Anyone there? - Chatting on IRC...

Published on June 11, 2003 By MadIce In WinCustomize Talk

If you have ever been to the Stardock IRC server you probably recognize this question. People enter the channel and leave within a minute. Often they ask this or another question and leave. I can show you logs full of such samples.

These people are probably not familiar with IRC and think it is a kind of a phone. They expect to be answered immediately and they leave within a minute. Sometimes very angry because they didn't get an answer within a minute.

A second reason why people do that is because they want to try out the chat option in SDCentral or the WC Browser. If they don't see any activity for a minute or two they leave.

Being in such a channel and seeing those people come and go can be irritating, but we are getting used to it. However, most of them stay away from channels like #WinCustomize and #SDCentral because of that. These two channels are the ones used by SDCentral and the WC Browser to autmatically connect you to the IRC server.

You should remember that there are real people in these IRC channels, so don't be nasty to them. Stardock employees, skinners, SD/WC users and SD gamers all hang out there. These people are often connected to IRC for 24/7 and may be working with another program, sleeping, skinning, making coffee, answering a phone or away from their keybaord for another reason. So, chances are they they do not see you as soon as you appear. Remember that these people come from all over the world and may not be in the same timezone as you. Half of them are not even from the US. Nobody is rude to visitors intentionally, but if they are we will kick them off the channel. People in these channels are there for fun and may help you out if they know an answer to your question. So, next time you join please wait 15 minutes or so.

Some of you may be afraid to speak on IRC because they see "famous" names there. Don't worry about that, none of them behave like stars.

The IRC channel is intended as a support tool and should be fun in the first place. It can also be a great tool for people working on the same skinning project.

The SD IRC software is as simple as it gets, but you may need some extra information about its practical use and may need to learn a few commands. Also there are more hints and tips, like those described above. In addition, there are rules what we accept and do not accept on IRC. If you are interested I can write all of that down and make it a sticky thread (Jafo already agreed to that). Let me know if you are interested in that.

Have fun...

Comments (Page 1)

c242

on Jun 11, 2003

If I only could connect through the firewall at my office... :
[Message Edited]

MadIce

on Jun 11, 2003

IRC is using port 6667. If you have a private firewall you need to open that port for reading and writing. A lot of companies have that port closed to prevent people from using IRC.

But you can always join us when you are not at the office, c242.

c242

on Jun 11, 2003

#2 by MadIce - 6/11/2003 1:51:39 AM IRC is using port 6667. If you have a private firewall you need to open that port for reading and writing. A lot of companies have that port closed to prevent people from using IRC.

As the firewall is one of the few things I have no access to (we are part of a big WAN here) I fear I have no chance to change that.

But you can always join us when you are not at the office, c242

Well, some times in the evening my wife wants to speak to me , too, You know.

MadIce

on Jun 11, 2003

Well, some times in the evening my wife wants to speak to me , too, You know.

She does? How quaint...

c242

on Jun 11, 2003

Well being an Internet and computer addict herself, we have no problems. And our computers are actually on the same desk.

But getting OT now, so I will stop.

MadIce

on Jun 11, 2003

Stumpy

on Jun 11, 2003

Bump

feline

on Jun 11, 2003

The SD IRC software is as simple as it gets, but you may need some extra information about its practical use and may need to learn a few commands.

ahha!
feline recognises this highly specialist use of the word "simple"

feline notices that using vim is very simple to

i went in there once, the night i was trying to work out how to report an interesting (weird, significant) bug in a new WB alpha build.

i needed to pass on many lines of info to someone. that seems to have been a problem.

strange thing happened, weird commands were issued.

feline concluded that it was a totally alien environment

i couldn't see what was going on, or why, so i left, never to return.

feline suspects i am not the only one who innocently clicked on this strange button in stardock central, only for "something" to happen

MadIce

on Jun 11, 2003

i couldn't see what was going on, or why, so i left, never to return.

How about me trying to write it through the eyes of an user instead of an expert?

MadIce remembers the days when he started on IRC too.

It was indeed very odd. The software I used at the time was far more complicated then the current SDC or WCB. But still it will help to write a little guide for those who get lost on IRC.

Chef Garry

on Jun 11, 2003

Some of you may be afraid to speak on IRC because they see "famous" names there. Don't worry about that, none of them behave like stars

Thanks for the encouragement MadIce. I'm one of those who pops in very briefly with a question then out again. WOM particularly has been helpful with problem solving (thanks wise!).

There are indeed famous names there and I know they are friendly and helpful - ample evidence on the message board IMO. Speaking for myself though - and I'm not very experienced with IRC - it feels like jumping into the middle of a conversation. I don't want to interrupt. It may just be my inexperience but I don't see a thread so I'm not sure whether or not there are individual conversations going on so I feel like I might be butting in. Especially when I don't really have anything intelligent to say.

Koasati

on Jun 11, 2003

I must always pick the wrong time to pop in............ there's no chatting going on at all, plenty of folks there, but nothing going on... (Koasati doesn't understand, why people sit in a chat room, 24/7, if they only chat a few hours a days) Only twice have I got any sort of response, one of those, I though was a bit rude, and I appologise for disturbing that person...

jebland

on Jun 11, 2003

Madice, I would be interested in any info that you would care to share. I am totally intimidated by IRC and would be afraid I would say or do something wrong (or rude), so any instruction or guidelines would be appreciated.

Like feline, it seems like an alien environment to me.

werewolf

on Jun 11, 2003

what I think is funny is that sometimes someone will log in, not say anything, I will say hi to them, just to sort of get things started...and then they leave.

KarmaGirl

on Jun 11, 2003

(Koasati doesn't understand, why people sit in a chat room, 24/7, if they only chat a few hours a days)

Mainly because we forget to set ourselves as away

MadIce

on Jun 11, 2003

There are indeed famous names there and I know they are friendly and helpful - ample evidence on the message board IMO. Speaking for myself though - and I'm not very experienced with IRC - it feels like jumping into the middle of a conversation. I don't want to interrupt. It may just be my inexperience but I don't see a thread so I'm not sure whether or not there are individual conversations going on so I feel like I might be butting in. Especially when I don't really have anything intelligent to say.

Chatting is a bit odd. You are chatting with several people at once, so you never know when they are typing their line. So, the order in which sentences are typed can sometimes be confusing. There are some IRC cracks that type as fast as light. I am a slow typer, so sometimes I can do nothing but watch it pass by.

But don't be afraid to ask something. Try again if your questions remains unanswered. The people in there may not know the answer or wait until someone else anwers it. Usually you are told that they do not know the answer. If nobody responds then maybe all are away from their keyboard. Don't get angry. The people in that channel are real humans. Not some letters on your screen.

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