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by stackghost 123 days ago
I still use a few niche IRC channels and run my own internal IRC network as a home automation message bus, so I'm a fan of IRC for its simplicity, but honestly: IRC really does need a modernization.

Things like image embeds, "markdown lite" formatting, and cross-device synchronization are now considered table stakes. There are always going to be some EFnet-type grognards who resist progress because reasons, but they should be ignored.

IRCv3 and Ergo support some of what's needed already (and in a backwards-compatible way!) but client support just isn't there yet, particularly on mobile.
1 comments
duskwuff 123 days ago
> Things like [...] are now considered table stakes.

One other feature that's absolutely considered table stakes now is persistent server-side history, with the ability to edit and delete messages. Modern chat services are less like IRC, and more like a web forum with live updates.

(Yes, you can poorly emulate server-side history on IRC with a bouncer. That's not enough, and it's a pain for users to set up.)

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wolvoleo 123 days ago
There's also quassel which solves the problem a bit like a bouncer but it's way more integrated, it just loads the scrollback on demand instead of just banging the latest 200 lines into my buffer when I connect. Solves the problem perfectly IMO and there's a really excellent android client.
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duskwuff 123 days ago
It's still not server-side history, though - you can't join a channel and see what happened before you joined, or edit a message you've already sent. It's just a slightly cleaner implementation of an IRC bouncer.
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wolvoleo 123 days ago
Hmm no but that's usually a good thing. I've had some late night chats where I knew all the other people around and it would not be so cool if anyone else could just join and scroll back to it.

In fact this is the reason some irc networks blocked matrix bridges at first (they now have settings to disable this)

I'm not saying mainstream people should use IRC though. Matrix is better for that.

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duskwuff 123 days ago
It's situational. In a lot of contexts, especially in large public chats, being able to see history when you join is perfectly fine and good.

Telegram lets group admins choose whether members can see history from before they join, which is the perfect solution (IMO).

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stackghost 123 days ago
>One other feature that's absolutely considered table stakes now is persistent server-side history, with the ability to edit and delete messages.

Indeed.

Ergo offers server-side history but I'm not sure it supports edit/delete yet.

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movedx 123 days ago
> Ergo offers server-side history but I'm not sure it supports edit/delete yet.

I don't think it does, no. I've only just started using it, though.

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