What's Up With IRC

Currently we have #portableapps , #portableapps-ot , and #portableapps-dev as the offical channels, then there are a bunch of really silly ones that I will not mention.

currently #portableapps is the ONLY one actively used for EVERYTHING, and ANYTHING, and the kitchen sink as well,

Though some of us are trying to change that.

Tim

Although, due to school and homework, I don't spend much time on the forums, I do spend a lot of my time on the IRC. And, I notice a trend.

Now, I think that Tim is right, in that #portableapps should most certainly not be used for discussion of things like TV shows, pets, and other random things. Those types of things should be kept in #portableapps-ot. I don't think though that it is a good idea to completely abolish talking in #portableapps. Quite frankly, I think that would defeat the purpose of support. When no one ever talks in a channel, and someone comes in for help, it is hard to keep a user base in there. People don't want to come into an IRC channel where no one is there, everyone is idling, or everyone is focused on another room. That is why I think discussion is key in #portableapps.

I do notice something. There are a few people (I won't name names) that like to "take charge" where charge should not be taken, and strongly suggest that all discussion be moved to #portableapps-ot. I just want to say right here, that is not our policy, and, honestly, that needs to stop. There are also those that do not take charge when it should be taken. We need to be more consistent, and we need to be more aware of what the official policy is, not what one's personal policy is.

Saying that, here is the current official policy, as agreed upon by most of the operators, including Ryan and I (I do believe Patrick agrees with this, but I won't put words into his mouth). All conversation that can be considered "off-topic" is to be in #portableapps-ot. The topic in #portableapps is, obviously, PortableApps.com and related. Related can be interpreted, I suppose, but I'm pretty sure "related" is anything tech-related.

Please correct me if I missed something, got something wrong, etc.

So, I've read the other comments, and I pretty must agree with Kevin, as I usually do, but I wanted to add some more of what I think.

#portableapps is intended to be the official channel (duh). This is the channel people connect to by default, and contains the most users. #portableapps-dev is for development. While some development talk does occur in #portableapps, it's nice to be able to escape to #portableapps-dev for development talk if support is occuring, which has happened on various occasions. I myself registered #portableapps-ot as after being suggested at the time, it sounded like a good idea and it seemed quite necessary. #portableapps-ot is not used often, as mentioned above, but I do like to have it there to throw away off-topic 'crap', if you will, when needed. As Kevin mentioned above, #portableapps is for PortableApps.com discussion, and general 'tech' related stuff as that's directly related with what we do here, software.

In terms of 'off-topicness' in #portableapps, I agree with Kevin in saying it doesn't really happen all that often, it's more just a compilation of pointless comments and remarks from some users. I personally believe we need to tighten up on this because it's natural for most people and they forget that the channel is for official support now.

In terms off all other stupid channels that are used or in most cases registered, they all seem, in my not so humble opinion, stupid. I feel they should not exist as an extension of #portableapps. If you wanna chat about random stuff, take it to a different channel, stop using #portableapps-* to register whatever you'd like.

That's basically what I think. Oh, and what Kevin said too.

(Still catching up on all the forum posts, I do promise to read all of them eventually)

#portableapps as discussed is mainly chat and support and the two seem to mingle quite well. I've noticed that if a discussion is going on and a user comes in for support, the discussion is usually paused and those involved help out the user and only go back to their discussion once they've helped the user. The discussion, in my opinion, should be anything that could be discussed in General Discussion and some of what is discussed in the Off-Topic Forum.
#portableapps-dev isn't being used that much, but we don't have a whole lot to discuss there.
On the subject of #portableapps-ot, I have no comment, as I don't join it, although I do include it in the list of official channels. I believe the topics in #portableapps-ot should be anything that could not go in the Off-Topic Forum, as it relates less to PortableApps.com or technology in general.

And that's my thoughts. For anything else, see Patrick and Kevin's comments

I am not a member of the team but I hope I can share my opinion with you. I think a single channel is more then enough. Or not more then 2 #portableapps and #portableapps-dev .

You're saying people are creating many unofficial channels and using the name "portableapps". But you're partially guilty for that too. You created 3 official channels. Way too many channels.

A bit of chat in #portableapps will make no harm. At least it will be active. Only a small number of people are coming to the channel. And it doesn't seem to me that an occasional chat would make any damage to PortableApps. I see it more like a friendly channel. You are a community. It shouldn't be only about technical stuff.

My feeling is that #portableapps is for everything. Usually, we have no trouble with getting people to shut up when a person comes in for support.

#portableapps-ot should be used for discussion when something important is happening in #portableapps.

The appropriate place for support is where people hang out and talk. People are there, talking, and are ready when someone shows up looking for help.

#portableapps-dev is kinda pointless. For a good hard discussion coding, people can go there.

The #portableapps-* are pointless, yes. I don't know why they were made. Let's just not actively promote them.