IRC (Internet Relay Chat) is a chat system made of independent networks. There is no company account and no profile: you pick a nickname, connect to a network, and join rooms.
A network is a group of linked servers run by volunteers or organizations. Textce connects you to one of its servers, and the network carries your messages to everyone else, wherever they connected. Conversations happen in channels (rooms) and in private messages. Because networks are independent, a nickname or room on one network has nothing to do with the same name on another.
Term
What it means
Network
A community of linked servers, such as Libera.Chat, EFnet or OFTC. Each has its own rules, rooms and staff.
Channel (room)
A shared conversation, named with a leading #, for example #retro.
Nickname
The name others see. It is unique on a network at any moment, and you can change it at any time with /nick.
Hostmask
Your full address in the form nick!user@host. Bans and some filters match against it.
Services
Helper bots run by the network, usually named NickServ (nicknames) and ChanServ (channels). Not every network has them; EFnet has none.
Client
The app you chat with. Textce is a client.
Good to know. IRC itself does not keep a history for you. If you are offline, you miss what was said, unless you use a Session Keeper (also known as a bouncer, a service that stays connected for you) or a network feature that replays history. Textce can show a catch-up summary when a Session Keeper has been listening.
Connecting to a network
Pick a network. EFnet, Libera.Chat and OFTC are built in. To add another, enter its server address and port.
Use a protected connection. Port 6697 is the standard encrypted (TLS) port; 6667 is the traditional unencrypted one. Choose the encrypted port whenever the network offers it.
Choose a nickname. Letters, digits and a few symbols ([ ] \ ` _ ^ { | } and -) are allowed, and it cannot start with a digit or a hyphen. Maximum length depends on the network: modern networks allow 30 or more, some older ones only 9.
Optional: sign in. If you registered your nickname (next section), enter its password once and Textce signs you in automatically on every connection.
Connect. You land in the network's Status view, where connection messages and server notices appear. From there, join a room.
Status · Libera.Chat
Connecting to irc.libera.chat:6697 (protected)…
Connected. Logged in as ada.
Message of the day: Welcome to Libera.Chat…
Your nickname is ada. 12 users are visible on this server.
/join #retro
Every network has its own Status view for connection messages and server notices.
Registering and protecting your nickname
On most networks nobody owns a nickname until it is registered with the network's services. A registered nickname is yours: it can be reserved, recovered if someone else is using it, and used to sign in automatically.
Connect with the nickname you want and make sure it is free.
Register it with the network's service. On Libera.Chat and OFTC the command looks like this (the exact syntax differs between networks, so also run /msg NickServ HELP):
/msg NickServ REGISTER your-password your-email
After registering, store the password in Textce's sign-in setting so it identifies you automatically. If you ever need to sign in by hand, use /msg NickServ IDENTIFY your-password.
Recovering a nickname. If someone else is using your registered nickname, ask services to release it. Depending on the network that is called GHOST, RECOVER or REGAIN. Run /msg NickServ HELP to see which one your network uses.
Safety. Never send your password to anyone who messages you. Only talk to services as /msg NickServ or /msg ChanServ, and ignore look-alike nicknames.
Joining and leaving rooms
#retro
You joined #retro
Topic: Old computers, old games, old chat. Be kind.
Users on #retro: @quill @sol +marta bram Juno ada
20:41bramwelcome in!
/join #retro
Joining a room shows its topic and who is in it.
To…
Type
Notes
Join a room
/join #room
Room names start with #. The room is created if it does not exist, and you become its first op.
Join several at once
/join #one,#two
Separate names with a comma, no spaces.
Join a locked room
/join #room key
Add the password after the name. See "Lock a room with a password".
Leave a room
/part
Add a message if you like: /part #room see you tomorrow.
See who is in a room
/names
Ops show with @ and voiced members with +.
Browse rooms on the network
/list
Big networks have thousands of rooms. Filter it: /list >100 lists rooms with more than 100 people, /list *linux* searches by name.
Tip. You can see a room's topic before you speak. Read it, watch the conversation for a minute, and then say hello. Many rooms have rules written in the topic.
Talking in a room
Send a message. Type in the box and press Return. Anything that does not start with / goes to the current room.
Address someone. Start the line with their nickname, like bram: thanks!. They get a highlight, and Textce notifies them if they have mention alerts on. Press Tab after typing a few letters to complete the name.
Do something in the third person./me waves shows as * ada waves.
Send a private message./msg bram got a minute? opens a private chat, which sits in the sidebar next to your rooms. /query bram opens it without sending anything.
Share links. Links in chat are underlined and ready to open. For long text or code, use a paste site and share the link; many networks disconnect people who send too many lines quickly (“excess flood”).
Ask your question directly. Skip “can I ask a question?” and describe your problem, what you tried and what you expected. Then stay around, because answers can take a while.
#hangout
11:42bramJuno: did the build finish?
11:43adaI have a cache, so it will be quick
11:43* ada waves to marta
11:44martaada: welcome back!
Mentions of your nickname are highlighted and can notify you.
bram: yes, give me a minute
Addressing someone by nickname highlights the message for them.
Command reference
Type commands in the message box. Anything that starts with / is a command. Words in lowercase such as nick, #room and text are placeholders. Replace them with your own.
Rooms
Command
What it does
/join #room [key]
Enter a room, optionally with its password.
/part [#room] [message]
Leave a room.
/list [filter]
Ask the network for its list of rooms.
/names [#room]
Show who is in a room.
/topic [#room] [text]
View the topic, or set it when you are allowed to.
/invite nick #room
Invite someone to a room (required for invite-only rooms).
/who #room
List detailed information about everyone in a room.
People and messages
Command
What it does
/msg nick text
Send a private message and open a private chat.
/query nick
Open a private chat without sending a message.
/me action
Send an action in the third person.
/notice target text
Send a notice, which does not open a chat window. Services and bots reply this way.
/nick newname
Change your nickname.
/whois nick
Show who someone is: their address, rooms, server and idle time.
/whowas nick
Look up someone who recently left.
/away [reason]
Mark yourself away. Use /away alone to come back.
Room control (operators)
Command
What it does
/mode #room +o nick
Give operator status. -o takes it away.
/mode #room +v nick
Give voice. -v takes it away.
/mode #room +m
Moderate the room. -m lifts it.
/mode #room +i
Make the room invite-only. -i lifts it.
/mode #room +k key
Lock the room with a password. -k key removes it.
/mode #room +b mask
Ban an address. -b mask lifts the ban.
/kick nick [reason]
Remove someone from the room.
/mode #room
Show the room's current modes.
Connection
Command
What it does
/quit [message]
Disconnect from the network with an optional farewell.
In Textce. The buttons beside the member list (Msg, Whois, Op, Deop, Voice, Devoice, Ban and Kick) run these commands for you. The next section explains each one.