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Special IRC Guide Edition. Part 5


SFP Press is pleased to present the final part of a five-part guide to using the IRC (Internet Relay Chat). This guide was written by the SFP's greatest proletarian Mario Brother, Captain Zhao Ji, eternal sentinel of #socialistfreedomparty and ein bisschen wie ein Störenfried.


Zhao Ji, supreme master of the art of disappearance


To speak to Zhao Ji in person, head on over to Rizon IRC at #socialistfreedomparty.



IRC 105, A Judge's Guide or: Cool and Unusual Punishment

by Zhao Ji


Kicks are good, bans are great,
but they change their host and proliferate.


The operator's dilemma: Troublemaker, or Life of the Party?


What you really want to do instead is aKick for the really stubborn bastards. aKick stands for auto-kick. It's a chanserv function that anybody can use (and this time you won't have to register anything.) To use it, all you have to type is ".akick add {nick/hostmask}" The non-bot command is "/cs akick add {nick/hostmask}"

"Wait a minute, what the hell is a hostmask, Cap'n?" It's a unique identifier that each person who connects to the network is given by the server. Depending on which type is used, it can give away a geographic location and the ISP you're using, or it can be completely useless. They typically look like this:

Useful
Useless
Code:
User@ABCDEF-HIJKL-MNOPRS

And, depending on how you ban somebody from your channel, you can either ban them by their nick or their hostmask. You'll see something like this in the channel:

* TheKey sets mode: +b *!*@ABCDEF.HIJKL.MNOPRS

That's a hostmask ban. It will prevent anyone with that particular hostmask from joining your channel. There's also nick bans:

* TheKey sets mode: +b User!*@*

This will prevent anyone from joining the channel with that specific nick. You'll notice they both follow a strict format:

*!*@*

The first asterisk is the nickname they were using, the second is the name they had given the client. The third is their actual hostmask. It's always best to ban a person by their hostmask, not their nick, and it's always better to ban then to kick a person from a channel if you want them to be gone for good.



But there's a problem. What if you encounter something like the one I have?

ZhaoJi!z@the.peoples.workhorse

It's what's called a vhost. It's different but just as ban-able. The problem is that I can disable it and walk right back into the channel I was just banned from. Then you have to ban me again.

There are also means of getting past bans without a vhost. They're called proxies. A proxy, in case you weren't aware, is a computer that you connect to with your computer, which you use to connect to anything else. In this case, it's an IRC network. They're pretty much outright against Rizon's user agreement, so it's a good idea not to use any. But occasionally you'll get somebody who will. And in both cases you'll just have to re-apply the ban.

It's also worth noting that using a vhost for the purpose of evading channel bans are against Rizon ToS. You can contact an IRCop to revoke their rights and get them g-lined.


Be a smooth operator.


Before you ask: An IRCop stands for "IRC Operator", and before you say anything, no, that isn't you. You're a channel operator. The IRCops are the ones who moderate the servers that host your channel.

A g-line stands for "Global K-line" It's what bans are to channels, only for the entire network.

That's all for now. I know I missed stuff. It's not easy explaining every facet of the client side of an entire synchronous communications platform. How about instead of complaining, help me out by telling me what I missed or asking for information on something that you desperately want to know?









New to the game? Hungry? Low Wellness? Need to get in out of the rain? Help is available. Contact the SFP's Rainy Day Food Reserve for assistance.


Looking for job at a fair wage? Check out the SFP Commune's collection of profit share Co-ops. Using a variety of methods to work together for a fair shake in the economic module, these companies are run by and for the workers: SFP Communal Grain II, Floating Monkey Grain, Harmonic Iron Works, Workers Weapons, Civil Food, Syndicalist Oil, and Ho Chi Minh Trailways.




It's Your Game. Rock the world: Join the Socialist Freedom Party today.


Friends and curiosity-seekers are welcome join us on our forum at socialistfreedom.org and on Rizon IRC at #socialistfreedomparty.



IRC Guide, Part 1
IRC Guide, Part 2
IRC Guide, Part 3
IRC Guide, Part 4