Scioly.org:IRC

Shortcuts
SO:IRC

Internet Relay Chat (IRC) is a text-based Internet chat system. Scioly.org has an active channel with the details for connection and chatroom rules below. Please read these rules before connecting.

Connecting to IRC

IRC is run on servers that are divided into chatrooms called channels. Channels begin with a # and are followed by a series of characters without spaces. IRC also supports sending private messages to other users.

One connects to an IRC server with a program called an IRC client. There are numerous free programs available around the web that can be installed on one's computer, or alternately there are websites that serve as IRC clients without needing to download anything. The default client linked on our site is KiwiIRC. Another option is Chat4All.

There are many different servers that host IRC chats. Scioly.org uses one hosted by chat4all.org. If you use an independent client, you will have to tell it to connect to this server. For the full details to give the client, see the next section.

In order to connect to IRC, you will need to choose a nickname (it is possible to change it later). This will be the name that other IRC users see. A good choice for our chat is your Scioly.org username, if you have an account. Please be warned that offensive nicknames will not be tolerated on our chat.

Connection details

Server: irc.chat4all.org
Ports (if needed): 6666-6669 or 7000
Channel: #scioly

Chat Rules

There are a few rules that must be followed on scioly.org chat. Failure to follow these rules may result in a kick, and repeated defiance of these rules will result in a ban, the length of which will be decided by the moderation team.

Treat all other users with respect.
Do not spam or flood the channel.
Do not advertise other channels on the main channel. If you wish to move a conversation to another channel, send a private message or a private invite to the members you wish to invite to the channel.
Do not use foul or abusive language.
No intentional repeated pinging (saying another user's name) of other users.
Treat delicate subjects delicately. When discussing religion, politics, instruments, or other similar topics, please remain objective and avoid voicing strong opinions.
No impersonating other users.
Avoid name-dropping (using users' real names) whenever possible.
No excessive use of caps. Use of caps lock constitutes yelling, which is disruptive. This also applies to usernames.
No witch-hunting (i.e. kick or ban requests)
No use of multiple accounts at once, unless specifically permitted by a moderator

Also keep in mind the following general guidelines. These are not strict rules, but will be enforced if the need arises.

Only bear or bearasauras may eat other users.
No invoking of raptors.
No using the word bae.

Basic Commands

Commands on IRC use a forwardslash (/) followed by the command. Some common commands are listed below.

Command	Action	Output
/nick nickname	Changes your nickname on IRC	robotman has changed nick to nickname
/join #scioly	Joins another channel	nickname has joined #scioly
/me says hi	Used to 'emote' a line in a channel	nickname says hi
/query nickname	Opens private message with another user	no text output
/away reason	Sets your status as 'away', with an optional reason	nickname is away (reason)
/back	Sets your status as 'back'¹	nickname is back
/clear	Clears the chat window	no output text
/ignore nickname	Ignores user for a session	no output text
/unignore nickname	Revokes the /ignore command	no output text
/notify on	Turns on desktop notifications	Notifications on
/notify off	Stops desktop notifications	Notifications off
/whois nickname	Prints user information	nickname [~nickname] realname : http://webchat1.chat4all.net channels : #scioly server : eu.chat4all.org [Chat4All] idle : 0 days 0 hours 2 minutes 9 seconds [connected: Mon May 26 11:00:44 2014]

¹In some chat clients, using this command may result in an error. In this case, simply using the "/away" command will toggle the status between 'away' and 'back'.

Registering a Nickname (NickServ)

Most modern IRC networks, including ours, allow you to register your nickname with a bot called NickServ. This provides two primary benefits: you can kick the current user of your nickname off IRC through sending a "ghost" command to NickServ, and you can prove that you are the main user of the nickname through authentication (e.g. another bot, ChanServ, only gives operator to moderators who have authenticated their nickname when they log in).

You interact with NickServ through sending private messages to it like a regular user (it is actually a computer program provided by the network). The exact allowed syntax depends on your choice of client. Presumably most clients would accept the IRC standard command of "/privmsg NickServ [Commands]". However, most clients provide shorter commands to send private messages, such as "/msg NickServ [Commands]" (this will be used for the rest of this tutorial). Since messaging NickServ is a very common task on IRC, some clients will even shorten it to "/ns [Commands]".

Caution: be very careful typing commands containing passwords or other personal information. A small mistake such as a space before the slash could unintentionally send the whole command to the entire channel. If your client has a separate tab for the server (as opposed to a channel), this is the better place to type sensitive commands, as no one will be able to read such mistakes. However, it is still strongly recommended that you do not reuse your NickServ password anywhere in important.

On KiwiIRC, the syntax for registering a nickname is:

/msg NickServ [password] [email]

Note that registering an email is required to register a nickname in the Scioly IRC. After registering, an email will be sent to the email you listed for confirmation. You can get very thorough help directly from NickServ within IRC. The command is

/msg NickServ Help

Connecting to the IRC with IRCCloud

The scioly.org chat can be finicky and frustrating on mobile. There's an IRC client, IRCcloud, that is accessible as an app on mobile and on your computer, but requires account registration.

Go to www.irccloud.com (or download the app IRCCloud). Register/sign-up by putting your email, username, and password. It's completely free; you will just be on an automatic 7-day free trial for Premium benefits. You must verify your account before being able to connect to the #scioly channel.

Click the gear icon and then "Add Network". Type irc.chat4all.org in the Hostname bar and 6667 into Port. Your nickname is what will show up on chat to other users. Add #scioly under "Channels to join". Click join network and you're all set. The next time you go on IRCCloud you do not need to re-add the network and channel; it should be automatically there.