Join the new world

This guide is a beginner introduction to IRC and Mibbit. It will explain how to get on IRC (using Mibbit), how to register your nickname, and how to identify to your nickname. These are very basic, yet important, things to know.

IRC Introduction

IRC (Internet Relay Chat) provides a way of communicationg in real time with people from all over the world. It is an online chat room system which eCanada uses for many different reasons. It helps to talk to other players to discuss ideas, make plans, or ask for help. It's also good for getting to know other players and becoming moreso part of the community.

In this guide, I will be explaining how to use Mibbit. Mibbit is a nice client for beginners because it is straightforward, simple and doesn't require you to download any software.


How To Get On IRC


Please note: Mibbit has changed the appearance of their site since these screenshots were taken, but this guide is still up-to-date on how to use Mibbit.

1. Go to the Mibbit website: http://mibbit.com/chat

You will see a page that looks like the above image. Right now, you only need to focus on the top of the two boxes:

2. Change the 'IRC' dropdown menu to 'Rizon [webirc]' (Pro Tip: by pressing 'R' when in the dropdown menu, you can quickly skip to the 'R' options). All of eCanada's channels are on the Rizon IRC network.

3. Enter your nickname in the box. This will be the name that other people will see you using on IRC. You should use a nickname that is close to your in-game eRep name. Also, you cannot use spaces in your nickname (use an underscore instead).

4. In the channel box, enter the channel you want to join. Enter '#eCan', as it is eCanada's main IRC channel.

5. Your window should now look similar to this:

If it does, click 'Go'.

You will then see a page that looks like this:

Now there will be three tabs at the top of the screen: the Home tab, the Rizon tab, and the #eCan (#😵 tab. The number in () lists how many people are in the room. The Rizon tab is all server stuff, which is useful to keep open, even if you don't need to know what the server is doing.

The biggest part of the screen is where all the chat info will be when people start talking. To the right of that is the list of active users. Since no one had talked yet, they're all listed as Idlers. Below both of these is the line you use to enter text. Type information in that box and hit the Enter key on your keyboard to send a message to the room.

You are now on IRC, and are able to talk with other people in the channel.

Registering Your Nickname

An important thing to do is to register your nickname. This will prevent other people from using it. Go to the Rizon tab to start the process.

There will be a lot of information displayed; don't worry about that. You will use this tab to enter commands, because it is safer than entering commands in a channel. In a channel, if you enter a command and make a mistake, it's bradcast to the enter channel. This can be very bad, as some commands require you to enter a password.

So, to register your nickname:

1. Make sure you're using the nickname you want to register. If you're not using the nickname you want to register, use this command to change nicknames:

/nick yournickname


2. Type the following command to register the nickname:

/msg nickserv register PASSWORD EMAILADDRESS


This command tells nickserv (the nickname system) that you want to register your current nickname, using the password 'PASSWORD' and the email address 'EMAILADRRES'. Note: Yahoo email addresses don't work for some reason, so try another email account.

3. If you have entered it correctly, nickserv will respond with the following message:

"A passcode has been sent to EMAILADDRESS, please type /msg NickServ confirm to complete registration"


4. Check your email address that you used to register for the passcode. You'll have received an email from the Rizon Admins about the registration. The email will instruct you how to complete the registration. Copy the text in quotes in the email (example text is shown below) and paste it into the Rizon tab. Makes sure there are no spaces before the / or else it won't work properly.
Example text:

/msg NickServ confirm JiBber1sh


6. Nickserv will respond with the message:

Nickname YOURNICKNAME registered under your account: _____________

Your password is YOURPASSWORD - remember this for later use.


Registration is now complete.

Identifying to your NickName

After you have registered your nickname, you will be able to identify to it, which proves that it's really you using the nickname. Everytime you get on IRC, you can use the following command to identify to your nickname:

/msg nickserv identify PASSWORD