Reply to IRC Guide for newbies. [Was: Re: A Chat Room]
If you don't have an account, just leave the password field blank.
When it comes to chatrooms, I agree with glenn: you can't beat IRC. Here's a basic guide a friend of mine made a long while ago. I modified bits, you can guess which bits. Any errors between the *** are not by me, as it's mostly a literal copy-paste.
***
This is where you point your IRC client to:
irc.freenode.net, #dinksmallwood
Sometimes, irc://irc.freenode.net/dinksmallwood will also work, depending on your settings.
If you don't have an IRC client (if you're not sure, this means you don't have an IRC client) I personally recommend mIRC:
http://www.mirc.com - after downloading and installing that, clicking those links above should get you somewhere. mIRC is pretty spiffy, except for the troutslap, which some people seem to think is funny. (Hint: It's not.)
Don't be afraid if it says you need to register it after 30 days. Just wait a few seconds, and the continue button will suddenly become available.
Useful commands to type into an mIRC window:
/join #channel (self-explanatory... example usage: "/join #dinksmallwood")
/part #channel optional parting message goes here, or not (leave that channel but stay connected to that server/other channels, example usage: "/part #dinksmallwood I must leave this channel for an inexplicable reason!")
/quit optional parting message goes here, or not (Closes your connection to the entire IRC server and all channels you're in - example usage: "/quit I need to work, so I can buy more coke, so I can chat more.")
/nick ThisIsMyNewUserName (works instantly unless someone else is currently using the name, example usage: "/nick magicman" Spaces are not allowed, nor are most weird characters - but letters and numbers are all good.)
/msg SomeonesNick This is a private message. (It will only be said to SomeonesNick)
/me emotes passive-aggressively (Will look like: *magicman emotes passive-aggressively*)
Freenode only (i.e, these commands are not guaranteed to work on other IRC servers):
/msg nickserv REGISTER password email address ("/msg nickserv register mypassword myemail@email.com ")
This registers your nick. Registering your nick is a GOOD THING and you should DO IT. Registering your nick means that if/when someone else tries to use yours, they get a happy little message in their main window:
Code:
[08:00] -NickServ- This nickname is registered. Please choose a different nickname, or identify via /msg NickServ identify <password>.
You will also get this happy little message - but, you know your password (right?) so you can solve this by, unsurprisingly, typing:
/msg NickServ IDENTIFY password
These are the only two commands you'll really have to use. But if you're curious and want to know more about this stuff:
/msg NickServ HELP
***
If you don't want to bother with downloading a separate client, use mibbit:
http://www.mibbit.com/chat. Choose "Freenode" where it says "IRC:", then enter "#dinksmallwood" where it says "Channel:". Use your forum nick for the nickname (or anything else).
Enjoy chatting.
***
This is where you point your IRC client to:
irc.freenode.net, #dinksmallwood
Sometimes, irc://irc.freenode.net/dinksmallwood will also work, depending on your settings.
If you don't have an IRC client (if you're not sure, this means you don't have an IRC client) I personally recommend mIRC:
http://www.mirc.com - after downloading and installing that, clicking those links above should get you somewhere. mIRC is pretty spiffy, except for the troutslap, which some people seem to think is funny. (Hint: It's not.)
Don't be afraid if it says you need to register it after 30 days. Just wait a few seconds, and the continue button will suddenly become available.
Useful commands to type into an mIRC window:
/join #channel (self-explanatory... example usage: "/join #dinksmallwood")
/part #channel optional parting message goes here, or not (leave that channel but stay connected to that server/other channels, example usage: "/part #dinksmallwood I must leave this channel for an inexplicable reason!")
/quit optional parting message goes here, or not (Closes your connection to the entire IRC server and all channels you're in - example usage: "/quit I need to work, so I can buy more coke, so I can chat more.")
/nick ThisIsMyNewUserName (works instantly unless someone else is currently using the name, example usage: "/nick magicman" Spaces are not allowed, nor are most weird characters - but letters and numbers are all good.)
/msg SomeonesNick This is a private message. (It will only be said to SomeonesNick)
/me emotes passive-aggressively (Will look like: *magicman emotes passive-aggressively*)
Freenode only (i.e, these commands are not guaranteed to work on other IRC servers):
/msg nickserv REGISTER password email address ("/msg nickserv register mypassword myemail@email.com ")
This registers your nick. Registering your nick is a GOOD THING and you should DO IT. Registering your nick means that if/when someone else tries to use yours, they get a happy little message in their main window:
Code:
[08:00] -NickServ- This nickname is registered. Please choose a different nickname, or identify via /msg NickServ identify <password>.
You will also get this happy little message - but, you know your password (right?) so you can solve this by, unsurprisingly, typing:
/msg NickServ IDENTIFY password
These are the only two commands you'll really have to use. But if you're curious and want to know more about this stuff:
/msg NickServ HELP
***
If you don't want to bother with downloading a separate client, use mibbit:
http://www.mibbit.com/chat. Choose "Freenode" where it says "IRC:", then enter "#dinksmallwood" where it says "Channel:". Use your forum nick for the nickname (or anything else).
Enjoy chatting.
