A clean, calm chat starts with two things: keeping bots out and letting the community rest. In this update we added both.
Entry verification
Most spam comes from bots that join automatically and immediately start blasting. Now there's a CAPTCHA at the entrance — a simple check for a human and an insurmountable one for a bot: solve a sum, press the right button or pick an emoji.
For a real member it's a couple of seconds, but spam bots are cut off before they manage to write a single word. You get a clean chat without manual cleanup.
Night mode
Sometimes the best moderation is a pause. Night mode automatically closes the chat on a schedule and by weekday: for the night, say, or for weekends. Messages don't pile up while you're away, and in the morning you open the chat to a calm discussion rather than a littered one.
This takes the load off admins and spares members' nerves — no one wakes up to a hundred nighttime notifications.
Takeaway
Verification protects the entrance, night mode sets the rhythm — together they make the chat predictable and pleasant. Less spam, less burnout, more order. Details are in the changelog.