"nick just whois'd you"

W-Unit · Newbie Joined: 29 Jul 2004 Posts: 83

I've always wondered what the point was.
Seems to me like it would just flood your status window on 1000+ user networks and on smaller networks...well I still don't really see a use for it. It also makes you ignore imporant status messages because when you see your status window blinking and hear the five beeps indicating you just received a /notice you say "Ah well it's probably just another /whois" and ignore it.
I never use this mode and only give it to my opers by request because a) most of them don't want it anyway, b) it is somewhat abusable (I was just looking a a post in IRC help about being Z:Lined for /whois'ing) and c) if nothing else it gives the opers one more thing they can use to flaunt their power.

If anyone has a practical use for it or background information on who the hell thought it up and/or why I would be most interested to know what it is.

Ashen · Idler Joined: 05 Jan 2004 Posts: 284

It, like notices about when someone does /admin, /links and so on, can be used by opers to find people who are 'casing the joint' - surveying the network prior to an attack.

Personally though, I've never seen it used as anything other then a way for opers to either have ego trips or get pointlessly bitchy with users who /whois them every few minitues via scripts.

-Ashen

katsklaw · Posted: Oct 06, 2004 11:05am Post subject:

aquanight · Lurker Joined: 14 Jun 2004 Posts: 116 Location: Boise, ID

You think that's bad? A few times I saw an oper that would have a script that triggers when the get the whois notice! One said something like "Hey, go /whois yourself" or something like it, and another had a script that said "You are #xxx to whois me." (where xxx is, of course, some number maintained by a nice script variable...) I can't recall any others... but Razz

UGH. If I ever had an oper abuse that, I'd delete their operblock in a heartbeat!

EviL_SmUrF · Lurker Joined: 23 Feb 2004 Posts: 219

...

how exactly is having a "you are number ### to whois me" oper abuse?!

magpie · Idler Joined: 18 Jan 2004 Posts: 453 Location: Essex, UK

The whole feature seems utterly pointless to me. Also, if you're worried about LINKs and MAP (often valid concerns) I'd be tempted to simply disable the commands.

Plasma · Newbie Joined: 10 Dec 2003 Posts: 63

If I notice someone whois'ing me it does not annoy me at all (dont know why it does you)...

Usually these people are trying to see if your around so you can help them, and usually I just message them first and ask if they are after some help, and depending on if ive seen them before I know whether they do or not.

If you hate seeing it, turn off your whois notice or deop yourself, sheesh.

magpie · Idler Joined: 18 Jan 2004 Posts: 453 Location: Essex, UK

Doesn't bother me at all, I simply don't oper on networks that have crappy features like that. If people want to see if I'm around they'll either WHOIS me or just go ahead and query me, me being notified they're WHOIS'ing me wouldn't make me talk to them - I'm just not that bothered who's interested in where I am.

Things would be even worse if this mode isn't restricted to opers only, just think of the unnecessary data sent between servers on large networks!

katsklaw · Posted: Oct 07, 2004 7:08am Post subject:

radius · Lurker Joined: 24 Aug 2004 Posts: 114

I tend to agree with katsklaw on this ... it's just one more thing in the [status] screen to annoy you with ... there is enough going on to worry about then worrying whether or not someone wants to know your idle and server or ip addy.

Cheers!

aquanight · Lurker Joined: 14 Jun 2004 Posts: 116 Location: Boise, ID

pomme · none Joined: 05 Aug 2004 Posts: 28

The whois notice for opers was most likely developed for people who are in need of help. If I was searching around on a network for a helper and accidentally whois'd an operator, I wouldn't want to be labelled as a bad guy. Don't automatically assume everyone that uses /LINKS /ADMIN and /WHOIS are bad guys.

magpie · Idler Joined: 18 Jan 2004 Posts: 453 Location: Essex, UK

We're not pomme, must of us here are simply saying that the notice on WHOIS features are useless and utterly pointless.

I have to say the argument for having the feature because it lets you "find people needing help" is a rather dubious one. Most people new to a network and needing help will join a channel such as #help or #support, not WHOIS random people (on a large network they may never come across a staff member that way!).

EviL_SmUrF · Lurker Joined: 23 Feb 2004 Posts: 219

or you can always piss off every ircop on the network at once with the great /helpop command :p

example:

/helpop HELP ME PLZZZZ INEED HELPE I CANT REGISTR MY NIKNAME!!11!1!

Ib3N · Lurker Joined: 10 Mar 2004 Posts: 157 Location: ChatSpike

My 2 cents.

I noted that someone said that it must be a pain beeing on a 1k net with the whois feature.. well, Im on a 2.5k net and the whois doesnt bother me at all. And there are not that many pepole whoising anyway. ..And when someone does, I usually go in a pm asking the user if they need help. :p

And for helpop, most users doesnt even know it excist. Neither is it usefull for a net that runs a efficient network/help channel

I still think you guys must be quite bored, acomplishing to start a discussion over the whois feature.. Find something more giving to talk about... :p