Sunday 31 December 2000

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A very brief Internet Relay Chat FAQ

What does the @ symbol in front of an IRC nickname mean?

The people with @ symbols before their names are channel operators. They moderate what goes on within the channel and have access to special commands. They have the authority to kick out users who are being particularly offensive, for example.

How do I check to see if my friends are online using IRC?

If you know their IRC nickname and what server they are on, this is really straightforward. Simply type in /whois followed by their nickname. A status box will then appear to tell you whether or not they are online, and if they are online, which channel they are currently in.

If you do not know which server they are on, you can type in /msg followed by their nickname and a brief message. Asking them directly what server/channel they are in might be useful. Alternatively, you can type these details into a DCC chat request box.

I keep seeing the words 'ping pong' while I'm using IRC. What does this mean?

A ping pong is IRC's way of checking to see if you are still online in order to keep your connection alive. You don't have to reply to this message manually, your IRC client will take care of this for you.

What is a netsplit?

A netsplit occurs in IRC when the server you are connected to suddenly crashes and almost all of the users are automatically kicked out.