If you were redirected to another channel such as
/join #
You can now view messages in the large pane of the XChat window or enter messages in the text field at the bottom of the window. To find out about a specific user, right-click on that username and select the name from the pop-up list that will appear. XChat will display basic information about that user.
To send a private message to another user, use the /msg command:
/msg
In the message pane, when on a public channel, outbound private messages are identified by angle- brackets pointing at the username:
>olgovie< | I don't think that will work.
When other users send a private message to you, that message will appear in a separate tab at the bottom of the screen. The label text on a tab will turn red if there are unread messages on that tab, providing you with an easy way of monitoring multiple channels and several private conversations at the same time. Messages that you enter while a private tab is active are automatically private, even without the use of /msg
IRC communication has a unique flavor. It's a good idea to lurk on a channel for a little while to get a sense of the discussion tone and key players before jumping into the conversation. Because IRC is immediate, answers to questions may not be as carefully reasoned out as those received through the mailing listsso beware!
9.2.2. How Does It Work?
IRC works through a distributed network of servers that relay messages back and forth between connected clientshence the name
The FreeNode network is a small, high-capacity IRC network operated by the Peer-Directed Projects Center (PDPC) in support of peer-directed projects, including many open source projects. Most of the FreeNode staff are volunteers.
9.2.3. What About...
9.2.3.1. ...saving an IRC discussion?
There are two ways to save a discussion in XChat: you can enable logging, which automatically logs all discussion on all channels, or you can save text, which performs a one-time save of the current text (300 lines by default) in the current topic:
? To enable logging, select Edit>Preferences to expose the preferences window shown in Figure 9-5. In that window, select the Chatting>Logging category (on the left side), and then select the checkbox labeled 'Enable logging of conversations.'
Figure 9-5. XChat preferences window
? The logfiles are in plain-text format and are stored in
? $ cd ~/.xchat2/xchatlogs
? $ ls
? FreeNode (formerly OpenProjects.net)-##fedora-join-instructions.log
? FreeNode (formerly OpenProjects.net)-#fedora.log
? FreeNode (formerly OpenProjects.net)-freenode (formerly openprojects.net).log
? To save the current text in the current channel, use the menu option Window>Save Text.
Since each log filename contains special characters and spaces, you will need to quote the filename when using it in a command:
$ grep
9.2.3.2. ...other ways of accessing IRC?
From time to time, you may want to connect to IRC from a computer that does not have an IRC client when you don't have administrative permission to install oneat a friend's house or a library, for example.
The ChatZilla extension to Firefox offers a chat client that runs within the Firefox browser. Since some systems permit users to install extensions without superuser privilege, you may be able to use this approach. Within Firefox, select Tools>Extensions to bring up the Extensions window, and then click the Get More Extensions link in the corner of that window to go to the Firefox Extensions web site. Browse to or search to find the ChatZilla extension, the click the Install Now button. Confirm the installation on the dialog that appears; when the extension has finished installing, restart Firefox, then click Tools>ChatZilla.
The other option is to use a
9.2.4. Where Can I Learn More?
? The Fedora Project communication page can be found at http://fedoraproject.org/wiki/Communicate
? The XChat home page: http://xchat.org/
