IRC

Vintage online chat

IRC stands for Internet Relay Chat, a text-based communication protocol from the late 1980s that allows real-time group conversations in channels and private messaging between users.

Though largely superseded by Discord and Slack, IRC remains active in technical communities: The developers coordinate on IRC.

The protocol's simplicity and openness made it foundational to internet chat culture.

community

channel

Passage for transmission

  • chatroomOnline discussion venue
  • opsOrganizational processes, informally
  • moderatorOne who presates proceedings

bot · nick · handle · lurker · regular · idler · flood · spam · troll · AFK

protocol

client-server

Distributed computing paradigm

  • TCPConnection-oriented network protocol
  • SSLWeb encryption protocol
  • nickShallow surface cut

channel · message · BAN · DCC · hostname · bouncer

culture

hacker

Unauthorized system accessor

  • geekObsessive enthusiast
  • 90sFinal twentieth-century decade
  • retroEvoking recent past

open source · Linux · warez · emoticon · leetspeak · away message · file sharing · underground · anonymity · nostalgia

software

bouncer

Venue entrance enforcer

bot · script · theme · addon

Categories
Opposites
communication synchronicity

IRCemail

Digital written communication

forums · snail mail · bulletin boards · voicemail · mailing lists

communication medium

IRCvideo chat

Live audiovisual conversation

FaceTime · Zoom · Skype · telephone · face-to-face

platform architecture

IRCSlack

Business communication software

Discord · Facebook Messenger · Microsoft Teams · WeChat · iMessage

Familiarity
Top 500,000
Profile
Used worldwide · Rated G