IRC - Frequently Asked Questions

[Xero]

There have plenty of questions about the Chatroom and how it works.
So, I've done this FAQ.

If anyone has suggestions for the FAQ, leave a Comment, send me a PM or contact me in the IRC Chatroom. Anything is helpful, right?

What is "IRC"?
IRC stands for Internet Relay Chat.
It is a form of Live Internet Chat for people to engage each other in mainly group conversations.
For different topics and interests, there are usually different "Channels" that users create for whatever purpose of it's chatroom.
Channels are different "Rooms" on an IRC Chat server that are created by clients (People online). Channels are controlled by Operators (What you could call a Moderator of a channel) who have the ability to kick, ban (E.T.C) users from channels.
AnimeOTK's channel is #AnimeOTK - It's like a "Take a break, chat with friends" kind-of-place.
Although it's mainly for group discussion, IRC also offers one-to-one Private Messages.
You get the general idea. If you're looking for more detail, you can check out Wikipedia's IRC Wiki Page for some information.

How do I join the AnimeOTK IRC Chat?
There are quite a few ways to join the Chat. You can join from the JavaChat, or from an installed IRC Client such as mIRC or XChat.
You'll have to setup your settings for installed Clients but they make things easier when they are done. For information on configuring mIRC to connect to the AnimeOTK server, check out this post for setting it up.

IRC Commands?
IRC runs on a series of commands. Although it might seem difficult to understand at first, it's not really that complicated. If you're going to go to the IRC Server, you'll want to check out this post on Basic IRC Commands first.

How do I join a channel?
You did read the post that I linked above, right? Y'know, the ones for Basic IRC Commands. If you didn't, go there now to read it over.
I'm not going to cover every command that is listed in that post but I will answer the question.
You can join a channel by typing this command into your Textbox: /join #<channel>. For example, if you wanted to join the AnimeOTK Channel, you could type this: /join #AnimeOTK

How do I create a channel?
The same way you join a channel, except, if that channel does not exist on the server, you will create it automatically and obtain Operator status in that channel.
For example, if you wanted to create a channel called #Eggnog and it doesn't already exist on the Server, you could type: /join #Eggnog and you will join/create that channel and you will be an Operator. All that's left to do is ask/invite people to join the channel so you can chat. But once there is no users left on the channel, it'll cease to exist again.

What are "IRC Services"?
They are a set of Server "Bots", you could call them, that help make the Server better, secure and in more control. Not just for Administrators but for users as well. The Services running on the AnimeOTK Chat Server is called Anope IRC Services.
These services create Bot Clients. NickServ, ChanServ, BotServ, HelpServ, MemoServ and HostServ.
NickServ and ChanServ are the main Services. These two allow you to register and protect your Nickname or Channel.
Registering your Nickname means no-one else can use it without identifying for it with a password on the Server. Registering a channel means you'll always have control, and no-one else can take control of your channel because it is registered to you. Even if you leave it and it ceases to exist, it'll be in the ChanServ database as a protected channel. No other user, even if they enter that channel first, can obtain Operator status unless you choose to give it to them.
You can check out these Service's options with /msg <Service> HELP.
For example, /msg NickServ HELP.
For the NickServ and ChanServ commands, refer to this post for information. It should be helpful.

Other Operator control?
In total, there are four levels of control in a channel. There's the Owner, who has registered the channel with ChanServ and has access to all powers such as changing the channel password or channel founder and giving Super Operator (SOP) status to users.
Then there is the Admins of the channel, or better known as SOPs. They have roughly the same amount of power the Owner has, except they don't know the channel password, can't change the channel founder or password, can't change channel description and can't set other SOPs. But they can set AOPs.
Then there is the Operators of the channel. In ChanServ's terms, this is AOP. They have the power to Kick, Ban, Set the Channel Topic and prevent people from speaking in the channel if they wish to do so. They can also set HOPs.
Then there is the Half Operators, or HOPs in ChanServ's terms. They can do as many actions as Operators can, except for a few actions like preventing people from using the /invite command.
So, yeah. These are the levels who have Operator control. Operators and Half-Ops can be assigned to unregistered channels. Just note - An Operator can take away the power of other Operators, so choose your Operators wisely!

Where can I go for more or advanced help?
Operators of the main channels and Administrators are willing to help if you've lost your way.
I'm also in #Help if you need a hand. You're also free to send me a PM of any questions you have.

Thanks!