TiK Client Setup

This guide explains how to install and configure TiK for Open OSCAR Server.

<img width="400" alt="screenshot of TiK sign-on window" src="https://github.com/user-attachments/assets/30f6b91b-cfe9-4749-a8f6-8f089ff24125">

TiK is an open source instant messenger developed by AOL in the late 1990s. It communicates with AIM servers using TOC, a text-based alternative to the OSCAR protocol.

Installation guides are available for the following operating systems:

Windows
Linux
macOS (Intel & Apple Silicon)

Installation

Windows

Install Tcl/Tk 8.x

Download and install the latest 8.x version of the Magicsplat Tcl/Tk distribution from Sourceforge.

Download TiK

Download mk6i's fork of TiK v0.90, which includes compatibility fixes for modern systems.

Create File Association

The following instructions show how to make .tcl files open with the wish interpreter.

- Extract the downloaded archive in **File Explorer** and open the TiK folder.
- In the file listing, right-click **tik.tcl** → **Open with...**
    - **Windows10**: → Click **More apps** → Click **Look for another app on this PC**.
    - **Windows11**: → Click **Choose an app on your PC**.
- In the **Open with...** dialog, navigate to the following path:
   ```
   %USERPROFILE%\AppData\Local\Apps\Tcl86\bin
   ```
- Select **wish.exe** and click **Open**.
- **Windows11**: Click the **Always** button.

Launch TiK

In the file listing, double-click tik.tcl to launch TiK. A setup window appears.

Set Configuration

Click the Advanced button in the setup prompt. This closes the setup window.

  <img width="400" alt="screenshot of TiK setup prompt" src="https://github.com/user-attachments/assets/5b29075b-8d21-42e8-8806-71009660a628">

Configure TOC Hostname

From the login window, click the Configure button, which brings up the connection config window.

  <img width="400" alt="screenshot of TiK connection config window" src="https://github.com/user-attachments/assets/590b8100-0f7a-45d0-b210-bc63202beb0e">

Enter the hostname and port of the TOC server you want to connect and click OK.

If running your own server, set the values that correspond to TOC_HOST and TOC_PORT in the settings.env config file.

Sign On

Relaunch TiK and sign in!

Linux

Install Tcl/Tk 8.x

Open a terminal and install Tcl/Tk 8.x. The following example works for Ubuntu. Install the analogous packages for your distro of choice.

```shell

apt install tcl tk


2. **Download TiK**

   Download mk6i's [fork of TiK v0.90](https://github.com/mk6i/tik/archive/refs/heads/main.tar.gz), which includes
   compatibility fixes for modern systems.

   In the terminal, extract the downloaded archive and **cd** into the **tik-main** directory.

shell tar xvf /path/to/downloads/tik-main.tar.gz cd /path/to/downloads/tik-main


3. **Launch TiK**

   Enter the following command in the terminal to launch TiK. A setup window appears.

shell ./tik.tcl


4. **Set Configuration**

   Click the **Advanced** button in the setup prompt. This closes the setup window.

   <p align="center">
      <img width="400" alt="screenshot of TiK setup prompt" src="https://github.com/user-attachments/assets/fbae111b-e2ee-4a50-a298-256d22a69422">
   </p>

5. **Configure TOC Hostname**

   From the login window, click the **Configure** button, which brings up the connection config window.

   <p align="center">
      <img width="400" alt="screenshot of TiK connection config window" src="https://github.com/user-attachments/assets/8bd7d6cd-1403-4656-8acc-e36ff8070b61">
   </p>

   Enter the hostname and port of the TOC server you want to connect and click **OK**.

   If running your own server, set the values that correspond to `TOC_HOST` and `TOC_PORT` in the **settings.env**
   config file.

6. **Sign On**

   Now enter your **Screen Name** and **Password** and sign on to AIM!

### macOS (Intel & Apple Silicon)

1. **Install Tcl/Tk 8.x**

   Open a terminal and install Tcl/Tk 8.x using [Homebrew](https://brew.sh/).

    ```shell
   brew install tcl-tk@8

Verify Tcl/Tk Version

By default, macOS includes a Tcl/Tk version that does not support TiK. Verify that version 8.x installed in the previous step is in your PATH. Run the following command in a new terminal:

   echo 'puts $tcl_version' | tclsh

If the reported version is not 8.x, run brew link tcl-tk@8 or brew doctor to fix the installation.

Download TiK

Download mk6i's fork of TiK v0.90, which includes compatibility fixes for modern systems.

In the terminal, extract the downloaded archive and cd into the tik-main directory.

   unzip /path/to/downloads/tik-main.zip
   cd /path/to/downloads/tik-main

Launch TiK

Enter the following command in the terminal to launch TiK. A setup window appears.

   ./tik.tcl

Set Configuration