How do I...

Get Started with IRC

Step 0: Choose an IRC client

I recommend Gaim or Chatzilla because they are easy to use, cross-platform and open source. Other popular ones include X-Chat (Unix/Linux), AdiumX (Mac) and Fire (Mac).

Why choose Gaim?
Gaim is slick, and it supports many IM protocols like AIM, ICQ, MSN and Jabber. Learn how to use Gaim and you can use it for everything.

Why choose Chatzilla?
Chatzilla is a plugin for Mozilla and Firefox. It's a one-click install (click the link below). Chatzilla lets you have your IRC client right on your browser.

Step 1: Install your IRC client

Choose a download site for
Windows, Red Hat, or Mandrake .

Install directly on Firefox or Mozilla.

Step 2: Initial setup (You will only need to do this once)

Instructions for Gaim

Instructions for Chatzilla

Step 3: Join the IRC chat (You will need to do this for each confernece)