This is going to come off negative, but I am sorry. I realize I should keep my mouth shut, but here we go...
> IRC? To build a community? Seriously? :) > > It really shows and says quiet allot for so many in this area to comment > negatively towards IRC. If only people realized how crucial IRC is to > the FOSS world. Most any project has a IRC channel and allot of core > interaction amongst developers and community leaders happens in IRC. > Most the software your running on your Linux system comes about via IRC. > Go see how many projects don't have a IRC channel, because most will. > IRC is not a social medium, it's a congregation point. IRC isn't something you casually cruise by to get updates from, nor is it something that can easily be aggregated in to a feed in realtime. "Hey, we are having a meeting on Tuesday" scroll, scroll, scroll, GONE. It's terribly short-sighted to basically bash other social mechanisms and call them fads yet think so highly of IRC when that's not the intent of IRC at all. Not to mention, try firing up IRC at work... boom, port blocked. At the end of the day, who cares how many projects have an IRC channel. It's not relevant to the conversation that is happening. Yes, it's a pain to keep multiple locations updated, but the more surface area you cover the more potential new people may be interested in the group. We had this conversation about Twitter too, which you bagged on. Yet most of the updates and cutting edge news, at least in the security field, is on Twitter now. Twitter is world-wide and large, IRC is small with little communities. The compare the two and say they accomplish the same goals is just ridiculous. You mentioned before that you didn't even have an account on these social sites and that you were proud of that. That isn't really the mark of an open-minded person. > How do you think I ended up getting involved in Gentoo, becoming a > developer, then on the foundations board of trustees, etc. Most meetings > within Gentoo, council etc take place on IRC. That all came about > because I ended up in #gentoo-java IRC channel, and started socializing > with others in the community. > Who cares. Once again, it has no bearing on the conversation we are having. You are just talking to hear yourself talk and making this about you instead of the community as a whole. > But thats not exclusive to Gentoo by any means. I followed lots of > activity within Debian simply by lurking in Debians IRC channels. Pretty > sure one of the JaxLUG's former presidents, Erinn Clark still lurks or > is active in the #debian-women IRC channel on OFTC. > Ah, same as before. Who cares and not relevant. Anytime I can't get answers from Google, mailing lists, forums, > bugzilla, etc. I tend to end up on IRC. Just go take a look at how many > channels exist and people are in those channels ;) > > IRC is NOT a thing of the past or anything to be underestimated. Also > where do you think most black markets take place? Hackers communicating, > organizing things, selling credit cards, etc. > Not relevant. Once again. If you know it shows, and if you don't well.... > > Making comments than IRC can't be used to build communities, and other > negativity toward IRC. Really that kind of thinking makes me want to > move to another area. At a minimum people are just casting out their own > personal opinions, showing a lack of experience, and any research as to > how IRC is used and/or the importance of IRC in 2011. Absolutely not, there have been plenty of points that other's have made that you have been completely unwilling to consider. I think you need to look at yourself next time before you start pointing fingers. It's terribly insulting the way you present your points and to think that other people haven't considered them or have absolutely no idea what you are talking about. I am in the security community, do you honestly think I don't know what IRC is or how it works? Insulting. It's not like you are talking quantum physics or something and everyone in the room is beneath you. -- *Nathan Hamiel* http://hexsec.com <http://hexsec.com/>http://twitter.com/nathanhamiel blog: www.neohaxor.org
