mIRC is a great interface, or client in this case, to the Internet Relay Chat (IRC). I've read through a couple of reviews of this and have seen a couple that confuse the two, IRC and mIRC are two very different things. mIRC merely lets you get connected to IRC. That said, a few basics on what IRC is for those who don't know.

IRC is composed of a network of servers throughout the world that are all linked together. Using a client program (like mIRC) you can connect to one of those servers and become part of this IRC network. Nowadays, there are several IRC networks to chose from (Efnet, DalNet, Undernet, etc.) but originally there was only one -- Efnet. Once on an IRC network, you can join channels (which are the same things as chat rooms) based on subject. You can get a listing of channels that are available from the server, and almost anything you can imagine to talk about is out there. If you don't find what you want, you can create your own channel simply, and hope others will find it and join to talk. Everything you send to the channel goes out through the server network and is sent to all clients that have joined that channel. You can also send private messages to an individual if you like too.

mIRC provides a nice graphical interface to IRC. This very beneficial, having used the original text-based Unix clients I can tell you it is much easier to have a graphical interface. Each channel you join will have a seperate window within the program, where all messages for that channel are displayed. A list of the nicknames of everyone on that channel is displayed down the right side of this window, and the bottom part of the window is a place for you to type in commands and text to send to the channel. You can right click on a nickname to get a menu of options (such as open a query window to private message them, do a whois on them to get more info about the user, etc.) If you right click in the part of the window that displays the channel messages you will get different options pertaining to the channel. If you're a channel operator (one who can control and make changes to settings for that channel) these can be useful, letting you change things without having to know the text commands to type in. You can chose to have private messages all arrive in a single window, or have a window for each person you're talking to in private. Getting connected to a server is very easy, as you can click on a button to connect and it will default to a server, or you can click on a different button and choose the server you want to connect to first. There are also buttons to get channel listings (which you can also filter by keywords to narrow it down, or filter by number of users) and even an option to try to keep some of the more offensive channels from showing up in the list.

Highs: The interface is fairly intuitive, there are toolbar buttons to do almost anything you'll ever need to do. The help files are well written and easy to find things you need to know in. The program comes with a hefty lists of servers for you to connect to, making it easy for you to get on an IRC network. Right click menus are almost always helpful, and quicker to use than typing in the text command. mIRC is also free to download and try out, if you don't like it, simply uninstall it and that's that.

Lows: IRC is not the easiest medium to learn, while mIRC is a great interface and streamlines a lot of things, some knowledge about IRC is really needed to get the full enjoyment out of it. A few default options are annoying (such as sending all private messages to one window and minimizing it on creation -- this might have been changed in later releases), but nothing fatal and easy to fix. Gives you access to channels that will be discussing things you may rather not hear about (you don't have to join though) and many individuals on IRC are rude to frightening (especially towards women -- use a neuter nick if possible until you've learned more about things).

Bottom Line: One of the best ways to get on IRC, great interface, fairly simple to use and free to try. If you've heard about IRC and are wondering what it's all about, give this program a try -- it's a great way to get on IRC to check it out.



Recommended: Yes