IRC: dead or alive?

iigor · Newbie Joined: 18 Jul 2003 Posts: 86 Location: Toronto, CA

[post deleted]

or at least it says so.. hmm :lol:

moonman · Lurker Joined: 15 Jul 2003 Posts: 212

you're like the crazy old grandpa that tells a long, winding story leading to...

nothing.

iigor · Newbie Joined: 18 Jul 2003 Posts: 86 Location: Toronto, CA

Actually, i did have a point.

I spent lots of time on the network and channel i loved and when it got closed IRC died for me... and I know it died for many others as well. So my point is that you can't say IRC is always alive since for some it is dead Smile

. I realise the story is long and prolly boring Smile

sorry if you wasted your time reading it.

ed · Posted: Jul 19, 2003 1:33pm Post subject:

Actually, It would be rather hard for IRC to die. One IRC server or network may close, but that doesn't mean IRC has died. Move on. Check out other networks.

Ghent · Guest

Who cares?

U · Eleet Joined: 18 Jun 2003 Posts: 521 Location: IRC

If your favorite network dies, there may be a death of IRC-but not really. IRC isn't going anywhere, the fact that SearchIRC indexes 900 networks (though most are probably under 500 users) shows that fact.

However, if some of the BS keeps up, I could see "major" irc dying-it takes massive sponsorship and/or a bunch of people who are willing to get along to keep a major network going nowadays-and since some people are intent to just mess with networks all of the time, its harder and harder to get bandwith donated, the costs for it will just keep going up.

IRC isn't going down without a fight though, I can guarentee that.

Jason · Posted: Jul 20, 2003 6:41pm Post subject:

hehe. I like this topic.

Here's some info:

According to SearchIRC's about page:

U · Eleet Joined: 18 Jun 2003 Posts: 521 Location: IRC

I'm sure with 48 servers only indexed, it was easy to see merges, dropouts, and inconsistancies with entries.

You've gone from 30 mins maintance a day to an 8 hour full time job Smile

Jason · Posted: Jul 20, 2003 6:46pm Post subject:

There were quite a few small networks, but I doubt if there were even half as many as there are now. Networks did merge and do other things that would require updates, but no where near the pace that they do currently.

Right now, I'm wishing I had a staff of at least 12 well trained monkeys to do the updates on this site.

iigor · Newbie Joined: 18 Jul 2003 Posts: 86 Location: Toronto, CA

I'm sure many monkeys would love to help this site.. Razz

Mary · SearchIRC Admin Joined: 03 May 2003 Posts: 696

Actually, U, its even more than one full time job. We figured we would add the networks and then put in a few hours every week making updates. HA. They keep coming... and coming... and merging and recombining and renaming themselves! I put in an 8 hour day and I am always several days behind. Jason spends hours every day working on networks and channel changes and additions, and Ed says it takes him three hours every day to keep the Network Status page up to date.

Mary · SearchIRC Admin Joined: 03 May 2003 Posts: 696

12 well trained monkeys, huh? You can't AFFORD well trained monkeys! :p~

Jason · Posted: Jul 20, 2003 6:57pm Post subject:

Thats why you guys are helping out.

iigor · Newbie Joined: 18 Jul 2003 Posts: 86 Location: Toronto, CA

Do you get paid for your job or is it just a hobby?
I dont see many ads on SearchIRC Razz

however any other owner/admin would probably want his work to be paid.
However, it must feel great to be an admin on the best IRC web site. Smile

Jason · Posted: Jul 20, 2003 7:06pm Post subject:

I have a full time job, and it's NOT SearchIRC :P

If you add up the cost of the servers, the dedicated T1, the cisco routers, UPS, kvm's, etc, I've spent well over $20,000 USD on the SearchIRC project since inception.

There are a few small banners on the top of some pages (Google's AdSense), but I'm basically just testing them out. I personally dislike ads.

On the other hand, if a small number of ads on SearchIRC can make SearchIRC pay for itself (e.g; users must click on them since it's pay-per-click), then that will ensure that SearchIRC will remain around for a long time to come :)

I try not to make a big deal out of the ads though, and make sure they're not intrusive. The goal for SearchIRC is to be an IRC resource, not a cash cow.