helper: please type /help <insert about anything here> for a very helpful and detailed explanation of that.
user: I DONT WANNA READ, just *&(^%$ TELL me
*sigh* if i had a pb cookie for every time i've seen that. like we're going to pick up the phone and call them? go to their house and explain face to face? and lets not forget:
-help file? oh, i deleted that, i dont read them
-i dont have time to go read/search for something, im lazy. you know it, just tell me
-oh. i knew that, i just forgot i knew. never mind.
-i know you cant do anything about that, but cant you go talk to them for me anyway?
The intro, help file, faq, mIRC's website and assorted links all explain very well what IRC is and what mIRC is. A simple look at all the networks represented in the connect dialog should be a huge clue there are lots of networks. Many ppl simply dont read all those things. Granted, lots of the m's in rtfm are so useless and confusing that ppl dont want to read anything that looks like one, but we're talking human nature here. What more could be done short of a huge screen opening the first time they open mIRC saying in caps "this is software. this is mIRC. We arent IRC etc and you cant close this window until you sit right there and read every dang word" i think ppl really have to work hard at missing that there is a diff between mIRC and IRC
Dont get me wrong, obviously i like helping ppl and there are some ppl who just dont have any idea what that big word HELP up there actually represents. Some are easily overwhelmed by the sheer volume of info presented. Some get more benefit from one on one help.
To reply to your central question: the info on the diff between IRC and mIRC is abundant. How important is it that new users immediately grasp the difference if they refuse to read whats right in front of them? Whats the likelihood that putting the diff in yet another place/way would be read? imo, not very and slim to none.
yes, we often have to explain the diff here when replying. Saying the same things over and over is an unavoidable part of helping. Helping == educating. Explaining the diff between IRC and mIRC within the context of their question is perhaps the best way for some to grasp the concept as it relates to them. Before it effects them, they prolly dont really care there is a diff and it isnt harmful to not know.
