Introduction to the Internet

What is IRC (Internet Relay Chat)?

Internet Relay Chat is multi-user communication software, where discussions are organized into channels. Users can join or leave these discussion channels or create new ones. Channel participants contribute to the ongoing discussion a line or two at a time, and several concurrent threads may occupy the channel. Users can also send private message to particular users, and most software allows users to exchange data or files with other IRC users.

Attributes

Software

Example

This is a screen image of IRC running from a UNIX telnet session:

Other Notes

The organization of IRC is rather arbitrary. Users can become "Channel Operators" by creating a new channel or by being "op'ed" by another operator. An operator can lock a channel, invite a user to or kick him off the channel, as well as other administrative functions. Although certain channels are owned by a small group of operators, any user can create a new channel and become its operator.

Getting More Information

To get more information about IRC, check out the following files:
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fprefect@umich.edu - 12/17/94