PSA: OUR CHAT IS AN IRC
Posted: October 12th, 2015, 9:11 amBrief: our chat is an IRC chat. This means it does not work like a standard IM client akin to Skype. It does not work like a chatroom on a dating site. It works like an IRC chat.
There have been frustrations voiced over our chat. This is not because the chat is poorly designed. This is because the people voicing frustrations do not like that IRC does not work the way they expected it to - like a built-in chat on a forum.
With that clear, let me detail you the consequences of our chat being an IRC chat.
1) YOU HAVE TO IDENTIFY YOUR NICK
This is a feature of NickServ (or Nickname Service), a helpful module that lets you maintain your identity on an IRC server.
It is not "a hassle, because I don't want to type in a bunch of extra stuff every time I enter the chat". Your IRC client, if modern enough, should allow auto-identification functionality, and on-site chatters are stumped here, because the onsite chat is the bare minimum of an IRC client.
Identifying your nick means you are recognised by the server as That Person.
2) YOUR NICK UNREGISTERS ITSELF AFTER THREE WEEKS OF NOT BEING IDENTIFIED
If you do not identify yourself under the nick you have registered for a while (i.e. you have most likely disappeared from the chat), it will be unregistered and up for grabs again. This is not stupid functionality. This is to make sure that nicks aren't hoarded and taken for no reason. This automatic unregistering leads onto:
3) IF YOUR NICK ISN'T REGISTERED, YOU CANNOT BE OPPED
Opping someone (permanently) requires for their nick to be registered and identified, because that means it's the same person being opped every time. Do not whine if you suddenly have no op if you a) never registered your nick, or b) left the chat for a while.
4) IF SOMEBODY ELSE IS USING YOUR REGISTERED NICK WHEN YOU ARE ONLINE, YOU CAN BOOT THEM OFF IT
NickServ provides a handy command for this. If someone has taken your nick, enter the command /ns recover [nickname] [password]. No, there are no square brackets around the nickname and the password. This command will boot the other person off your nick so you're free to change back to it.
4.5) YOU CAN ACTUALLY HAVE MORE THAN ONE NICK REGISTERED TO YOU
This is /ns group - it adds the nick you are currently using to the group of nicks you can identify. If you have a registered nick and want to add another, just change to that nick, then /ns group [nick you want to group it to] [password]. No, there are still no square brackets around the nickname and password.
As an example, I use both EmeliaK and Emelia_Kaylee, so I've registered both of them by (while being Emelia_Kaylee) typing /ns group EmeliaK [hahaha i'm not giving away my password].
5) OUR CHAT IS A HORRIFICALLY MANGLED IRC THAT CONFUSES EVEN ME
This is because in the frustrations of everyone who didn't know how to use IRC, we decided to try and make the chat more friendly for people who don't know how to use IRC. Join/leave messages are insanely frequent because when somebody is browsing the forums and goes to a different page, it reloads the IRC client and reestablishes a connection, which essentially means you keep leaving and joining again every time you navigate to a different page.
6) THERE IS, IN FACT, HELP FUNCTIONALITY THAT ACTUALLY INFORMS YOU ON WHAT YOU CAN DO
Confused on registering a nickname? Enter the command /ns help. Go from there.
Alternatively, there is Google. All information will technically be specific to a different IRC server, but there's enough of an overlap between functionality that it shouldn't pose a problem. After all, IRC is a standard, and standards were made so that everything would work like each other.
7) IF ALL ELSE FAILS, THERE ARE PEOPLE WHO KNOW HOW TO USE IRC (THIS MAINLY ENTAILS ME)
I'm not being self-aggrandising - if you're confused or stymied by the chat in any regard, and can't figure it out, highlight me. What's highlighting? You use my nick in your message. I'm usually either EmeliaK or Emelia_Kaylee. I'm on for a good portion of the day, so I might catch you.
8) YOU CAN TYPE /quit [nick] TO MAKE THE PERSON BY THAT NICK LEAVE
That's a joke.
There have been frustrations voiced over our chat. This is not because the chat is poorly designed. This is because the people voicing frustrations do not like that IRC does not work the way they expected it to - like a built-in chat on a forum.
With that clear, let me detail you the consequences of our chat being an IRC chat.
1) YOU HAVE TO IDENTIFY YOUR NICK
This is a feature of NickServ (or Nickname Service), a helpful module that lets you maintain your identity on an IRC server.
It is not "a hassle, because I don't want to type in a bunch of extra stuff every time I enter the chat". Your IRC client, if modern enough, should allow auto-identification functionality, and on-site chatters are stumped here, because the onsite chat is the bare minimum of an IRC client.
Identifying your nick means you are recognised by the server as That Person.
2) YOUR NICK UNREGISTERS ITSELF AFTER THREE WEEKS OF NOT BEING IDENTIFIED
If you do not identify yourself under the nick you have registered for a while (i.e. you have most likely disappeared from the chat), it will be unregistered and up for grabs again. This is not stupid functionality. This is to make sure that nicks aren't hoarded and taken for no reason. This automatic unregistering leads onto:
3) IF YOUR NICK ISN'T REGISTERED, YOU CANNOT BE OPPED
Opping someone (permanently) requires for their nick to be registered and identified, because that means it's the same person being opped every time. Do not whine if you suddenly have no op if you a) never registered your nick, or b) left the chat for a while.
4) IF SOMEBODY ELSE IS USING YOUR REGISTERED NICK WHEN YOU ARE ONLINE, YOU CAN BOOT THEM OFF IT
NickServ provides a handy command for this. If someone has taken your nick, enter the command /ns recover [nickname] [password]. No, there are no square brackets around the nickname and the password. This command will boot the other person off your nick so you're free to change back to it.
4.5) YOU CAN ACTUALLY HAVE MORE THAN ONE NICK REGISTERED TO YOU
This is /ns group - it adds the nick you are currently using to the group of nicks you can identify. If you have a registered nick and want to add another, just change to that nick, then /ns group [nick you want to group it to] [password]. No, there are still no square brackets around the nickname and password.
As an example, I use both EmeliaK and Emelia_Kaylee, so I've registered both of them by (while being Emelia_Kaylee) typing /ns group EmeliaK [hahaha i'm not giving away my password].
5) OUR CHAT IS A HORRIFICALLY MANGLED IRC THAT CONFUSES EVEN ME
This is because in the frustrations of everyone who didn't know how to use IRC, we decided to try and make the chat more friendly for people who don't know how to use IRC. Join/leave messages are insanely frequent because when somebody is browsing the forums and goes to a different page, it reloads the IRC client and reestablishes a connection, which essentially means you keep leaving and joining again every time you navigate to a different page.
6) THERE IS, IN FACT, HELP FUNCTIONALITY THAT ACTUALLY INFORMS YOU ON WHAT YOU CAN DO
Confused on registering a nickname? Enter the command /ns help. Go from there.
Alternatively, there is Google. All information will technically be specific to a different IRC server, but there's enough of an overlap between functionality that it shouldn't pose a problem. After all, IRC is a standard, and standards were made so that everything would work like each other.
7) IF ALL ELSE FAILS, THERE ARE PEOPLE WHO KNOW HOW TO USE IRC (THIS MAINLY ENTAILS ME)
I'm not being self-aggrandising - if you're confused or stymied by the chat in any regard, and can't figure it out, highlight me. What's highlighting? You use my nick in your message. I'm usually either EmeliaK or Emelia_Kaylee. I'm on for a good portion of the day, so I might catch you.
That's a joke.