Ichat receiving pics problem please help. ichat 5.0.3

Question

I can send pictures on ichat but when someone sends me a picture i cant view them it just shows up as a bubble and turns small. whats wrong? how can i fix it? It used to work but now all i get is a square like if the image attemots to load then it turns into a small text bubble which is blank.

Answer 1

Hi,
EDIT.
I saw as I posted this that you have included the Gmail on Jabber tag.
Apple tells us that Jabber user either port 5223 or port 5222 depending if the server needs us to use SSL.  iChat is also supposed to use Port 5220 although I have found no evidence that it does.  (there is some evidence it uses port 1080 which would need to be opened in any router)
Other than that the Info below about ports needing to be opened/allowed or the Mac Firewall to allow iChat still apply as does ther Direct IM info.
I take it this is with an account/Screen name that logs in to the AIM service ?
iChat uses port 5190 on the TCP Protocol to do the Login.
It uses the same Port but switches to the UDP protocol for File Sending and Receiving.
The Pic-in-Chat is essentially a file being sent.
The Chat should have a little grey text message in the centre (left to right) that says the chat has changed to a Direct IM
You can also send files by dropping them directly on to a Buddy in the Buddy list (Even without a chat being Open) Files sent whilst a chat is open will have a link type symbol and you have to agree to Accept. (or your Buddy does).
The Mac Firewall will let out going connections to be made.  It is the incoming ones that it may not allow.
Generally speaking it will allow return stuff if the same port/protocol is being used.
In Tiger in System Preferences > Sharing > Firewall (That's where it was then) the Advanced Button gave you an option to Block UDP traffic)
This does not apply to Leopard or Snow Leopard (even though the Firewall moved to System Preferences > Security).
Your router will also act like a hardware firewall if port above the 1024 threshold are not opened for apps that use them.
If you set Port Forwarding in some routers you had to list an IP (Computer) they were pointed to.
If it is also using DHCP to Issue IP addresses to computers  then you may find the computer has a new IP and the Port Forwarding is no longer pointing to it.
Again, outgoing things tend to be allowed.
UPnP is a simpler Enable/Disable setting if you have it on your router.
As it also works with multiple Computers (Different IPs) it does not matter if your computer changes IP or not.
So...
This issue may appear intermittent depending who is sending the first file and the set up of the Mac Firewall or the router.
Most likely it is a router issue about which port are opened for iChat and on what Protocols if they need to be stated.
As you mention it used to work then Port Forwarding seems to be the most likely cause.
9:22 PM      Saturday; June 25, 2011
Please, if posting Logs, do not post any Log info after the line "Binary Images for iChat"
 G4/1GhzDual MDD (Leopard 10.5.8)
 MacBookPro 2Gb( 10.6.7)
 Mac OS X (10.6.7),
"Limit the Logs to the Bits above Binary Images."  No, Seriously
Message was edited by: Ralph Johns (UK)