Is "Group chat" a new feature?

[zandertrek]

I see a recent topic that seems to suggest that there is a "Group Chat" feature. And I think I saw a "group chat" setting in my new v1.18.

This topic from Jan 2021 is about "Group chat" and mentions "Chat rooms": https://community.nodebb.org/topic/15267/message-history-in-group-chat

Having a "chat room" for a group sounds great. What is the current procedure for making that happen?

[zandertrek]

After messaging NodeBB support directly, here is my current understandings of "group chat" in the realm of NodeBB forums:

Organic group chats can be created at anytime by any users through the chat feature.

Official forum GROUPS can share a group forum private conversation that is exclusive of the other members if the admin sets up a category with permissions specific to that GROUP.

[gotwf]

@zandertrek Not a new feature. Been around for a while. Although less than intuitive to create. I also find many low tech users confused by group chats due to being stuck in the functional fixedness of "private chat". That said, I like 'em.