Home

Accessing the Linux User Group IRC channel

Where is it?
Server: irc.pamoya.com
Port: 6667
Channel: #lug

Wait, what is IRC and how do I connect?
IRC is short for "Internet Relay Chat" and is a form of real-time Internet text-messaging or "chatting." IRC is great because it operates well over high-latency/slow connections and allows multiple people to communicate with each-other at the same time.

In order to connect to an IRC chat-room, you will need to have an IRC client (software application). There are thousands of different IRC clients available, and one can be found for almost any platform (Linux/Windows/Mac/Blackberry/Pocket PC/Sony PSP and more).

But the easiest way by far is to use the Java based IRC client on this site.

Once you have an IRC client installed and running, you will need to connect to an IRC server. There are thousands of servers across the Internet, each one being a self contained "chat universe" of sorts. The Uganda LUG uses a dedicated IRC server based here in Uganda, details of which can be found at the top of this page.

Once you're connected to an IRC server, you need to join a "channel." This is generally accomplished by typing /join #channel in the input prompt once connected to an IRC server. IRC channels are generally displayed as #channelname -- for example the LUG IRC channel is #lug.

IRC clients
Please see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparison_of_IRC_clients

This site only covers a small number of IRC clients available. If you have a particular device or platform you wish to run IRC on, don't be afraid to use Google to search for one. If your device/platform can be used on a network, there is probably an IRC client for it.

Example: Using Pidgin to connect to the LUG IRC channel
Pidgin is an easy example to use, because it comes pre-installed with Ubuntu and many other Gnome-based Linux distributions.

Pidgin is packaged for many specific platforms as well:

If you run winblows, you can get a copy of Pidgin from the Mountbatten Downloads

Once installed, here's a quick tutorial on how to connect:

Start Pidgin. Locate the Pidgin icon in your menu and click. Or open a console and type pidgin.

Once Pidgin is running go to “Accounts > Manage Accounts” on the Pidgin Menu Bar. Here you will see all your accounts if you have any. Click “Add” to add an account.

In this next menu you will see the account setup. Enter the information as follows:

1. Protocol: IRC
2. Username: Your Desired IRC username
3. Server: “irc.pamoya.com” (ignore quotes)
4. Password: leave blank
5. Local Alias: Anything but not necessary
6. Port: leave as is
7. Username: leave blank
9. Real Name: your real name or anything you wish it to be.
10. Click Add and then Close.

You should see the server window open with messages like:
Conversation with irc.pamoya.com on Wed 29 Apr 2009 08:40:54 EAT:
(08:40:54) irc.pamoya.com: (notice) *** Spoofing your IP. congrats.
(08:40:55) irc.pamoya.com: (notice) *** You are exempt from K/D/G lines. congrats.
(08:40:55) irc.pamoya.com: (notice) *** You are exempt from user limits. congrats.

On the Pidgin menu bar, click Buddies > Join Chat, and enter the channel “#lug”. Then Click Join.

Looking forward to seeing you there!