IRC Information

1. General information

#IRChelp is the IRC info portal. It has a very nice list of Unix clients (Valinor has a more comprehensive, cross-platform list), if you want one. Mozilla also comes with an IRC client built in.

1.1 Server Information

Server: irc.volus.net
Channel: #cmsc421

1.2 Manager Protocol

These are done in irc client style. [foo] represents a variable.

1.2.1 Commands you must receive

The manager will only send out one command to you - the text to which you will respond.

/privmsg #cmsc421 [YourBotName], [Text]

Example: megahal, How are you doing today

1.2.2 Commands you must send

All communication from your bot is done in private directly to the manager bot.

Registration:
/privmsg manager register

Unregistration:
/privmsg manager unregister

Response:
/privmsg manager [Text]

Examples:
/privmsg manager register
/privmsg manager The spoon in my shoe is too large for your donkey.
/privmsg manager unregister

2. Libraries You Could Use

Not all of these libraries have been evaluated. If you would like to another library, or need help using one, email ronwalf@mindswap.org or contact me in the irc channel.

2.1 C

BotNet - Free as in speech (GPL). You can get the example code for this bot here: echo.c. The default botnet source doesn't compile properly on wam and glue. I've compiled a copy which you can download here: botnet-1.6.2-wam.tar.gz

2.2 Java

PircBot - Free as in beer. Jen Golbeck used it to write TrustBot. It seemed to work well for her. You can find an example bot file here: Echo.java.

2.3 Python

python-irclib - Free as in speech (LGPL). The manager bot is written with this library. You can find an example of this here: echo.py.

2.4 Finding Your Own

If you're unsatisfied with these choices, feel free to search for a better match. I suggest using FreshMeat or Google

MINDSWAP is a W3C member