IRC stands for Internet Relay Chat. It is considered an “old-school” form of communication on the Internet. IRC is a non-proprietary standard for communication.

These are some different IRC clients that you can install and use. Most of these clients will work on multiple platforms ie., Windows, Linux, and Mac OS X.

Freenode Webchat

Pidgin

Xchat

Commands in IRC are ways to get certain things done. Comamnds will always start with a “ / ”. Commands are typed where you are normally input text when chatting.

Most programs will ask for a username or nickname and then automatically connect you with that Nickname. Also, if you connect via a webchat interface, some may simply have you log in as “ Guest_#### ”. In order to change your nickname execute “ /nick “Desired Username” ” and then press the Enter key.

Moderators are special users in IRC that watch over the chatroom and make sure that there is no flooding, bad talk, etc. Moderators are typically shown with an @ symbol, although different IRC applications will display them in different ways, you should check the manual for your application to see how it is displayed.