Here you can find the answers to most of the common questions concerning IRC.
IRC stands for " Internet Relay Chat". It was originally written by Jarkko Oikarinen in 1988. Since starting in Finland, it has been used in over 60 countries around the world. It was designed as a replacement for the " talk" program but has become much, much more than that. IRC is a multi-user chat system, where people meet on Channels (rooms, virtual places, usually with a certain topic of conversation) to talk in groups, or privately. There is no restriction to the number of people that can participate in a given discussion, or the number of channels that can be formed on IRC.
As a user you run a Client program which connects to a Server in an IRC network. All servers are interconnected and pass messages from user to user over the IRC network. One server can be connected to several other servers and up to hundreds of clients. Several larger and smaller IRC networks exist. The largest one, called EFnet (Eris Free net), usually serves over 15000 users at any given moment. Smaller ones, like Undernet (4000) and Dalnet (1000), are a lot less populated but often offer more stability and convenience.
An IRC client reads in the commands and text that you supply to it, and parses them. It filters them and performs the appropriate actions, and if necessary, passes them on to your IRC server. An IRC server can serve many other clients. The server holds information about the channels and people on IRC, as well as other pieces of information, and is also responsible for routing your messages to other users. The IRC Network itself consists of multiple servers which are all connect
First, you have to make sure an IRC Client is installed on your system. If you do not have one you should ask your local system admin to install a client on your PC or local area network. If you have a stand-alone PC with internet acces you have to obtain and install a client yourself. (dont worry ..its easy!)
Most programs on the internet are transported in a compressed form. You first have to unzip the file to be able to run the program in it. A good unzipper can be found at the Winzip Homepage at http://www.winzip.com/. Once unzipped, installing an IRC client (like any program) is mainly a matter of running its setup program or simply placing the files in a separate directory and running the program. After installation, you may have to specify some personal information before you can connect to an IRC server. For detailed instructions read the help files included in the programs (typically a .hlp file or readme.txt). Some IRC clients, like mIRC, have their own FAQ that provides detailed help. Reading such FAQ's is highly recommended!
The first time you run your IRC client program you have to fill in some information about yourself, such as, your Internet address and the IRC server with which you want to connect. Your client may also have a section for you to specify the Port, Password, Real name, Email address, Nickname(s), IP address and Local Host name. These options are usually found under File/Setup/.
It's usually best to try and connect to a geographically close server, even though that may not always be the best. You can always ask for suggestions when you log on to IRC. Reference to an extensive list of servers is provided at the end of this file.
In general, the port number to use is 6667. Some, but not all, servers listen to other ports (most commonly in the 6665-6670 range). When in doubt, select port 6667. A port number should be seen as an entrance to a server. If you take the wrong entrance (port) the server will not understand what you are doing, and will disconnect you.
Normally you do not need a password to use an IRC server. Most servers allow anonymous access. If you do not have a password for an IRC server then leave the password entry field blank. If you are prompted for a login or password and you dont know what to type, try to connect to another server.
Assuming you have an E-mail account somewhere you should fill in the address you can be reached at by mail. In case you do not have an E-mail address you can just fill in your name.
On IRC you are known to others by a nickname. You are free to choose any nickname you like. Some IRC chat networks place a limit on the length of a nickname. Do not use spaces and avoid unusual ASCII characters in your nickname. It is very common to find people that use the same nickname and you may be asked or choose to switch nicknames to avoid confusion. IRC networks such as CoolChat allow you to register your nickname. Check the CoolChat web page for more information on this.
Your IP Address is the address your PC uses on the Internet. It is usually a set of 4 numbers or its equivalent IP Name. Some providers offer you a unique IP Address (static IP) or they assign a different one every time you connect (dynamic IP) to them. With Dynamic IP addresses you have to make sure your client automatically looks up your current IP Address and your Local Host name each time you connect to IRC.
The Local Host name is the name you or your provider assigned to your PC. It can be a single word or a name equivalent to your IP Address.
First of all, always try some other IRC Servers when you are unable to access your favorite one. The server, its machine or the route to the server may just be down or broken. When using a new server name you should make sure a server with the specified name actually exists. The server name you specified could be wrong. If the server exists, you can then try the numeric address of the server rather than its symbolic one (e.g 131.174.124.9 for irc.sci.kun.nl). This will solve problems if your Domain Name Server is down, slow, does not understand the name you gave it or cannot translate it into a numeric address.
A " Not enough user parameters" error will occur if you try to connect to a server but you did not have the Local Host name filled in, or had it filled in incorrectly. Check your entry in your client's setup menu. Also check if you supplied your client with a valid E-Mail address.
This is a server message to you, it has nothing to do with registering or paying for your IRC client. If you receive this message or if you get disconnected very quickly, your Local Host name or IP Address may be wrong, or not filled in at all. Look in your client's setup dialog and check if the Local Host is correct and if the IP Address is filled in correctly. An easy way to solve an incorrect IP Address is to set the 'On connect, always get' " IP Address" and " Local Host" to " ON" and restart your client. If this does not help you could be trying to connect to a NON-public server. Try another server to be sure.
"Ghosts are not allowed on IRC" means that you are banned from using that server. You cannot be completely banned from IRC. Banning exists only on a per-server basis (being banned on one server does not mean you are automatically banned from another). Banning is in one of three forms:
You are banned specifically, you yourself. Only you can be responsible for this (if you are using a shared account or dynamic IP addressing, this obviously does not apply). The responsibility lies completely with you and you have no one to complain to. Your machine is banned. Chances are, you did committed no wrongdoing. Try using another machine on the network if you have one and seeing if you can use that particular irc server. Your whole site is banned (where " site" is a school, company, country or provider). This almost certainly is not your fault. Chances of geting the server-ban lifted are slim. Try using another server.
The most general answer is " use another server", but if it bothers you, try writing to the irc administrator of that site (type /admin servername). Be polite in explaining your case.
Some servers restrict access to local users and might therefore close or not even accept a connection from you. Bad behavior by you or your friends, customers from your provider or an entire country may also be restrcited from using certain servers. In each case, an attempt to connect will result in a response similar to the following:
--- Attempting
to connect (irc.network.net) Local host: cheops (131.69.136.12) Catch22 You
are banned from this server Closing Link: Catch22 [ student.uni.nl ] (K-lined)
---
Disconnected Getting disconnected with the " No authorization" message occurs
due to a similar reason. The server does not give your site access. A server
administrator can choose which sites can connect to his server via " I - lines"
(called invitation lines). Many servers only I-line local sites so you should
try to use a server close to you.
It's probably best to take a look around and see what you want to do first. All IRC commands start with a " /", and most are one word. Typing /help will get you help information. /names will get you a list of all nicknames, /list will give you a list of channels, etc. The output of /list is typically something like this:
#hack 21 We are your worst nightmare !
#Nippon 53 Speak Japanese here please ?
#nicole 3
#hottub 76 Come in for a friendly chat.
#mirc 27 mIRC Homepage http://www-2.nijenrode.nl/software/mirc/
#irchelp 17 Ask all your IRC questions here.
(Note: There are sometimes thousands of channels, this is just a small example.) In this example " hack" is a channel name. " #" is the prefix. Follwing the channel name you will see the number of people on it as well as its topic. All channel names start with a # or &.
A channel is a 'place' on IRC where group conversations occur. People can join the same channel and see each other. Depending on its topic and time of the day a channel can be VERY crowded. Channels can alsobe quite chaotic, or calm. Channels can be open to everyone but also closed and private and only open to friends. On the large IRC Networks (EFnet) as many as 2000 channels can exist, on smaller networks (corporate or even one-node-nets) there will be fewer channels. Channels on IRC are dynamic in the sense that anyone can create a new channel, and a channel disappears when the last person on it leaves. Once connected to an IRC server, type /list to see all existing channels. All channel names start with a # or a &. The # channels are globally available while the & channels are restricted to users on your local IRC server. For this moment you can forget about the & channels. If people speak of 'the IRC' they refer to the use of the globally available channels with names starting with a #. Whenever you want to refer to a channel's name, it should be prefixed with a # or &. You also need to use the name, including the # or &, to join a channel, to leave it, to set its parameters, etc. (see below)
To join a channel, type /join #channelname. Try " /join #irchelp" or " /join #mirc" to give it a try... That's it! Once you get to the channel, you will see people talking. It will probably look like this:
{ TheOracle } Have you ever been to Shoreline Park?
{ Trev } Ya. I go there all the time. Evenings there are really nice!
{ Andrew } Everybody come and look at my web cam!
{ SMG } Space Mountain is so much fun ;)
{ David } They should really play Abba on that ride.
{ Chris } mmmmmm Cynthia Harrisssssssssssss.......
Note that you will often come in during the -middle- of a conversation. Unless you're familiar with the channel you may want to sit and watch it for a minute or two to see what the conversation is about. Often the channel name (for instance, #Twilight_Zone) has nothing to do with what conversation goes on on the channel (#Twilight_Zone does -not- have discussion about the TV show "Twilight Zone"). So if you join #baseball, don't be surprised if you hear about the SuperBowl picks or even the Rock-n-Roll Hall of Fame Museum! To start talking, just type! And when you're done saying what you have to say, just hit the [ return ] key. You can start with something simple like " hello!". You don't have to type hello! because IRC will insert before all of your channel messages. In the channel window that opens once you join a channel you'll see an alphabetical list of people that are on the channel on the right side of the window. Some of them have a @ in front of their name to point out they are the Channel Operators. A Channel Operator is someone who has control over a specific channel. A Channel Operator can also decide if control is shared or not. The first person to join the channel automatically receives Channel Operator status. In the channel's title bar you will see the channel's name and perhaps its topic. If you choose to leave a channel, just type /part #channelname
With most windows IRC clients an extensive help file is included. Dont hesitate to try the /help command.
IMPORTANT NOTE : ALL IRC COMMANDS START WITH A " /".
The forward slash is the default command character. Commands on IRC are not case sensitive, and can be abbreviated to their first letters. Anything that does not begin with " /" is assumed to be a message to someone and will be sent to your current channel, or to a person you are chatting with in a private chat (see below).
HELP shows general help or help on the given command.
LIST lists all current channels.
JOIN to join a channel
PART to leave a channel (same as LEAVE)
QUIT exits your IRC session, (same as BYE and EXIT)
NICK changes your nickname
AWAY leaves a message saying you're away or not paying attention
WHOIS displays information about someone
INVITE sends an invitation to another user
KICK gets rid of someone on a channel
TOPIC changes the topic of the channel
ME sends anything about you to a channel or QUERY
/HELP [ command ] Shows general help or help on the given command.
/LIST [ [ { flags } ] { channel mask } ] Lists all current channels.
In the list you will see all channels (see below), except for those that are secret, with their number of users and the topic. The displayed list may be quite long, so you can limit it using flags. " /LIST -MIN n" for instance removes channels with less than 'n' users from the output.
/JOIN { #channel } Sets your current channel to the supplied channel.
Upon entering a channel, you are given useful details about it: a list of users talking in that channel, channel mode settings and the topic... Joining a channel does not cause you to leave your previous channel and you can normally join as many channels as your connection can handle or that the IRC server allows.
/JOIN #windows --- Now talking in #windows
/PART [ #channel ] Makes you leave a channel. (same as LEAVE)
/PART #windows --- You have left #windows
/QUIT [ reason ] Exits your IRC session. (Also BYE and EXIT.)
If a reason is supplied, it is displayed to other people on your channels.
/QUIT Lunch Time!
/NICK { nickname } Changes your nickname to whatever you like.
Everyone who wants to talk to you sees this name. Nicknames are limited to 9 characters max. If your intended nickname clashes with someone else's as you enter IRC, you will not be able to enter until you change it to something else. Duplicate nicknames are not allowed; this is enforced by the IRC servers. Under some circumstances, two individuals may temporarily have the same nick but once discovered, both of them will be killed; a nick collision kill.
/NICK Guru --- Newbie is now known as Guru
/AWAY [ away message ] Sets your status as away with some info.
Sets a message explaining that you are not currently paying attention to IRC. Whenever someone sends you a MSG or does a WHOIS on you, they automatically see whatever message you have set. Using AWAY with no parameters marks you as no longer being away.
/AWAY Gone to get a cup of coffee. --- You have been marked as being away
/AWAY --- You are no longer marked as being away
/WHOIS { nickname } Shows information about someone.
/WHOIS Guru --- Guru is master@some.network.net (Nuclear free) --- on channels: @#Windows @#Windows95 #mIRC --- on via server irc.server.net (The best server) --- Guru is away (making dinner)
/WHOIS Newbie --- Newbie: No such nickname
/INVITE { nickname } { #channel } Invites another user to a channel you are on.
If you want a friend to join your channel you can invite him. He will see a message such as ---Guru invites you to #channel. This is required if your channel is 'invite only'.
/INVITE Friend #windows --- Inviting Friend to #windows
If you receive an INVITE message, you can type " /JOIN { #channel }"
/KICK { #channel } { nickname } Kicks a user off a given channel.
Well, you guessed it, if there is a way to invite someone on a channel, there is also the ablility to KICK someone out of it. For example , if a person is behaving in an offensive manner by annoying people or flooding the channel with unwanted information, they can be forced out of the channel. Only 'channel operators' are privileged to use this command.
/KICK #windows Lamer --- Lamer has been kicked off channel #windows by Guru
/TOPIC { #channel } { topic for channel } Changes the channel's topic.
Channels have topics, that indicate the current topic of conversation. You can change this topic on a channel with the TOPIC command.
/TOPIC #windows Lets discuss OS/2 --- Guru has changed topic to "Lets discuss OS/2"
/ME { action description } Tells people about what you are doing.
At times, you may want to send a description of what you are doing or how you are feeling or just anything concerning you on the current channel or in a query.
/ME slaps Newbie with a large trout. - Guru slaps newbie with a large trout.
The same goal can be achieved towards a specific nickname or channel using:
/DESCRIBE { nickname|#channel } { action description }
/MSG sends a private message
/QUERY starts a private conversation
/NOTICE sends a private message
/NOTIFY informs you when people logging in or out IRC
/IGNORE removes output from specific people
/MSG { nickname|channel } { text } Sends a (private) message to specified nickname or channel.
Besides chatting on IRC Channels you can also have private conversations or queries with other people on IRC. On most clients these conversations will be handled by separate window. You can use the /MSG command to send someone a message that only that person can read. If somebody else sends you a message or that person replies to your message a query window icon will pop up informing you somebody wants to talk to you personally.
/MSG Kreet This message can be read by you only. -Kreet- This message can be read by you only.
In Kreet's screen an icon will pop up with the message you typed; " This message can be read by you only."
If you cannot wait for a reply for someone to message you to open a private window you can use the query command to force your client to open a private conversation window.
/QUERY { nickname } [ test ] Starts a private conversation with { nickname } and forces a separate window to open.
This command differs from the MSG command only by the fact that it is used to start a private conversation. All text you type that would normally be sent to your chat partner if you used MSG now displays in an immediately opened private window 'to your chat partner' on your screen and is sent to the other person as well.
/NOTICE { nickname|#channel } { text } Sends a private message to the specified { nickname } or { #channel } .
The NOTICE command is just another way to send messages to other people. But, unlike MSG's, NOTICEs will never open a separate window 'to' the other person. It should be seen as a sort of whispering. It is recommended that robots or other automatons on IRC use notices (contrary to messages) to send information to people. You should never automatically (as by remote events or commands) send a message or notice in response to a notice sent to you.
/NOTIFY [ nickname|on|off ] Toggles the notify function or adds or removes { nickname } to the notify list.
As you start to meet people on IRC, you will want to add certain nicknames to your notify list such that you will be warned when they sign on or off IRC.
/NOTIFY wug marl --- Added wug to Notify list --- Added marl to Notify list
/NOTIFY --- wug is on IRC --- resi is on IRC --- marl is not on IRC --- kreet is on IRC
/IGNORE [ nickname|user@host ] Ignore all contact from the specified people.
The day will come when you decide not (never?) to see or hear a specific person on your screen. This can be achieved using the ignore command. If people are flooding channels with useless text or they are otherwise harassing you, a wise response is to ignore those person. Ignore can be set to a nickname or by specifying a user@host format. You can use all kind of wildcards.
/IGNORE looser --- Added looser to Ignore list
/IGNORE --- Ignore is ON --- Ignoring: -.-@-.unicomp.net -!-ap@159.148.109.88 -!-fishy@-.interaccess.com looser
/IGNORE looser --- Removed looser from Ignore list
The most widely understood and spoken language on IRC is English. However, as IRC is used in many different countries, English is by no means the only language. If you want to speak some language other than English, (for example with your friends), go to a separate channel and set the topic to indicate that. Similarly, you should check the topic when you join a channel to see if there are any restrictions about language. On a non-restricted channel, please speak a language everybody can understand. If you want to do otherwise, change channels and set the topic accordingly.
It is not necessary to greet everybody on a channel personally. Usually one " Hello!" or equivalent is enough. Also, don't expect everybody to greet you back. On a channel with 20 people that would mean one screenful of hellos. It makes sense not to greet everyone, in order not to be rude to the rest of the channel. If you must say hello to somebody you know, do it with a private message. The same applies to goodbyes. Also note that using your client's facilities to automatically say hello or goodbye to people is extremely poor etiquette. Nobody wants to receive autogreets. They are not only obviously automatic, but while you may think you are being polite, you are actually conveying yourself as insincere. If somebody wants to be autogreeted when they join a channel, they will autogreet themselves. Remember, people on IRC form their opinions about you only by your actions, writings and comments, so think before you type. If you use offensive words, you'll be frowned upon. Do not " dump" (send large amounts of unwanted information) to a channel or user. This is likely to get you kicked off the channel or killed off from IRC. Dumping causes network " burps", causing connections to go down because servers cannot handle the large amount of traffic. Other prohibited actions include:
Harassing another user. Harassment is defined as behavior towards another user with the purpose of annoying them. Annoying a channel with constant beeping. (Therefore most clients cannot beep at all) Any behavior reducing the functionality of IRC as a CHAT medium.
A channel operator (ChanOp or Op) is someone with a " @" by their nickname in a channel's names list, or a " @" before the channel name in a /whois or /uwho output. Channel operators are the 'rulers' of a particluar channel. This means they can kick you out of their channel for any reason. If you don't like this, you complain to them or start your own channel and become a channel operator there yourself. An IRC operator (IRCop) is someone who maintains a server or part of the IRC network. They cannot fix channel problems. They cannot kick someone out of a channel for you. They also cannot /kill (disconnect a user from their IRC server temporarily) someone just because you gave the offender channel operator privileges and said offender kicked -you- off. IRCops have better things to do than interfere in channel affairs.
A Channel is automatically created as soon as the first person joins it. If you join a channel and you find your name as the only one there, you just created that channel. Channels on IRC are dynamic in the sense that anyone can create a new channel, and a channel disappears when the last person leaves it.
The famous channels #hottub, #friendly, #chat and #riskybus are almost always filled with people. #hottub is meant to simulate a hot tub, and #riskybus is a non-stop game. Just join to find out! Besides chat channels there also exist channels specialized towards helping other users. Examples are #windows95, #winsock, #irchelp, #ircnewbies and #mirc.
To get a list of all available channels with their names and topics, type /list. To see only the most active channels type /list -min 20 which will show you channels with 20 or more members. You can also do this for smaller numbers. Even very crowded channels can be silent, so if you join a channel and don't hear much talking, it may be because you joined, but just because the people on that channel are doing other things.
In the past on EFnet, NickServ registered nicknames. On smaller networks some nickname registration still exists (see below). It is important to understand that there are not always enough nicknames to have nickname ownership. If someone takes your nickname while you are not on IRC, you can ask for them to give it back, but you can not -demand- it, nor will IRC Operators /kill for nickname ownership normally. Nickserv is still available on CoolChat.
There are, literally, millions of possible channel names, so if someone is on your usual channel, just go to another. You can /msg them and ask for them to leave, but you can't -force- them to leave.
The answer to this question is the current channel operators, and them alone. Given the dynamic nature of channels, channel operators do not need to have a -reason- to kick you off. They decide what goes on in the channel. Complaining either to IRC Operators or to the system administrators about being kicked or banned from a channel is considered extremely childish, and will not result action. IRC operators do not meddle with channel politics - that's the job of channel operators. Proper IRC netiquette is to keep IRC issues within IRC, because system admins have little time to deal with IRC issues and many would rather shut it down rather than deal with problems arising from it. If you should get banned or kicked from a channel, you are always free to start your own channel and decide what is appropriate content there. Imagine channels as houses. The owner of the house can decide to share ownership with someone else and can decide to prevent any individual from entering his house. In your own house, -you- call the shots. :-) Feel free to Create your own channel, and set up your own rules for it.
Channel operators are the owner(s) of their respective channels. Keep this in mind when giving out channel operator powers. Do not give out channel operator status to -everyone-. This causes the possibility of mass-kicking or otherwise harassing by unknown ops and the channel be left without any channel operators. However, always make sure to give ops to enough people so that all of the channel operators don't unexpectedly diappear and leave the channel without any operators. If no ops have stayed on your channel you have one option. You can ask everyone to leave and rejoin the channel. This is a good way to get channel operator status back. This does not work on large channels or ones with bots, for obvious reasons. On CoolChat ChanServ allows users to register and maintain absolute control over channels as far as who gets channel operator status and how that privelege is governed. Other channel modes are also optionally maintained by this bot, with the only exception of bans.
A " bot" is short for " robot". It is normally a script run from a client or a separate program (in perl, C, and sometimes more obscure languages). Bots are normally not needed on IRC. A bot generally tries to " protect" a channel from takeovers. It is important to know that many IRC servers (especially in the USA) ban ALL bots. Some IRCOps ban domains if you run a bot on their server (See the segment on K: lines). On IRC you will find a lot of people with a love/hate attitude towards bots. Some bots do good work as file- or info-servers. Some will even entertain you with funny or brain teasing games. These bots can be useful and desireable. Contrary to these bots, you will find lots and lots of bots performing useless 'carekeeping' of channels, harassing and boring people and sometimes created with the sole purpose to produce garbage. You can imagine that these bots are disliked by the IRC community. In this context it is good to advise you to -never- -never- ever take bot code, .ini-files or strange commands from someone and run it without exactly understanding what it does. Blind trust is a common mistake among newbies. If you feel you just -have- to run a bot, at least learn the programming. At this moment no Windows based bot programs or script handling clients exist.
On EFnet NickServ was a nickname registration service run in Germany. It was a Bot that told people who used a registered nickname to stop using that nickname. NickServ has been down since the Spring of 1994. It is not likely that NickServ will be back. Remember, nicknames aren't owned on most IRC networks. On the CoolChat IRC network a NickServ is still active. CoolChat's NickServ allows users to register and effectively " own" nicks. This version of the services is considerably more potent than it's EFnet predecessor since it has the capability of killing anyone who claims a nick registered by someone else. Therefore, it is not wise to simply ignore this one :-)
If you use the LIST command the server generates a list of all channels (about 2000 on Efnet) and quickly sends that list to you. But, because the data throughput is finite, the entire output of the LIST command is queued in a buffer on the server. At some point that buffer is overrun, and the server, detecting this ('reached maxsendq'), disconnects you. This mechanism is designed to disconnect people who generate more characters per second than any 'normal' person uses for normal conversations. It is a server protection mechanism, but unfortunately the server does not recognize that the data stream you caused is simply the result of your harmless LIST command, and disconnects you. On most IRC clients you can filter the channels list to show only channels with a minimum and a maximum number of people. You can also specify a text string so that your client will only list channels with that string in their name or topic. However, for the problem described, this does not help at all. The server always sends you the entire channels list and your client takes care of the filtering. So, asking for a partial list to prevent you from disconnecting won't make ANY difference. It is unfortunate, but there is nothing you can do to prevent this from happening. It is just one of the all-too-many IRC oddities. Try using some other server, as many are more forgiving.
In the setup of
your IRC client simply state a fake real name.
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