IRC HELP FILE.....

WELCOME TO IRC!

Introduction:
  IRC (internet relay chat) is a method of interactive chatting over the 
internet.Originally, it was designed as a replacement for the 'talk' program, 
but has become much more than that....IRC is a multi-user multi-server chat 
system, where people gather on 'channels' to talk in groups, or privately. 
Channels usually have a topic associated with them. People generally go 
to one or two channels on a regular basis and become 'regulars' there.

How to get started:
  There are two versions of irc installed on orca....one is 'irc' and is a 
newer version ... it takes longer to load but has some additional features.
The other is 'ircii' and is an earlier version .. loads quicker and is 
generally easier to use.
   Choose irc from the menu as presented and everything is taken from
there for you....your 'client' ( the program running to connect YOU to
the net) is loaded up, and you are asked what 'server' you want to connect 
to. See elsewhere for a list of servers. Just press return without typing 
anything in to connect to the default server in France.

Networks:
  There are different networks of servers on IRC. These networks of
servers have their own names too (what a novelty) for example Edunet, Efnet,
Dalnet, Undernet etc... So if you wanted to talk to people on the Efnet
IRC network you would use a server that is part of that network,
irc.mo.net for example is part of the Efnet network. If you wanted to
join Netsoc's new little irc network EduNet you would use orca.ucd.ie as
the server. These networks are mutually exclusive and once you are on one
of their servers you cannot communicate with one of the other networks.
So if you're on Dalnet you can't see the people on Efnet. I think Efnet
is the largest at the moment but Dalnet and Undernet are getting bigger
all the time. You could try just connecting to orca's IRC server 
(just enter "orca.ucd.ie" when prompted for a server name) as a replacement 
for ytalk and talk to all your friends that way. Note however that Orca is 
not connected to any other IRC servers at the moment.

Some Basic Commands:

/join #<channel name> .....joins a channel (surprisingly enough)

/leave #<channel> ...... leaves a channel 
Note: you can be on several channels simultaneously, and typing /leave
with no channel specified leaves the one you are currently talking to.

/server <server name> ... change server
Note: without the server name /server just tells you what your current
server is.

/nick <blah> ... changes your nickname to <blah>

/ping <nick> ... sends a ping to the specified nick .. this is used to see
how long it takes a person to receive a message you typed...try it out.

/me <blah> .... makes your nick appear on the screen followed by <blah>
for example..... /me goes to the shops would appear as 'Dave goes to the
shops'....again, try it out.

/who <nick> ... gives you a little bit of info about <nick> 
note: '/who *' gives a list of all the people on your current channel.

/whois <nick> ... gives you info on nick..even if they're not on your
channel. Warning: /whois * gets you kicked off a server for 
server-flood....just don't do it!!!

/load <blah> ... loads an irc script called <blah>

/msg <nick> <message_text> ... sends a personal message to <nick> containing
<message_text>, Note: ONLY <nick> reads this message, it does not appear on
anyone elses screen...

/notify <nick> ... puts a message on your screen whenever a person using 
the nickname <nick> signs on...

/list ... provides you with a list of all the channels that you can join
NOTE: the list appears on your screen and scrolls past quickly...there's
nothing (as far as I know) that you can do about this..so just watch out
for it. (I suppose hitting Scroll Lock could be used)

Scripts:
  Scripts are like programs written for use with IRC. They make the user-
interface, much more palatable, and life in general a whole pile easier.
Some scripts are kept on orca in /usr/local/lib/ircscripts.
IF you have any scripts you would like to see put up for general use,
mail ops@orca.ucd.ie and we'll look into it.
  This is the list of the scripts currently in /usr/local/lib/ircscripts

phoenix.hack - a cool hack of phoenix, my personal fave.
phoenix.hlp  - help file for the above phoenix script.
phoenix.irc  - latest version of phoenix...version 2.25
annoy.irc    - a pile of annoying things...can be fun if used in moderation.
antikill.irc - a useful sentry that stops you being killed by the server.
extras.irc   - a few useful little utilities....have a look yourself.
pkicks.irc   - loads of fun ways to kick someone off a channel...
                will only work if you're a channel operator.
sping.irc    - works like /ping (detailed below), except that it pings a
                server rather than a nickname.
 
.ircrc:
  Like many unix applications, the user configuration is kept in a file 
called .<blah>rc where <blah> is the application in question.
IRC is the same...all the user configuration is kept in a file called
.ircrc - any of the above commands that you want executed every time you
start irc, are put in .ircrc .
Below is an example .ircrc file -

 
/SERVER irc.univ-lyon1.fr stork.doc.ic.ac.uk irc.funet.fi
/notify daveor, kevinf, niallm
/load /usr/local/lib/ircscripts/phoenix.hack
/load /usr/local/lib/ircscripts/phoenix.hlp
/load /usr/local/lib/ircscripts/extras.irc
/load /usr/local/lib/ircscripts/annoy.irc
/load /usr/local/lib/ircscripts/antikill.irc
