Intro to IRC (Activity)

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Contents

Introduction to IRC

Preparation:

Description Learners will gain a basic understanding of IRC (Internet Relay Chat) as well as the role that IRC plays in open source software development. Participants will learn about IRC etiquette and explore the interactions that occur between members of an open source community.
Source Communication and Community
Prerequisite Knowledge None.
Estimated Time to Completion 60-75 minutes
Learning Objectives 1) Understand the importance of IRC as it relates to open source software development, 2) Become familiar with the interactions that occur in an IRC channel, 3) Learn how to connect to an IRC server and join a channel.
Materials/Environment Internet access, a Web browser and an IRC client.
Additional Information  ? Perhaps links here to other IRC resources like http://www.irchelp.org
Rights Licensed CC BY-SA

Background:

IRC is an essential tool used by open source software developers. It allows members of the community, or those interested in becoming involved in the community, to communicate 24/7, regardless of their geographic location. Bear in mind that ‘talking’ is not always a requirement. You will learn a great deal by ‘listening’, especially in the beginning.

Links to additional resources...

Directions:

Part 1 – Walk through of IRC Conversation

Download this sample IRC Conversation

As you review the conversation, you should:

  1. Pay attention to the interactions that occur between community members.
  2. Ignore the technical terms.
  3. Accept that the content may be beyond your understanding at this point, your first step in being productively lost.
  4. Observe the communication that occurs between community members. For example:
    • How do people interact?
    • What is the pattern of communication?
    • Are there any terms that seem to have special meaning?
    • Can you make any other observations?

Part 2 – Installing and Starting an IRC Client

There are many IRC clients to choose from, below is a brief list of suggestions:

  1. Windows: HydraIRC (http://www.hydrairc.com/)
  2. Linux: Konversation (http://konversation.kde.org/)
  3. Mac OS X: Colloquy (http://colloquy.info/)
  4. Firefox add-on: ChatZilla is a multi-platform add-on that will work on Windows, Linux and Mac OS X

For example, if you have Firefox running, it is quite easy to install the ChatZilla add-on.

  1. Click Tools from the main menu and then choose Add-ons. The Get Add-ons tab should be selected on the left. If you don’t see the main menu, click the down-arrow next to the Firefox button in the upper, left corner, hover over Options and select Menu Bar.
  2. Type ChatZilla in the search box found in the upper, right corner.
  3. Click the install button to the right of the ChatZilla add-on. Note that ChatZilla is available in a number of languages, so be sure to select the appropriate one.
  4. Restart Firefox.

Part 3 – Join and Observe Channel Discussion

Select an HFOSS project from the following group:


  1. Join the project's channel and observe the discussions that occurs for 24 hours.
    1. In Firefox, click Tools from the main menu and then choose ChatZilla.
    2. Need info here about what it means to observe for 24 hours.
  2. Summarize observations on faculty member’s wiki page
  3. Could also be a question about future materials.
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