Internet Relay Chat

it’s time to get familiar with the way it works. It is essential to understand the IRC model of networks, servers, channels, and users to chat with individuals and groups alike. IRC is quite often a free-for-all, where unique nicknames are allocated to the first people to ask for them. If you are lucky enough to get the nickname you want, this chapter will show you how to protect this valuable asset and ensure that you can always use it when you reconnect to that particular IRC network.

 If you are totally new to IRC, you may be wondering where to begin. Understand the conceptual model of Internet Relay Chat for a good start.

 Internet Relay Chat was originally implemented so that users of bulletin board systems could chat with one another in real time. It has grown considerably since then, and thousands of networks of servers are now available for public use. The IRC protocol is text based, so programs that connect to IRC servers are easy to write.