Awesome IRC

Website: https://github.com/davisonio/awesome-irc#readme
Category: Themed Directories
Tags: awesome-lists, communication, open-source

Overview

Awesome IRC is a curated, open-source directory of tools, software, and resources for the Internet Relay Chat (IRC) protocol. It organizes community-maintained links to clients, servers, bots, frameworks, and educational material related to IRC.

Features

Scope and Purpose

• Curated list focused specifically on IRC (Internet Relay Chat) and its ecosystem.
• Includes tools, software, and other resources related to the IRC protocol.
• Emphasizes open source and community-maintained projects where available.

Resource Categories

Clients

• Collection of IRC client applications used to connect to IRC networks.
• Covers multiple platforms, including (as indicated by tags in the list):
  • macOS
  • iOS
  • Windows
  • Linux
  • Web-based clients
  • Browser-specific clients (e.g., Chrome)
  • Android
  • Emacs-based clients
  • BSD
  • Cygwin
  • ChromeOS
  • WINE-compatible clients
• Notes that some clients with integrated bouncer functionality are listed separately under Bouncers.

Bouncers

• Tools that maintain persistent IRC connections so users can disconnect/reconnect without losing session history.
• Split into:
  • Hosted bouncers
    • Implementations in languages such as Objective-C and Java.
    • Includes macOS-focused options.
  • Self-hosted bouncers
    • Implementations in languages such as Perl, JavaScript, C++, C, Go, Node.js.
    • Options that provide web interfaces.
    • Cross-platform support (Linux, macOS, Windows) where indicated.

Daemons

• Software for running your own IRC server or network.
• Focused on IRC server daemons that power standalone servers or networks.

Services

• Software providing account and channel services commonly known as NickServ, ChanServ, etc.
• Intended for use with self-hosted networks to manage user identities, channel registrations, and related automation.

Bots

• IRC bots that provide services, integrations, or automation for human users.
• Implemented in various languages, including:
  • C
  • Python (multiple entries)
  • Clojure
  • Brainfuck
  • C++
  • Ruby
  • Go
• Cover a range of use cases such as information lookup, integrations, and channel utilities.

Frameworks

• Libraries and frameworks that simplify writing IRC bots or integrating IRC into applications.
• Implemented in multiple programming languages, including:
  • JavaScript
  • Go
  • Java
  • Perl6
  • C++

Bridges (Subcategory of Frameworks / Integrations)

• Tools that relay messages between IRC and other platforms (“bridges”).
• Responsible for sending messages back and forth between IRC and external systems.
• Implemented in several languages:
  • JavaScript
  • Python
  • Go
  • C
• May bridge IRC with other chat systems or protocols (details in individual entries in the repo).

Channels

• List of notable IRC channels.
• Aims to help users discover active or topic-specific IRC channels.

Discovery

• Resources and tools for discovering IRC channels across networks.

Platforms

• Platforms or services that help aggregate, host, or index IRC channels and communities.

Networks

• Directory of IRC networks (collections of IRC servers).
• Helps users find and connect to different public or thematic IRC networks.

Articles

• Articles and blog posts about IRC.
• Covers topics such as history, usage, ecosystem discussions, and technical overviews (as linked in the repo).

Guides

• How-tos and documentation resources about using IRC.
• May include setup guides, best practices, and protocol-related documentation.

Project Metadata

• Hosted on GitHub as an open curated list.
• Includes contribution guidelines (contributing.md) for community submissions and updates.
• Licensed under an open license (license.txt present in the repository).

Pricing

• Not applicable. Awesome IRC is a free, open, curated list of resources and does not offer paid plans.