Gaim is a very complete instant messaging (IM) client. With it, you can chat with people using other protocols than Gaim's (Oscar), that is AIM, Gadu-Gadu, ICQ, IRC, Jabber, MSN, Napster, Yahoo and Zephyr. Gaim is based on AOL's AIM client but as the developers say, "Gaim is NOT endorsed by or affiliated with AOL".
To start using Gaim, access the GNOME menu. From a command line, simply type gaim &.
-> -> -> menu. If you use GNOME, use the same path starting with theTo use Gaim, you need an AIM account which consists of a Screen Name name and password. If you already have one, simply fill in the respective fields and click on Signon. If not, you need to access the AIM site. Once you are there, click on New Users.
Then, you will be prompted to enter a Screen Name and other information has shown in the image below.
If all goes well, you now have an AIM Screen Name and password. If not, read on and correct what went wrong.
Below the Congratulations! message on the next page of the AIM registration process are download steps: forgot about those since the software is already installed on your Mandrake Linux system.
Once you have your Screen name and password, type them in and press on Signon or Enter after you have entered your password. This window will appear.
This is Gaim's main window and it holds two small menus, along with the help menu on the right, which only gives out very generic information such as the developer's names and web site.
The first item you will find is Add A Buddy. Click on it and add the relevant information.
![]() | You can activate the Gaim –Buddy Ticker in order to see which buddies are online. To do so, access the -> sub-menu. Then, when you see one of your buddies, click on its icon, and an instant messaging window will open. |
The next item, Join A Chat, enables you to chat with many people at a time. Simply give the chat a name and invite your buddies to participate.
The next two items are self-explanatory: we will skip those and go straight to the Import Buddy List item. Clicking on it will pop up a window from which you can select the path to buddy lists for other instant messaging clients.
Again, the items in this menu speak for themselves. But nevertheless, let us discuss a few of them.
If you wish to chat with buddies who use Yahoo! Messenger, Jabber or whatever other protocol Gaim supports, you need to enable the plugin first.
Once you click on the Plugins menu, a window will pop up in which you will see a Load button. Click on it and a window displaying all the available plugins will be shown.
Once this is done, you can now add other identities through the Screenname, Password and choose the right Protocol (i.e.: Yahoo for Yahoo! Messenger).
-> sub-menu. Just enter yourHere is a non exhaustive list of other instant messaging client software which work well under Mandrake Linux:
Gabber;
GnomeICU;
LICQ.
Jarkko Oikarinen is the original writer of Internet Relay Chat (IRC). His main goal was to improve on the talk program. Although it proved to be functional, it only allowed for 2 users to chat at the same time.
Nowadays, thousands of IRC servers exist around the world, giving millions of users the chance to talk simultaneously with many users. These servers are dispersed in Asia, Europe, North America and Oceania. IRC servers are grouped in networks (also called "nets"), the largest ones being DALnet, EFnet – the original IRC network, Newnet and Undernet.
IRC servers are made up of channels where users regroup to chat with their keyboards. Anyone can make up a channel name, if that channel does not already exist. And although many people join a channel to discuss with many users, it is also possible to send private messages which other users will not see.
![]() | Channels are server-dependant. Hence, the #linux channel on the irc.somechannel.net server is different from the one on the irc.someotherchannel.net serve: they do not communicate with one another. |
The XChat application we will speak about in this section is only one of many multi-user, graphical IRC chat clients. We will give a list of other clients at the end of this section.
Since XChat is used in a networked environment, you will logically find it in the
-> sub-menu of both KDE and GNOME menus. As always, you can also launch it through the terminal by issuing xchat &.Once XChat is launched, the server-list window will pop up. First of all, you must enter a nickname (Peter Pingus in our example) in the appropriate field by which you will go by on IRC. Then, select a server (in our example, irc.openprojects.net). Finally, choose a channel. The typical syntax to join a channel is /join #channel.
Now, let's join the #mandrake channel. Type /join #mandrake. If all went well, you are now "in" the Mandrake channel which targets Mandrake Linux new users.
The XChat window has 5 major components.
Contains the 7 basic menus: X-Chat, Windows, User Modes, Settings, Scripts & Plugins, User Menu and Help.
Under the menu bar. It shows 4 buttons on the left of the the Text Box (see next entry). The first one marked by an X closes the current channel/server, the button on its right links/unlinks the current window (which means you can attach/detach a specific window from the main window). The two arrows either move the current tab window to the left or right. On the text box's right are buttons displaying a series of letters (starting with T and ending with K) used to set channel modes. You need to be channel operator to use these but this exceeds the scope of our section.
Shows one and only one thing: the channel's topic.
Located on the middle-right, it displays the list of users currently in the channel. A green dot means that user is the channel operator. A yellow dot means that user can post to a moderated channel. Under the user list is a series of buttons which are linked to the
-> sub-menu.At the bottom of the window. On the left is your nickname. On the right is the mini-buffer where you can type your text. Leaving your mouse pointer on the arrow at the right of the mini-buffer, it will display Open Toolbox. Clicking on it will show plain, bold and underline options, a series of colors which you can apply to your text, an ASCII chart, a color paste option as well as conference mode.
The input box's mini-buffer is where you issue your commands. All IRC commands start with a / and are followed by the name of the command. Here's a list of useful ones:
Shows a message signifying you are busy (by default). If you type /away eating, this is what will be shown:
* peterpingus is away: eating |
Tells other users you are available again. It will also display how much time you were away:
* peterpingus is back (gone 00:00:23) |
Displays the list of available commands in your XChat window.
Used to join a channel. /join #mandrake will cause you to join that channel.
Indicates what a user is doing/feeling. /me in a good mood displays:
* peterpingus in a good mood |
Sends a private message to another user which other users will not see. However, it does not open a new tab (channel) like the QUERY command. The syntax is:
/msg nickname_of_the_recipient message |
>queenpingusa< how are you? |
Allows to change your IRC nickname. For example, if Peter Pingus wanted to change his nickname to Johnny, he would issue /nick Johnny. Then, this will be displayed:
--- You are now known as Johnny |
Tells other users you are leaving the channel. The syntax is:
/part #channel message |
Once you issue that command, you will be disconnected from the channel you were connected to. To reconnect, simply type:
/join #channel |
Opens up a new tab in your XChat window and starts a private conversation with a user. The syntax is the same as for the MSG command:
/query user message |
Terminates your IRC session. You can add a comment, like /quit going to bed.
Here are basic rules we strongly suggest you follow strictly. They are common-sense rules, but unfortunately, not everyone follows them.
Most IRC users speak English, that's just plain fact. However, it's not the only language spoken on IRC. Before starting a thread, let's say in Portuguese, you should inquire about the channel's language policy. If it is obvious the channel on which you are is an English-speaking one, create or choose another channel where you can write in the language you prefer.
![]() | Some channels may also be multilingual. |
Depending on the number of users on a specific channel, it might not be welcomed to greet everyone that enters/leaves the channel. Usually, one "Hello!" or "Goodbye!" is quite enough.
If you do not know the people with whom you chat, chances are they will only know you through what you write. Hence, if you don't want to be perceived as a jerk, don't act as one! This means:
do not dump large amount of data on a channel/user;
do not harass others or flame them for no reason.
Here is a short list of other IRC clients which work well with Mandrake Linux:
ksirc;
KVIrc;
BitchX (text-mode only).