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Posted By: T_S IRC Lessons - 12/03/03 09:38 PM
Im faily new to IRC im just looking for people to post any lessons that theve learned on IRC. One that ive learned so far is that IRC is like a government. Some people have higher status then poeple who are better suited for it.
Feel free to post any guidelines you may have.
Posted By: VinnyD Re: IRC Lessons - 12/03/03 09:54 PM
Irc has chat rooms more commonly called Channels

Each channel has a Founder (controls all the channel options)

SOP's - assigned by the Founder (SOP = Super OP) - the help the founder run the channel and can add AOP's and manage some of the channel options.

AOP's - is a channel helper who can kick and ban people from the channel. Aop's can be added by the Founder or Sop's.

All the channel Op's have an @ in front of thier nickname in the nicklist.

There is also +V or Voiced users. They just appear higher in the nick list. They have a + in front of thier nickname.
In some channels +V people are regular visitors to the channel. A +V person can not access any channel functions.

Then you have the normal visitors.

They are the people who appear at the bottom of the nicklist with only their nicknames.

Posted By: codemastr Re: IRC Lessons - 13/03/03 01:30 AM
No matter what, the ops are always right. Well not right, but what they say goes. You can be kicked and banned from a channel for any reason. But generally the things to avoid are things like:

talking in ALL CAPS
talking LiKe ThIs
or l1k3 t41s
or £ïkë thï§
never flood (sending a lot of messages to the channel one after another)
never repeat (saying the same thing over and over again)
never use tons of color codes or annoying colors (neon green text on a yellow background is especially bad)
Don't swear (the degree in which this is enforced depends on the channel, but it's still usually a good idea to stay away from).

Basically, just use common sense. Anything that would be annoying to you is probably annoying to others, so don't do it smile
Posted By: Watchdog Re: IRC Lessons - 13/03/03 04:16 AM
One that ive learned so far is that IRC is like a government. Some people have higher status then poeple who are better suited for it.

At times, but not always this is true. Basically it is because some people start a channel, think they are God because they have an @ next to their name and they accept this as a sign that they can convert from a real life, decent, hardworking, well-mannered, eloquent, humble, dignified individual into a moron who can kick and ban for any petty little thing they can find, and often be rude to you on your way "out the door". However, IRC isn't really like a government (most anyway) because IRC is not a democracy and never has been. It's quite often a dictatorship of sorts. No-one in high places is voted for, the higher up the ladder you get the more chance there is that you put yourself there and for your own reasons. When that happens, on some networks, usually the small servers hosted on shell accounts, where the opers and bots and hosts out number the chatters by a factor of 17 to 1, you can give the orders, you can remove anyone for any reason or no reason at all, you can abuse people and then kick them if they seek retribution. This is why these small servers are both unpopular and generally "let the side down" because there is also plenty of well-organised and well funded IRC networks that are either directly run by or sponsored by ISP's.

As codemastr pointed out it's best just to simply use commonsense and perhaps a tutorial on "Netiquette" (a stupid word, but yeah), most IRC network help websites contain such tutorials. Half the things he listed are things I wouldn't kick for, especially if used in moderation, though they are things that generally to raise eyebrows on IRC. It all depends on what channel you are on, what specific purpose the founder wants the channel used for and how many people are in that channel. SOme channels will have modes set that block some of these things. +c will block colour codes and on some networks also bold, reverse, underline, etc, so if you always type in a colour or use talkers, the mode will block your whole sentence. +d blocks nickname changes. If you ever see a user change their name to something else ever 10 - 20 seconds for a long time then it does because distracting. These modes are more a measure to avoid having to kick people.

The rule of thumb is pick a channel you like, sit there for a bit and watch how the channel works. Get a feel for what they'll allow you to talk about and what the hosts (ops) or bots will kick you for. Remember that bots will usually ban you without a warning for things like flooding and swearing, though bots usualy unset these bans alot quicker than human operators will, usually between 5 and 10 mins is the norm.

The first big rule to learn is the IRC hierarchy. There are server issues and channel issues. IRCops are there to make sure the server runs smoothly, help users with things like connecting properly or IRC commands, etc and to defend the server against bad things like excessive clones and IRC warbots. On some occasions they will also log illegal activity and notify the police or the user's ISP of such activity. Then you have Channel Founders (an owner of a room) SOP, AOP, HOP, VOP, UOP channel access levels though the number and type of access depends on the IRC server you connect to, most are different to the rest in some way. These people look after their respective channels and you will see these people more than you'll see any IRCops (also called opers). There is a large distinction in what an IRCop and what a channel host will look after. EG: If you get kicked out of a room (with or without a reason) you will find it fruitless running to an IRCop simply because they appear to be higher up the ladder than the person who kicked you. IRCops won't interfere in channel matters unless there is a severe attack of some kind on the channel which could upset the stability of the server. If you do get kicked, it's best to just waer it until the ban is removed. Use another channel for the time being.

Some networks have special events, usually live chats with celebrities (the network I chat on does such things, and a few others do too). The room will usually be moderated and all questions are diverted to a second hidden room where the chat's moderator can view/edit questions before posting them in the "auditorium" channel. See your network's website to see if such events occur there.

Lastly, if you are or become knowledgeable about computing or IRC or both you might one day get chosen to be a channel host or an IRCop. This depends on a few big factors such as how well-behaved you are over a long period of time and the knowledge you accumulate or utilise when helping others, once again over a long period of time. The reputable networks will not hand out o:lines (A server function that makes you an IRCop) to those who walk in and request one and/or brags about their knowledge. They will want you to prove yourself first. It can take years and indeed you might also get overlooked too. The same applies to becoming a channel host in a big channel. If you beg (constantly asking for an @ then it often earns you a ban, sometimes even when asking the first time. The secret here is wait to get picked, but not necessarily expect to get picked.

That's all I can think of at the moment.
Posted By: The_Game Re: IRC Lessons - 13/03/03 04:56 AM
Sometimes you will get kicked out of a channel for gits and shiggles (shits and giggles) because some channel operators want to be dildos and abuse their priviledges...Sometimes you may find youself victim of klines for reasons that you may not be aware of...(sometimes if there is flooding entire rooms will find themselfs "removed") Just be yourself and not an ass to everyone and you should get along fine on IRC. If you have any questions you can go to the #mIRC channel on that particular network (if there is one because that is usually the network help channel) or to a channel that is designated as the network help channel.
Posted By: ParaBrat Re: IRC Lessons - 13/03/03 08:49 AM
IRC isnt really much diff from IRL (in real life), there are good ppl and bad. Ppl have good days and bad. There are those who let a perceived "power" go to their head. Equally, there are those that the majority of ppl have no idea what walking in their shoes is like, rather like its easy to gripe about your boss without having a clear idea of all he has to cope with.

-Just as you wouldnt walk up to a total stranger and tell them your life story/where you live/your real name/intimate details etc, dont do it on IRC. You will find the greatest ppl in the world who will add a lot to your life. You will also find the dregs of society. Take the time to figure out which is which

-Use common sense

-Exercise common courtesy and respect

-if you wouldnt say it in front of your mother/father/spouse
/religious leader/dog then dont type it in open channel

-dont download everything, type everything, click on every url ppl tell you to. thats how ppl get virii/trojans/hacked.

-look at each channel as the ops "home". its theirs to run as they choose. if its unpleasant for you, dont go there, but respect their rules and general netiquette while you're there. read their topic and any rules sent when you join.

-IRC gives us the wonderful opportunity to learn about other countries and cultures, and "meet" ppl we otherwise never would, so be open minded

-take some time to read the various help files, both with mIRC and for the network you go to (they all have websites with tons of info as well as commands you can type to see the most common)

-dont spam/mass invite. its annoying.
Posted By: quik Re: IRC Lessons - 13/03/03 12:11 PM
Quote:
At times, but not always this is true. Basically it is because some people start a channel, think they are God because they have an @ next to their name


Yeah, untile someone comes along and since IP's are hidden, will DDoS the whole enitre server thier using, now whos boss :\
Posted By: Poppy Re: IRC Lessons - 13/03/03 02:20 PM
I hope you paid attention to all of the above. There will be a test later! :tongue:
Really though - if you treat people how you would like to be treated yourself, you won't go far wrong. If you end up in a channel with a bunch of idiots, just look for a nicer channel. There are thousands of them around on various networks, so just have fun exploring till you find one you're comfortable in. smile
Posted By: landonsandor Re: IRC Lessons - 13/03/03 05:03 PM
Some other things to keep in mind:

1) DONT join a room and ask everybody what their age is or where they're from or what their sex is - it'll likely get you kicked/banned from rooms

2) DONT private message somebody unless you ask them first - a lot of people will either ignore you completely OR might even go so far as to kick/ban you from a room

3) When joining a new room, be polite, say hello, and watch and see how the room works. In old days you could figure out many things by just WATCHING how people communicte with each other
Posted By: T_S Re: IRC Lessons - 13/03/03 08:39 PM
Thanks alot folks you have really informed my alot. I know what you mean and The_Game you are certainly right about becoming a victim of klines that you have no control over. I just recently got back from a few days of holiidays and my brother was using my Mirc. When I came home he was laughing to himself and I couldnt figure out why. Then when I tried to log onto it I found out I was banned. Well I realized there was nothing I could do about it so I just went onto another server. Next time ill be sure to lock my irc down.

T_S
a.k.a Rudra
Posted By: The_Game Re: IRC Lessons - 13/03/03 10:52 PM
Most klines are temporary...eventually you will be allowed back onto the network you were chatting on. Also, have you tried sending an e-mail to any of the network admins explaining your situation? Sometimes it helps and sometimes they won't reply. But worth a shot.

Quote:
Next time ill be sure to lock my irc down.


Yes you could do this using the built in lock for mIRC but keep in mind if your brother chats on IRC as well that this option locks down all mirc.exe files on your computer no matter if its a different script or not. I had recently discovered this when my girlfriends young niece came over and was chatting. (I had set a plain mIRC asside for her to use cause she messed my settings up a bit on mine and wanted to lock it so it wouldnt happen again.)

Glad we could all help you out.
Posted By: Watchdog Re: IRC Lessons - 14/03/03 02:58 AM
That's where people like me enter the fray. Opers sometimes sit silent because they are dealing with matters like DDoS.
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