In the next article we are going to take a look at WeChat. This is one mobile messaging app very popular developed by Tencent in China. This chat will allow us to send text and voice messages, maintain group chat, send files and many other typical of this type of applications.
WeChat is a free service courier. Its initial launch was in 2011 and by 2017 it was one of the largest independent messaging services according to its monthly active users. It has apps for all Windows, Mac, Android, iOS, and Gnu / Linux platforms. Linux version is based on electron and it is available as a snap package for Ubuntu versions. This desktop version will allow us to chat and share files in the same way as in the mobile versions.
As with WhatsApp too has a web version available. WeChat uses the Electron framework to package the WeChat Web. By scanning a QR code we can make use of this application on our Ubuntu desktop.
WeChat features
The application will show us a modern UI and with all the features of the WeChat Web. It will allow users to block the recovery of messages.
With this chat, we can share content on Weibo, Qzone, Facebook, Twitter, Evernote and email. It will also allow us to mention users in a group chat, as well as give us the option to drag and drop to send photos.
This behaves like a native application. It will give us the possibility of using something like the panic key, since if the "Esc" key is pressed, the application windows will be hidden. This can come in handy if you are chatting from a place where you should be doing other things.
The phone must be connected to the internet to use the desktop client. It will also allow us to exchange contacts with nearby users through Bluetooth. It can also be integrated with other social media services like Facebook.
To use WeChat, you must register for an account with your mobile number. This desktop application is an accompaniment to its mobile version. To register, simply download the application for your mobile device, register with your phone number and then confirm your terminal using the verification code that will be sent to you.
You can see the code of this application on its page GitHub.
Install electronic WeChat via snap
The application is available in Snappy store for all Gnu / Linux distributions. For Ubuntu 14.04, Ubuntu 16.04 and higher, you will have to follow the following steps to install it. First we will have to open the terminal (Ctrl + Alt + T) or search for it from the application launcher. When it opens, run the following command to install the daemon snapD y snapd-xdg-open if you don't have them installed yet.
sudo apt install snapd snapd-xdg-open
Next, we can proceed to install the WeChat application through the snap package.
sudo snap install electronic-wechat
Once installed, launch the desktop app from the app launcher and enjoy. When we launch the program, we will have to scan the QR code to be able to use WeChat.
Install WeChat on Linux via GitHub
The second option will be download the necessary files from the gitHub website.
You will have to select the appropriate version and download it. For this example, I am going to download linux-x64.tar.gz for my 64-bit Ubuntu system. To use the package just downloaded, we will open the terminal (Ctrl + Alt + T) and from the directory where we save the file, we will write the following command to unzip it.
tar xvf linux-x64.tar.gz
Once extracted, execute the following command, located in the folder that we have unzipped, to start the application.
./electronic-chat
This will launch the client and ask us scan the QR code with our phone. The method here is the same as above.
This is a pretty good tool for using WeChat on Ubuntu and other Gnu / Linux distributions. If you hate typing on the phone and prefer a keyboard like I do, it will serve your purpose.
Install WeChat via WebCatalog
These two ways to install WeChat in Ubuntu have a problem and it is that translating them from language is complicated. So if you have problems you can resort to installing the client of this chat through WebCatalog, which will perform the installation directly in English.
As with the other facilities, you will also have to scan the QR code in order to use the application.
Uninstall Wechat
If you have installed this chat through the snap package and you decide that you no longer want to use it because you prefer to use the phone, or you simply did not like it. You can uninstall WeChat using the terminal (Ctrl + Alt + T) by typing something like the following into it.
sudo snap remove electronic-wechat