Team AnandTech IRC FAQ V1.3

by Brian Martin (Thunder)

Hey, I want to get in on this "chat" thing with my fellow "crack-heads"... how do I do it?

  1. Obtain an IRC client. Some of the most popular clients are:

For Win32:

mIRC (US mirror) http://www.geocities.com/SiliconValley/Park/6000/get.html

or (UK mirror) http://www.mirc.co.uk/get.html

PIRCH http://www.pirchat.com/download.html

For UNIX/LINUX:

Zircon (X Windows written in Tcl/Tk) http://catless.ncl.ac.uk/Programs/Zircon/

For MAC:

Snak (MacOS version 7.5 or newer) http://www.snak.com/SnakDownload.html

Ircle (7.0 or newer, 8.0+ recommended) http://www.ircle.com/download.html

For just about every OS created (look here for other types like SunOS, IRIX, AIX, OS/2, BSD, etc):

BitchX http://www.bitchx.com/download.htm

If you do not wish to install an IRC client on your computer or you are having trouble getting one configured, there is a Java based client that you can run right from your favorite (Java capable) browser. Since many of the following steps are different for this client, specific instructions for it can be found at the bottom of the page.

  1. Configure the client for the server we are using and connect to it. It is: irc.teamanandtech.com port#:6667 (Don't worry about knowing what a port # is... 6667 is the standard for IRC. If you see where to enter it, do. Otherwise, it should go to it by default)
  2. Choose a nickname for yourself. Many clients will have you do this prior to connecting, otherwise type /nick <yournickname>
  3. Enter the channel we are chatting in. It is: #teamanandtech (no spaces, don't forget the #) From the command line you would enter /join #teamanandtech (don't forget the / too). Many clients will let you build a 'channel list' so you can just click on the channel you want to join.
  4. Look for the other crackers in the channel and start chatting! As time progresses, you can read your own help file or ask others about such things as querys & DCC chats (for chatting privately), DCC Send & Get (for exchanging files with others in the channel), Sounds, Colors, Actions, Scripts and much, much more (IRC is amazing in it's versatility and everything ICQ has... it learned from IRC)
  5. Be aware of the folks that have the @ in front of their nicknames (like that shifty fellow BurntKooshie). These are the channel operators or 'op's. They are there to maintain and control the channel. They can (if necessary) kick you from the channel or even BAN you from re-entering it if you get offensive, flame, disrupt, flood, engage in activities of questionable legality or otherwise cause a problem. Please remember that it's a privilege to be in a channel, not a right.

So this is it? This is all there is to chatting IRC style?

Yep, that's about it, but there is one special thing about Othernet that everyone should know...

Working with NickServ:

NickServ is a channel service (program) that many IRC networks use (including Othernet). NickServ allows you to 'register' your nickname, so no one else can use it.

In order to use NickServ, you should make sure that you are currently showing as the nick that you want to register and type /msg nickserv register <password><email addy>. For those who want to know... /msg = I want to send a message, nickserv = to NickServ. Don't forget the password you choose, as it's the one you'll need to use every time you log on.

Then, when you next log onto the IRC server, you should type /msg nickserv identify <password>. You know about /msg and nickserv, but identify = confirm that this is ME! See?

Using the Team Anandtech Java client:

  1. Point your browser to http://irc.teamanandtech.com:8000
  2. The program will automaticly have you join #teamanandtech, and you'll then need to enter a nick in the "nick name:" field.
  3. That's it, you should be chatting with all of TA's IRC users now!

We hope to see you in the channel soon!!