How to use IRC

[MetalJack98]

Hi guys! Today I'm gonna teach you how to use IRC. 

What is IRC?

If you don't know what IRC is, it stands for Internet Relay Chat, and it was invented in 1988 by a finish university student and was really popular back in the 90's-early 2000's. To this day, people still host IRC servers, and clients have been developed so much that it's become a very secure and anonymous chat protocol. You might be wondering, "Why would I ever in my life use this?" Because IRC can be used on anything and is by far one of THE most efficient and secure instant messaging services to exist. Some of you might be using an app called Signal because of it's end to end encryption, but with IRC you can also get really secure connections, and you can make it as secure as you want depending on what it is. All you have to do is download a client, and connect to a server. You can even connect through a VPN, Proxy, or through TOR.

How do I use IRC?

Ok so first you need an IRC client. If you're on mobile I recommend IRCcloud, and if you're on PC I recommend HexChat. You can also use a client on your web browser such as the one offered on Libera.Chat and others.

Libera also offers guides on how to connect to their server in their FAQ, as well as how IRC works.

STEP 1:
Install a client

STEP 2:

Connect to a server of your choice. I'll be using Libera as an example.

STEP 3 (optional):
Authenticate with NickServ or other services (I'll explain more on that in a minute.)

Is this safe to use?

Ok so I wanna address the safety of this, it is VERY safe*.
*If you make it that way.

I wanna make it clear that if you join a channel, your IP can be exposed to people in it, but you can do things to hide your IP. The reason why I bring up Libera so much is because they have a service called NickServ which hides your IP. If you wanted to use other servers however, you can use IRC bouncers like IRCcloud or ZNC which sorta acts like a proxy and connects to a server for you so it doesn't reveal your real IP.

I hope this helps. If you have any questions, refer to Libera's FAQ on how to use IRC, check out my IRC projects on my website, or ask in the replies or on my message board service NetNerdz.

Have fun folks!

[frenchfry]

I love IRC

[Patachoo]

I honestly didn't know about IRC term until today, that's interesting

[lakes]

I wanna make it clear that if you join a channel, your IP can be exposed to people in it, but you can do things to hide your IP. The reason why I bring up Libera so much is because they have a service called NickServ which hides your IP. If you wanted to use other servers however, you can use IRC bouncers like IRCcloud or ZNC which sorta acts like a proxy and connects to a server for you so it doesn't reveal your real IP.

Question: Do should I still use NickServ if I have a VPN on?

[Daniele63]

I wanna make it clear that if you join a channel, your IP can be exposed to people in it, but you can do things to hide your IP. The reason why I bring up Libera so much is because they have a service called NickServ which hides your IP. If you wanted to use other servers however, you can use IRC bouncers like IRCcloud or ZNC which sorta acts like a proxy and connects to a server for you so it doesn't reveal your real IP.Question: Do should I still use NickServ if I have a VPN on?

We just set it to registered people only (to prevent guests with exposed IP's) so yeah you may still need to use it to access our chat.

[lakes]

Question: Do should I still use NickServ if I have a VPN on?We just set it to registered people only (to prevent guests with exposed IP's) so yeah you may still need to use it to access our chat.

Ok how do I register and stay logged into NickServ? May I ask?

[Daniele63]

We just set it to registered people only (to prevent guests with exposed IP's) so yeah you may still need to use it to access our chat.Ok how do I register and stay logged into NickServ? May I ask?

First you need to connect to the libera.chat channel on either an standalone or a web IRC client.

irc.libera.chat

port: 6697

Then type those commands:

Choose your name:

/nick YourNick

Register:

/msg NickServ REGISTER YourPassword youremail@example.com

You will then have to look at your emails to verify your account.

Then login like this:

/msg NickServ IDENTIFY YourNick YourPassword

Then you can go to the channel called #frutiger-aero-archive.

All that info can be found here.