Sierra Planet - Game Chatroom

Sierra Planet has a registerd IRC chat server channel, so now we can have a place to do realtime chats! The Internet Relay Chat program has been around for years now, even before the popularity of instant messengers like ICQ, MSN, Yahoo, and AIM. A lot of chatters are familiar with IRC, so Sierra Planet decided to join in on the fun. You can view the chatroom visitors log book on the official King's Quest forums to see if anyone is online. The forum times are in the USA Pacific time zone.

Download and install the mIRC or Trillian chat program if you do not have one.
Load the mIRC or Trillian chat program.
Log into one of the gamesurge.net servers:
- irc.gamesurge.net, irc.us.gamesurge.net, irc.ca.gamesurge.net, irc.eu.gamesurge.net, irc.au.gamesurge.net, etc.
Load the #sierraplanet channel.

GameSurge was formerly known as GamesNet, but GamesNet was in a legal battle over its name, so that's why it is now GameSurge. You can download the official mIRC chat program, which is by far the most widely used one, but it is 30-day shareware program unless you register. You can also browse a list of other IRC programs to find one that better suits you. Also, if you use the freeware Trillian program to connect to various instant messenger accounts at once, you can also connect to an IRC channel and use graphical emoticons while you chat.

GUIDE TO CONNECTING TO AN IRC CHATROOM

The images provided are based on the mIRC chat program found at www.mirc.com. However, the basic login procedure should be very similar with any IRC client. After installing the program, load it. When the mIRC program loads, you will see a dialog box that asks you to connect to a server. Type in or select the "GameSurge" server. You can select whichever server is available and closest to you from the drop-down menu. You will need to input your name, email, a password, and some chat nickname aliases.

If your server list does not include GameSurge, you can add it manually one of several ways. Just type the following command into command or message box:

/server -a irc.gamesurge.net -g GameSurge -d GameSurge IRC Network

Alternatively, you can click on the ADD button on the right side of the "Connect" or "Connect > Servers" dialog box. A smaller dialog box will apear. Fill it out with the information below. Again, you can select any one of the three server addresses listed above.

The mIRC program will connect to the server, and you will see some server greeting messages. If the program doesn't automatically connect, click on the lightning button, or go to the "File" menu and select the "Connect" option. Then a dialog box will appear with a channels list. In the text box at the top, type in "#sierraplanet" and press the top JOIN button.

Alternatively, once you connect to the server, you can go to the "Commands" menu at the top of the mIRC program window and select the "Join Channel" option. A small dialog box will appear. Type in "#sierraplanet" and press the OK button.

You should then be connected to the Sierra Planet IRC chatroom! Start chatting away!

Below is a screenshot of the same IRC chat session using Trillian. As you can see, you can use Trillian's graphical emoticons while you chat, although mIRC users will just get the text equivalents on their screens.