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IRC is the most commonly used method of real-time communication
on the Internet. It was around before ICQ was a gleam in somebody's
eye. Admittedly it is somewhat difficult to manage from a user standpoint.
This is primarily because IRC was developed way back in the early
days of the Internet and programmers didn't have a real common set
of commands established so they sort of designed it in pieces as
they went along. One advantage of IRC's age is that it has become
stable and secure.
There are no really hard
and fast rules when it comes to IRC but over the years some things
have emerged as being annoyances and certain behavior is not taken
very well.
DON'T TYPE WITH YOUR CAPS LOCK ON
Don't ask to be an operator in a channel, if you are consistently
present helping others you will be asked.
Flooding (repeatedly entering the same text line over and over)
will most probably get you kicked out of a room if done enough times.
Some channels have automatic kicks on floods.
Other things about IRC chatting
have emerged that are either commonly used terms or mannerisms that
might be a bit foreign to you.
Most people type in all lower case letters, even at the beginning
of sentences, on proper nouns, etc. It's just easier over time.
Shortcuts have become easier to type too, like tho, cud, wut, howz
- it doesn't necessarily mean the other person is illiterate.
Don't be too impatient. Many people (like me) will type something
in a chat window and go to another application to do something.
You can type a reply and sometimes sit there for awhile waiting
for a reply to your reply. It's not that you're being ignored. It's
just the nature of chat. Some people sit on the channel and type
away without leaving to do other tasks. The beauty of chat is just
that, you can multitask and go back and forth. If you need to leave,
no problem. Type a simple bye bye and drop the connection. The other
person will see what you typed when they come back.
afk
= away from keyboard
lol
= laughing out loud
rotfl
= rolling on the floor laughing
rotflmfao
= rolling on the floor laughing my f***** ass off
brb
= be right back
l8r
= later
cul
= see you later
:)
= a smile (smiley), gotta look at it sideways
;)
= a wink
:(
= denotes sadness
nick
= user name (nickname)
op, ircop
= channel operator - a person with the ability to manage a channel
by removing intolerable people or answering questions - in a perfect
world ops are there to help you
kick, k-lined
= kicked out of a channel
banned
= being temporarily or permanently banned from entering a server
or channel
admin
= the person who owns the server, or one of his/her representatives
(you can find out if there are any admins anywhere currently on
the server by using the /admin
command.) If you have a problem with an op, this is the person to
contact.
dcc
= direct client to client - opening up a private chat with another
party
address mask
= This isn't really a term used in conversation but it is an IRC
term. It stands for the unique username, IP address and host information
that is tied to your Internet connection. It is used to verify your
identity to NickServ and used to identify people who have been put
on a ban list. For example, if you ban the nick Fred,
what will stop that person from logging in as Joe?
Nothing. If you ban the address mask it doesn't matter how many
times that person logs into their AOL account (or any other ISP
or any permanent connection), they will still be unable to join
the IRC server.
voice
= somebody with usually helpful information but isn't a channel
op
You can identify a voiced user by a + sign in their nick in the
nick list.
NickServ is a service available to reserve your nickname and password
protect it. NickServ is not always available on large networks because
people constantly battle for control of a nick. I use it on my IRC
server because I don't have that much traffic.
In order to do just about anything on an IRC server
where there are restrictions, automatic user modes or invitations
involved, you have to be registered with NickServ. I recommend that
everyone register. There's no personal information necessary.
For more information type /ns
help register on a command line. For a convenient web interface
to NickServ, check out the Helpful Interfaces
section. If you are using Java chat there is a NickServ panel available
under the commands drop-down
list.
One more thing.
To be on the safe side your reserved nick is protected with a password.
In order to tell the server you are who you are, you need to submit
your password to it whenever you log into the server. The easiest
way is to send a message to NickServ identifying yourself. You will
usually want to do this before you start joining channels although
you can do it anytime. The only problem is that if you are going
to join a restricted channel you have to be identified first because
restricted channels have a list of users allowed in and just because
you entered the server with a nick that's on the list you still
haven't submitted your password yet.
The format is:
/ns identify password
where password is
the password you used to register the nick.
NickServ and ChanServ are always talking with each
other keeping things running securely. NickServ handles the nick
registrations and ChanServ enforces the policies associated with
a particular channel.
Channel Services is what manages who has control over what channels.
Generally if you create a channel (join a channel that doesn't exist)
you have control over it. If ChanServ is available on a server you
can reserve the channel name just like you use NickServ to reserve
a nick. ChanServ isn't always available on all IRC servers for the
same reason NickServ isn't always available. ChanServ also reserves
system-wide channels for the administrator so they are always available
and can't be "taken over" by some idiot with too much
time on their hands.
I have rooms restricted so that only ops can create a room. If you
need one, tell an op and they'll set it up for you. If you want
a permanent one, catch me on channel somewhere.
Operators (ops for short) are primarily in a channel to keep things
running smoothly, answer questions, be helpful - that sort of thing.
Over the years operators have become a bit troublesome. Ops can
kick people out of a channel, assign other operators, pretty much
anything they want to do limited only by the privileges given by
the administrator (admin). Some ops have a tendency to let things
go to their heads and become little Caesars. I don't like that.
To me an op is somebody a newbie can turn to for help.
Somebody with lots of patience and compassion. I only assign ops
once I get a feel for somebody's personality. I like liberal-minded
people who lend a helping hand. I feel kicking somebody out of a
channel is a last resort - to me banning is permanent because if
somebody causes enough problems to be banned once, they'll do it
again. If you would like to be an op, don't worry, somebody will
notice you. Almost everywhere you look on the Internet regarding
rules of conduct the second rule is to not ask if you can be an
operator. They even have a term for it: BegOps
You can tell who's an op in a channel by the @ sign
next to their nick in the nick list. Don't ever hesitate to ask
an op for help on my server. Initiate a private chat with them if
you are too embarrassed to talk on channel. IRC should be fun, I
want it to stay that way. If an op does exhibit unprofessional behavior
be sure to let me know. I'll keep your communication confidential.
If I'm ever on channel and you need a hand don't hesitate
to give me a ring. My nick is Barefoot. You can usually find where
I am by using the /whois Barefoot
command. If I am there it will list what rooms I'm in. If you can't
get to any of the rooms for some reason send me a /msg
(see commands below).
Note: If my nick has been changed to BarefootAFK that
means I am away from my keyboard and you can leave a message in
my answering machine - use
/ctcp barefootafk page message
to send a message to my answering
machine. At this time the Java client does not support ctcp but
most all irc client programs do (see this section
for other client program available).
Bots, or Channel Robots, are server-generated meta-users who sit
in a channel to keep things running smoothly like an op during times
when the channel has no human participants. On my server you will
see them listed as @ChanBot
(the @ sign denotes that they are indeed a channel operator). You
can talk to them but they won't usually talk back. Operators use
them for certain tasks but don't try sending anything to them unless
you know what you're doing. If one of my bots detects somebody trying
to mess around they will ban the address mask until I can get around
to resetting it. And since I don't normally ban people I may not
even know about it because I never check the ban lists.
The main reason for this explanation is to save you from trying
to hold a conversation with a machine- language subroutine.
All IRC commands start with a slash character /. This is so you
can type commands right in your chat window and they won't be interpreted
as text going out to the channel. Beware though, if you accidentally
forget the slash your command will go out on channel - very embarrassing
when you're sending a password to the system. This is why it's a
good idea to use an interface available in your chat client program
to handle the major commands requiring passwords.
All channels (rooms) on an IRC server are prefixed with the pound
sign #. This is so that when you are setting parameters for certain
actions that could either be a channel or a user it can distinguish
which is which. That is also why user names can't begin with a pound
sign.
Most commands, nicks and channel names are case-insignificant. In
other words Bill, bill and biLL are all treated the same.
/join #channel
To participate in a discussion in the specified #channel
Example: /join #barkdoofle
will either take you to the #barkdoofle
channel or create a new channel named #barkdoofle.
Note that you must use this
command to join a channel that doesn't show up in a channel list
(i.e. a hidden or private channel).
Note also that some IRC client
programs add the # for you. If you get an error, and you know the
channel exists, try removing the prepended # sign. i.e. /join barkdoofle
If you are still having trouble joining a channel it may be restricted
and you haven't identified with NickServ yet. For more information
on identifying yourself see the Services section.
/part
To depart a #channel
/msg user message
To send a private one-line message to user
Example: /msg gomer how are you today?
would send a private message to gomer asking him how he is
/help
/hs
Used to get an idea of the format of help commands from the HelpServ.
/hs help
List the commands there is help available for
/hs help command
List help for command
Example: /hs help join
/ns help register
Ask the NickServ how to register your nick. (Note that is NS,
not HS) All services have
their own help systems. (HelpServ, ChanServ, NickServ, etc.)
/ns identify password
Identify yourself with NickServ using your password
so it knows you are the real owner of the nick. You must register
your nick before you can use this command. The registration of your
nick is a one-time procedure. Identifying yourself is something
you have to do each time you connect to the server. Usually people
have their IRC client program rigged to automatically do this part.
/whois user
Get more information about a particular user's connection or service
status. If a nick comes back with a line saying Fred is very helpful,
then Fred has registered as a helpop, someone who is there specifically
to help you out.
/me action
Sends an action message to a channel. Action messages are simply
messages that have an action tag in front of them. It is usually
used to denote some sort of feeling, emotion - well, action.
Example: /me I'm hungry
would send an action message expressing your need for pizza.
/clear
Clears your chat window of all text.
Most people use an IRC client program. The two most popular are
mIRC and Pirch.
Pirch hasn't been updated in ages but still shines as one of the
most programmable clients for those who like customization. mIRC
is the most popular now because it is being actively developed and
it's real easy to use. If you are considering Pirch I would suggest
installing the add-on package called CatNinja.
Pirch and Ninja together can't be beat for customization but it
can be a bit overwhelming.
Another common method beginning to emerge is Java
chat. The nice part about Java chat is you don't have to install
anything and it's point-and-click. Java chat runs right inside a
web browser and takes a lot of the dirty work out of your hands.
See the Helpful Interfaces section.
Using the various services on an IRC server can be a painful process
due to the various commands needed to truly accomplish the process
properly. Here you'll find access to easy-to-use interfaces that
will make the process less intimidating.
Java Chat
Convenient Java chat interface into the IRC server
Server address:
chat.radio-freedom.co.uk
Server ports:
6667, 6668, 6669
Static channel:
#freedom
There's plenty more. Many commands are specific to a particular
flavor of IRC server but everything above should work anywhere.
Some servers are linked whereby you can join the server at different
points in the world and still chat with others on other servers.
The channels are linked together within the network.
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