mIRC is an internet chat relay system which connects to irc servers. It is free to download from mirc.co.uk, you are supposed to register it. I haven't yet, and I don't really plan to. I'm completely happy with the service as it is.

The reason I downloaded it was because it let me access a whole bunch of different chats at once. Instead of having two different webpages open, with two different chats, I only had to open mIRC and then connect to the chats. (so long as they had the same server, which in most cases they did.)

In my opinion, mIRC is simple to use, you just use slash commands to operate it. For example, /server irc.linkline.com, /join #cbox is what you type to join a chat, though you have to specify which chat. (each chat has a # in front of it's name. so if you wanted to join setsunachat, you'd type /join #cob) You can open unlimited windows in this program, whether you're private chatting or if you're in a few completely different rooms.

You can register your nicknames, which I really liked, and there's no limit on how many you can register. You do have to keep using the nicks you register though, because if they're inactive, you can lose them and others can take them. mIRC also lets you switch nicks in the middle of a session, another feature I liked. However, you can't continously switch nicks, there's a time limit on how often you can do that. An easy way to switch nicks is to type /nick and then whatever name you want. (example: /nick cbox would give me the nick of cbox.)

mIRC lets you switch servers quite readily. You can just switch in the options box (the box you first see when you connect, which also lets you change your nickname.) and change back when you feel like it. Because there are so many channels, there are more chat rooms within mIRC than anywhere I've ever seen. For each server, there are whole lists of chats, not only from the USA or the UK, but from
around the world.

Perhaps the handiest feature of mIRC is the list channels feature. It will list all of the chats a particular server has, and it will tell you how many people are currently in them. That way you don't have to search for someone to talk to, it's all right there, along with a little description of what the chat's devoted to.

When you're actually in a chat room, there are a lot of things you can to enhance your writing. You can change colors, make it bold or italic, and make something you're doing seem like an action. Once again, the use of the slash comes in. Some of these commands are a little tricky at first, but with practise, it all becomes easy.

Also, mIRC lets you find out more about other chatters by the /whois feature. You either can right click their name in the chat room and choose whois, or type /whois and their name. It can tell you how they're connected and which other chats they are in. Sometimes it tells you how long it's been since they've typed something. Like instant messangers, you can create a buddy list in mIRC. It's really handy.

mIRC seems really simple to me now, but it wasn't as straightforward as other services I've used. The people in the chats really helped me though, especially the ops. (operators) If you're new and need help, just ask them. They probably won't mind giving you a few pointers.

And if you're not a beginner, or you adjust very quickly, you can add features to mIRC yourself. You can create your own chat rooms, or make your own slash commands. (I've made shortcuts to enter my favorite chats, and I've also made a few "pop-ups" or messages that are automatically entered with a slash command.) Another thing you can do is send files back and forth, whether they be text or images. Just be careful not to accept files from people you don't know- it's an easy way to get a virus.


It's a really helpful service if you like chatting, though it may be a little overwhelming at first. It only takes a little bit of practise. I'm still finding new and surprising little tidbits about mIRC every once and awhile, and I recommend it to those of you who like to communicate.