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Welcome to The IRC Wiki, a collection of Tutorials and Links all related to the IRC technology.

We have just started out with this Wiki. Make sure you check back, we will have a ton of articles here.

The best way to describe IRC is that it's a big pub. The IRC itself would be the pub. On IRC there are different networks (IRCnet, Efnet, Undernet, Dalnet, etc.), which are then the individual rooms in this pub. In these rooms, there are a lot of tables, which are similar to the IRC channels, in which the individual users are now sitting.

Apart from the virtuality of the IRC, the difference between the pub and IRC is the fact that the first one has to build a table, and the last one who leaves must take the table with him. Channels are therefore dynamic and everyone can open one. Also, the behavior in a channel is to compare with that in a pub. When you sit down at a table (/ join #channel), you greet the people present briefly and follow the conversation. If you have a question, you just ask everyone at the table.

By the way, it is possible to talk to someone at the table personally (/msg).

The Internet Relay Chat (IRC) is a computer program that allows you to talk to thousands of people (simultaneously) via the Internet. This communication takes place in lines of text on the computer screen. The IRC is known by its nickname, and everything you say and do appears under that name. You can choose this nickname yourself, but it must not be longer than 9 characters and at the same time there must be no other person with the same name on the IRC.

IRC is a resource-demanding service that put serious pressure on even high-end servers. Hosting Manual has web hosts listed who do provide IRC hosting.

Since thousands of users posting at the same time can be a bad experience, IRC is divided into channels. These channels are virtual places where you can meet and chat with friends or strangers. Each channel has a freely selectable name, but usually has to start with a double-crossing (#). If someone wants to talk about a specific topic or seek contact, they can simply enter an existing channel or create a new IRC channel. Typical channel names are z. For example: #berlin or #linux. Besides these public channels, there are also private channels. Here you can meet in quiet and secretive ways with friends without stepping into the broad IRC public.

The IRC language is English: the channels are called channels, the nicknames are nicknames and the messages are messages. Nevertheless, the national peculiarities are maintained, and there are many channels in which only the respective national language is spoken.

The IRC program was developed in 1988 by Jarkko Oikarinen, a Finnish student, and was originally intended only as a communication system for his computer mailbox "OuluBox". It then spread via the Internet via Finland, and then the United States of America, becoming a global system.

Choosing a Nickname How does IRC work?