. Push and create a pull request

🐛 Bug Reports

• Use GitHub Issues
• Include steps to reproduce
• Mention browser/device details

💡 Feature Requests

• Check existing issues first
• Explain the use case
• Consider the ephemeral philosophy

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📊 API Endpoints

WebSocket Events

Client → Server:

• join-room - Join a chat room
• chat-message - Send a message
• leave-room - Leave current room

Server → Client:

• join-success - Room join confirmed
• username-taken - Username conflict error
• user-joined - Someone joined the room
• user-left - Someone left the room
• new-message - New message received

REST API

• GET / - Serve main application
• GET /api/stats - Get server statistics (optional)

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🔧 Configuration

Environment Variables

PORT=3000                    # Server port (default: 3000)
NODE_ENV=production          # Environment mode

Client Configuration

Update the Socket.IO connection URL in FlashChat.js:

const socket = io("your-backend-url-here");

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📄 License

This project is licensed under the MIT License. See the LICENSE file for details.

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👨‍💻 Author

Built with ❤️ by @the-vishh

FlashChat - Where conversations are as temporary as lightning ⚡

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⭐️ Show Your Support

If you find FlashChat useful, please consider:

• ⭐ Starring this repository
• 🍴 Forking for your own projects
• 🐛 Reporting bugs or suggesting features
• 💬 Sharing with others who need ephemeral chat

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📝 Quick Deploy Commands:

git add .
git commit -m "Update to FlashChat with enhanced security and ephemeral messaging"
git push origin main

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