The Bare Bones:
Already know how to setup IRC? Look no further:

The server:

irc.darklordpotter.net​

The port:

6667​

IRCP Invite || IRCCloud Invite​

How to get on IRC:
Getting a client and getting started.

• Clients:

You'll need an IRC client in order to connect to the DLP server. If you're just starting out with IRC I'd recommend irccloud, which is a browser-based service that's free to make an account on and is generally rather user-friendly.

If you're feeling super lazy, we also have a DLP mibbit IRC client, which you can access by clicking 'IRC Chat' in the navigation bar of every page. It doesn't have a lot of features compared to other clients, but you won't need to download anything or make an account.

Other popular IRC clients include mIRC, X-Chat, Hexchat, Chatzilla, KVirc, AndroIRC... generally, a client is a program you download and run on your own machine.

When you have a client, connect to the DLP server by providing the server address and port listed above.

Using IRCcloud? Here's an invite.​

• Registering your nick:
  Register your nickname so it belongs to you.
  
  
  Type this, where 'password' is whatever you choose:
  

  Code:

  /msg NickServ REGISTER password [email]

  
  
  To use your registered nickname:
  

  Code:

  /msg NickServ IDENTIFY <password>

  Many clients support sending your password automatically.
  ​
• Connecting to the main channel:
  Main is the general purpose channel of the DLP IRC network.
  
  
  Type this and you're in:
  

  Code:

  /join #darklordpotter

​

Using IRC:
Useful tips and know-how.

• Etiquette:
  
  
  First off, don't be annoying. Pissing people off on IRC is a good way to get banned. Unless the channel is quiet, it's usually a good idea to lurk a little before you start typing, to see how people interact.​
• Nickalerts:
  
  On most clients, you can add nickalerts which will alert you whenever whatever string you put in there is said by someone. These are very handy if you have a way of shortening your nickname.​
• Some IRC commands:
  
  
  • Changing your nick
    
    Code:

    /nick <new name>

  • Message another user
    
    Code:

    /msg <username>

  • Leave a channel
    
    Code:

    /part

  • Check who someone is
    
    Code:

    /whois <username>

And so that's it! Have fun. Please don't be an idiot and make me ban you.

Want to see the old thread on setting up mIRC? Here you go.

 

Have we ever considered preconfiguring clients so people could just change the nickname and go for it? It's something I did for a community I used to frequent, and it helped get a lot of people onto irc who would not have prior. On the one hand, spoonfeeding and security concerns are an issue. Still, it's something I've been pondering for a while.

 

I knew about that, and it's great to have, but I never thought it was conducive to encouraging long term/repeat users. It helps in that it at least exposes members to the fact that we have an irc, but having a client running all the time makes it so people can get nickalerted easier. I always found that having a dedicated client running meant that I would be exposed to it more frequently, and it's part of what made me a regular user. I've been in dozens of communities that had or used irc, but until I got a dedicated client its only use was if something went wrong. I treated it like site support rather than a place to hang out.