script to programmatically change your gchat status. Can take input via positional arguments and standard in.

gstatus.py

#!/usr/bin/env python
"""
gstatus.py,
 21 December 2012
 dent earl, dent.earl (a) gmail com
 a script to programmatically change your gchat status.
 based in large part on a script from CyberShadow:
     http://blog.thecybershadow.net/2010/05/08/setting-shared-google-talk-gmail-status-programmatically/
"""
from argparse import ArgumentParser
import libAuth
import sys
import warnings
warnings.filterwarnings("ignore") # silence DeprecationWarning messages
from xmpp import *

def initArgs(parser):
    parser.add_argument('status', help=('the status message you wish to set. specify - to use '
                                        'the last line of stdin'))
    parser.add_argument('--show', dest='show', default='default', type=str,
                        help='must be either default or dnd. default=%(default)s')
def checkArgs(args, parser):
    if args.show not in ['default', 'dnd']:
        parser.error('Unrecognized selection for --show. Must be either default or dnd.')
def setStatus(args):
    status = args.status
    if status == '-':
        for line in sys.stdin:
            line = line.strip()
            status = line # we just take the last line of stdin
    cl=Client(server='gmail.com', debug=[])
    if not cl.connect(server=('talk.google.com', 5222)):
        raise IOError('Can not connect to server.')
    if not cl.auth(libAuth.USERNAME, libAuth.PASSWORD, 'gmail.com'):
        raise IOError('Can not auth with server.')
    cl.send(Iq('set', 'google:shared-status', payload=[
                Node('show', payload=[args.show]),
                Node('status', payload=[status])
                ]))
    cl.disconnect()
def main():
    parser = ArgumentParser()
    initArgs(parser)
    args = parser.parse_args()
    checkArgs(args, parser)
    setStatus(args)

if __name__ == '__main__':
    main()

libAuth.py

# this file should be in the same directory as gstatus.py
# it should also be made to be read only for the owner, i.e. on linux
# run `chmod go-rwx libAuth.py' 
USERNAME = 'user' # don't include @gmail.com
PASSWORD = 'a password' # you should think about using google's application specific passwords for this!