how do i explore different chats by subject matter? any good guides
for total noobs?
reddit / irc

----------------------------------------------------------------------
fisharrow · 2022-11-22 23:45

i’m totally new to IRC, and am trying to get started using mibbit.
i’ve looked online for guides on how to make sense of all the
networks, but it just makes me more confused. there are so many, and i
can’t figure out how to parse between them to find ones relevant to
me, or a guide for dumbass noobs like me. i’m using mac.

----------------------------------------------------------------------
KindOne · 2022-11-23 01:36

What exactly are you looking for? The more specific, the better.

----------------------------------------------------------------------
fisharrow · 2022-11-23 04:46

i did a little more digging after i posted this and i sort of was able
to use mibbit to open some networks/chatrooms/channels(don’t know the
difference), but the websites for the networks seem so broken, links
not working, hard to find names of channels at all. none of the links
for trunet worked. when i did manage to open some chats, no messages
ever appeared. it was like i was the only one on. sorry about being so
vague, i’m not even sure what question to ask since i’m overall
confused. i’m technologically… challenged lol

----------------------------------------------------------------------
assemblrr · 2022-11-23 05:50

Basically, people host an IRC server, on which there are channels,
which are the rooms you join and chat in. IRC is rather old, but still
awesome, so it isn't as popular as it once was, but worth sticking
around and exploring because there are lots and lots of active
channels. Unfortunately, a lot of the channels nowadays are for very
specific things like various Linux distros, applications, and so on as
opposed to being a place for general chat. Those do exist though, just
not as common.

----------------------------------------------------------------------
fisharrow · 2022-11-23 15:13

i see, and a network is broader than a server. i think that’s where my
trouble starts. i can’t figure out how to get into a network. i tried
typing ones like [these](https://netsplit.de/networks/top100.php) into
mibbit, but i must be doing something wrong. how do i connect to a
server? how do i find individual channels? i’m trying to find a guide
online but they seem to brush over this as if i should know how.

----------------------------------------------------------------------
assemblrr · 2022-11-23 22:05

Trying downloading hexchat. Hexchat makes the process pretty easy.
Choose a network from the list it provides. Then, at the top of the
window, you can download the channel list and join them from there.
You will likely have to register your nick.

----------------------------------------------------------------------
fisharrow · 2022-11-23 22:15

i’ll try that, thanks

----------------------------------------------------------------------
skizzerz1 · 2022-11-24 15:29

That link is a good way to find channels. Some IRC networks (such as
libera.chat) outright ban mibbit so you’ll need to use something else
to connect into them if you see a ban or disconnect message along
those lines.

----------------------------------------------------------------------
fisharrow · 2022-11-24 17:02

do i just type the network name into the chat client? when i tried on
mibbit, there were no other messages or users online. it was empty.
not sure if that’s normal.

----------------------------------------------------------------------
skizzerz1 · 2022-11-24 21:47

A lot of the clients have pre-made lists of networks so you don't need
to type stuff in, but otherwise, yes. IRC doesn't have a \*ton\* of
people using it, so you may find many channels empty (or very quiet
even if they aren't empty). Many people that \*do\* still use IRC make
use of bouncers where they remain connected 24/7 even if they are not
immediately at their keyboard at the time.

However, if you say hi or something, you may find someone online to
give a response :)

----------------------------------------------------------------------
Klement-Metternich1 · 2023-01-18 17:14

I like the old setting…easy to navigate, cross channels and accessible
at all times. I’m lost in the dark with this