How to Chat?

[Poof]

OK, that's one part. Thank you.

Next question: how do I do the running chat that isn't creating or responding to a forum post? Is there a specific thread or something?

I am not quite clear on what you are asking here, do you mean the chat box?
Click settings up top under your name and scroll down till you see general settings on the left, click that and make sure you have it set to show the chat box feature.