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Basic IRC Commands
Every IRC client has an input area where you can type what you want to say or issue IRC
commands. You issue IRC commands by typing on a new line something beginning with a /
(forward slash) character. Anything that does not begin with a / is assumed to be a
message you are typing to someone or some channel. In the following I will describe the
more common commands used in everyday IRC life. Commands you are supposed to type will be
shown in red, while text which you will see
in response will be shown in blue.
In addition, the graphical clients such as mIRC or Ircle allow you to use a mouse to
point and click your way around IRC, so that you don't have to type many of these commands
manually. You should still learn the commands properly, because often they are the only
way to specify precisely what you want done, and also they are often faster and easier
than navigating through the labyrinth of buttons, menus, and dialogs that are supposed to
make your life easier.
/HELP [optional command name]
-
The first and most useful command is the on-line help built into all good IRC clients
just by typing /help where you normally type to
chat. This should bring up a list of all commands. You can also get specific help for a
command, such as /help who for the /who command. You
can get a quick introduction to IRC built into your client. mIRC users type /ircintro while ircII users type /help
intro or /help newuser.
If you are not sure about the spelling of a mIRC command, just type in the first few
letters. The help window, which shows commands arranged alphabetically, will open to
approximately the right place so that you can choose to learn about a specific command.
If you are not sure about the spelling of an ircII command, type the first few letters
and press the ESCape key twice. ircII will give you a listing of COMMANDS and ALIASes that
start with that prefix. Don't forget the "/" in front of the command, though.
For example in ircII, you type the following:
/W <ESC><ESC>
You get as a response the following (this is just an example. Your screen
may show more or less aliases or commands):
*** Commands:
***
WAIT
WALLOPS
WHILE WHO
*** WHOIS
WHOWAS
*** Aliases:
***
W
WA
WH
WI
/SERVER new-server-hostname
-
Each server is known by a "hostname" such as irc.ais.net, us.undernet.org,
irc.dal.net, or irc.webbernet.net, which are sample servers for the networks EFnet, Undernet, DALnet,
and IRCnet,
respectfully. Just specify the hostname to connect or switch to that server. For example: /SERVER London.uk.eu.dreamwave.org
You then see something similiar to the following messages indicating your client has successfully connected
to that server.
*** Connecting to (6667)
-
Local host: vaio-robert (169.254.107.41)
-
*** Identd request from 195.112.45.6
*** Identd replied: 1053, 6667 : USERID : UNIX : capt
-
-london.uk.eu.dreamwave- Please be advised that use of this service
constitutes concent to all network policies and server conditions of use,
which are at http://www.dreamwave.org/help/agreement.html and is in
accordance with the Electronic Communications Privacy Act, 18 USC 2701-2711
-
-london.uk.eu.dreamwave- *** If you are having problems connecting due to
ping timeouts, please type /raw pong 31571FE4 or /quote pong 31571FE4 now.
-
-london.uk.eu.dreamwave- *** If you still have trouble connecting, please
email support@xnet.org with the name and version of the client you are
using, and the server you tried to connect to: london.uk.eu.dreamwave.org
-
PING? PONG!
-
Welcome to the Dreamwave IRC Network Capt
Your host is london.uk.eu.dreamwave.org, running version DWav.1beta2a
-
-london.uk.eu.dreamwave.org- *** Your host is london.uk.eu.dreamwave.org,
running version DWav.1beta2a
-
This server was put in service on Sat Aug 7 1999 22:00
london.uk.eu.dreamwave.org DWav.1beta2a cdghkilmnosuw bciklmnopstv
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/NICK new-nickname
-
Change the nickname by which you are known. Nicknames are limited to 15 characters. For example, if your default nick was "foo" and you want to change
it to "YourNick": /NICK YourNick
*** foo is now known as YourNick
/LIST
-
Lists IRC channels, number of users, and topic for each. This is how you find places to
go meet people and chat. /LIST
*** Channel Users Topic
*** #test 1 this is
a test channel
*** #IRChelp 18 Ask questions on the channel
or see www.irchelp.org
[remainder of list not shown]
If you're on a big network, this list may be very long, up to many thousands of
channels!
You can also search for specific keywords by using /LIST
keyword in mIRC, or /LIST *keyword* in
ircII. Note this may or may not be any faster or safer than a full list depending on the
network. On networks like EFnet and IRCnet, for example, your client gets the full list
first and then does the filtering internally before displaying matches to you. On
Undernet, the server filters the list and sends only the matches to you, which can be much
faster if you're on a slow modem.
/NAMES #channel-name
-
Shows the nicknames of all users on that channel. While theoretically this is supposed
to work whether or not you are on that channel, in practice most people these days are set
to be "invisible" and thus do not show up on such queries unless you are in the
same channel already. /NAMES #demo
Pub: #demo @YourNick +buddy DeepMpact @FunGuy PrettyGrl
The "@" symbols show that YourNick and FunGuy are "channel ops",
and that buddy has been given a "voice". These terms will be described in more
detail in the channel modes section later.
/WHOIS nickname
-
Shows information about the nick specified. /WHOIS Capt
Capt is capt@on-track.demon.co.uk * Captain
Capt on @#dreamwave
Capt using london.uk.eu.dreamwave.org UK's Dreamwave server
Capt is dreaming of a white christmas
Capt has been idle 51 secs, signed on Tue Aug 24 16:15:37
Capt dwave-61707.demon.co.uk
Capt End of /WHOIS list.
The "Capt@dyn229-ras4.screaming.net" looks like an email address but actually
Capt is buddy's identifying "username" on dyn229-ras4.screaming.net, which is the
"hostname" of the computer Capt is using for IRC. One cannot arbitarily change
the hostname, because it is the computer's address on the Internet, and it is required in
order for the IRC server to communicate with one's computer properly. Next,
after the *, Capt shows a personal message instead of the real name which is supposed to
go there.
The second line shows he is on the "public" channel #dreamwave, and
the @ symbol means he is an operator on the channel. It doesn't show other, "secret"
channels he might be on. Finally the third line shows which IRC server he is using. We
will discuss dreaming, public/secret channels and operators
later in part 3. The Capt
dwave-61707.demon.co.uk refers to the virtual
world host mask.
/AWAY away-message-here
-
Leave a message explaining that you are not currently paying attention to IRC. /AWAY getting coffee, be back in 5 mins
You have been marked as being away
If your friend does /whois YourNick now, they will get the
lines as described in the /whois section above, plus a final line saying:
*** YourNick is away: getting coffee, be back in 5 mins
/AWAY without any additional argument will remove the away message.
/AWAY
You are no longer marked as being away (or something to that effect)
-
/DREAM dream-message-here
-
This is a specific command, and it lets other's know your dream
(by looking at it using the /whois command).
/dream :of a white christmas
You are now a dreamer
/DREAM without any additional argument will remove the
dream message.
/QUIT [optional farewell message]
-
Exits IRC (also leaves any channels you may be on). /QUIT hasta la vista, baby!
*** Signoff: YourNick (hasta la vista, baby!)
Chatting on IRC
The point of IRC is to chat, and as mentioned before, you may join in public
discussions on channels or talk privately to one person at a time. We will show you how to
do both here.
Public Conversations
We previously learned how to find channels using the /list command. Here will talk
about how to join those channels and talk on them.
There can be many thousands of channels on the largest networks, each with anywhere
from one to hundreds of people. Each channel is controlled by channel operators or
"ops" who have absolute authority over their channels. We will discuss more
about that later. You should always observe basic netiquette when visiting other people's
channels.
/JOIN #channelname
-
Changes your current channel to the channel specified. If the channel does not exist
already, it will be created and you will be in charge of the new channel and be a channel
operator or "op" - more on that later. /JOIN #new2irc
*** YourNick (foo@hot.school.edu) has joined channel
#new2irc
*** Topic for #new2irc: New users welcome! Questions answered with a smile! ;))
RC
*** Topic for #new2irc set by Otiose on Sun Aug 16 10:28:06 1998
*** Users on #new2irc: YourNick FunGuy @pixE @MsingLnk @^Chipster
[rest of list truncated]
When you join a channel, everything that everybody says is preceded by their nicknames
so others can tell who is saying what. For some IRC programs, it doesn't show your own
nickname, but don't worry, other people still see it!
You type:
hello world!
but everybody else sees:
<YourNick> hello world!
/ME does something
-
Performs an action on a channel. Unlike talking normally, actions do not start with
<YourNick>. Use /ME in the third person (verbs like "is",
"does", "runs", etc.). /ME is a pink bunny
YourNick is a pink bunny
/LEAVE [#channel_name]
-
Leaves the specified channel, or if no channel is specified, leaves the current channel.
Private Conversations
/MSG nickname message
-
Use the /MSG command to send someone a message that only that person can read. Say you
are "YourNick" and you want to talk to your friend "buddy".
/MSG buddy hello, how are you? On your screen,
you would see:
-> *buddy* Hello, how are you?
On buddy's screen, if he is using ircII he sees:
*YourNick* Hello, how are you?
To answer such a message using ircII, buddy would type:
/MSG YourNick Fine, thanks!
If buddy is using mIRC, he will instead get a new "query" window dedicated to
this private conversation with you. Everything you /MSG him goes to that window. As soon
as he responds to you in that window, if you are also using mIRC you will likewise also
get a "query" window.
/QUERY nickname and /QUERY
-
In mIRC, if you initiate a /MSG you don't get a "query" window until the other
person responds to you. You can set up a "query" window on your side right from
the beginning by using the /QUERY command:
/QUERY buddy In ircII, you can have a private
conversation by using /MSG nickname repeatedly, but that can get cumbersome. That's where
the QUERY command comes in handy. When you issue the above command, all subsequent text
will be send as private messages to that nickname, except for "/" commands. Use /QUERY with no nickname to end a private conversation.
Here's an example of a private conversation between you as "YourNick" and
your friend "buddy", as seen from your point of view. Statements from your IRC
client program start with "***", outgoing messages from you to buddy start with
"-> *buddy*", and incoming messages to you from buddy start with
"*buddy*".
/QUERY buddy
*** Starting conversation with buddy
Good morning
-> *buddy* Good morning, buddy.
*buddy* Hi, YourNick. How is life ?
Pretty good. I have to get back to work, bye.
-> *buddy* Pretty good. I have to get back to work,
bye.
*buddy* OK, talk to you later.
/QUERY
*** Ending conversation with buddy
/CTCP nickname PING
/CTCP #channel-name PING
-
Sometimes you are talking to your friend and suddenly it seems like he's not paying
attention. This may be due to server "lag" on either end, which is the roundtrip
delay between when you say something and your friend sees that message. Normally lag is
less than a few seconds even when you are talking to people on the other side of the
planet, but sometimes the servers temporarily suffer from serious lag. If you suspect this
is the problem, you can test your lag with a sonar-like ping signal under the
Client-to-Client Protocol (CTCP). If you are just talking to one person, ping that person.
If you suspect you are generally lagged to a lot of people, ping a channel with say 10
people which is the same as pinging each person on that channel separately. The range in
ping response times will tell you if you are lagged in general. /CTCP buddy PING
*** CTCP PING from YourNick!foo@hot.school.edu to buddy:
903330542
*** CTCP PING reply from buddy: 1 second
The last line is the part you care about. It says you are lagged less than 1 second to
buddy, which is very good. Note that in most clients including most versions of ircII and
mIRC, this is aliased to /PING nickname, or /PING #channel-name, but not always. Some Mac clients such as
Ircle use /CPING instead.
DCC CHAT
-
/DCC CHAT nickname
/MSG =nickname message
/DCC CLOSE CHAT nickname
- Using software such as mIRC, DCC chat is far easier then what is
described below.
-
DCC stands for Direct Client Communication, where you and your friend's client programs
connect directly to each other, bypassing IRC servers and their occasional "lag"
or "split" problems. Like /MSG, the DCC chat is completely private.
If you are "Yournick" and your friend is "buddy", here's how to use
DCC chat:
You type:
/DCC CHAT buddy
You see:
*** Sent DCC CHAT request to buddy
While buddy sees:
*** DCC CHAT (chat) request received from YourNick
Now buddy types the same thing but using your nick:
/DCC CHAT YourNick
The connection goes through and you see this (he sees something similar). The numbers
are his IP number (the numeric version of his computer's hostname) and his port number.
*** DCC CHAT connection with buddy[123.4.56.78,54321]
established
Now to talk to buddy, in graphical clients like mIRC you will probably have a separate
window for the DCC chat so that everything you type is sent to buddy. Just type normally
in that window. Alternatively, from any window you may use a /MSG with an equals sign
immediately before his nick, which distinguishes this DCC CHAT message from a regular /MSG
buddy whatever:
/MSG =buddy now we're talking!
When you're done talking, either close the graphical window (if there is one available)
or manually close the connection:
/DCC CLOSE CHAT buddy
*** DCC chat:<any> to buddy closed
File Transfer
In addition to talking, IRC has also become a popular and convenient way to exchange a
wide variety of files. Be forewarned, however, that many people are getting into serious
trouble by downloading files that seem interesting or enticing, only to find out they are trojan horse attacks. These
hacks allow strangers to take over your channels, force you to disconnect, erase your hard
disk, or worse. The moral is clear: Never accept candy from strangers.
DCC SEND and GET
-
Like with DCC chat described above, DCC file transfer requires an exchange of commands
between the sender and getter of each file. For example, if you as "YourNick"
want to send the file "foo.jpg" to your friend "buddy", you would
type:
/DCC SEND buddy foo.jpg
*** Sent DCC SEND request to buddy If you specify
the filename without a directory path, it will assume the file is in the default
directory. For mIRC that is usually c:\mirc and for ircII it is usually your home
directory. If the file is somewhere else, you will need to specify the path to that file,
such as:
/DCC SEND buddy c:\other\directory\foo.jpg
Now for buddy to get the offered file. If he is using mIRC, a dialog will open asking
him whether he wishes to accept the file, cancel the offer, or even ignore the offerer. In
ircII, buddy will see the following request and types this in response:
*** DCC SEND (foo.jpg 180) request received from YourNick
/DCC GET YourNick
You will then see the following as the DCC connection is established and the transfer
eventually completed. On the other end, buddy sees something similar too.
*** DCC SEND connection to buddy[123.4.56.78,54321] established
*** DCC SEND:foo.jpg to buddy completed 1.234 kb/sec
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