The Vault:IRC channel

The Vault IRC Channel is an Internet Relay Chat channel that allows The Vault Dwellers to communicate with each other via live chat through the Internet. It is registered as #falloutwiki on freenode. In the channel, you can talk about the wiki, the Fallout games, or about anything else that comes to your mind (within reasonable limits). However, if a reasonable amount of users want a subject dropped, it is better to comply than not, especially if it is a group of admins. Furthermore, religion and politics need only one person to complain before the subject requires a change.

If you have an IRC client;

 * Start your IRC client
 * Connect to irc.freenode.net on port 6667 and join the channel #falloutwiki

If you do not have an IRC client;
Be sure you are joining the #falloutwiki channel
 * Freenode's AJAX client

Channel rules
As with everything in Life, some regulations are needed. Our host is the Freenode IRC-Network, so above all, their Policies apply, which can (and should, at least roughly) be read about here: http://freenode.net/policy.shtml.

However, there are also some additional guidelines and rules related to this specific channel.

Basic rules

 * 1)  Personal attacks are not permitted.
 * 2)  Harassment and/or sexual harassment is not permitted.
 * 3)  Extreme Profanity or cursing is not permitted.
 * 4)  Violation of personal privacy is not permitted. This includes revealing personal information about users (e.g. real name, location, age, gender, etc) and violating confidentiality on particular issues (such as issues asked to be kept confidential by other users or administrators).
 * 5)  Linking to external sources, such as websites, which violate the aforementioned rules, is not permitted. Notably, publicly linking to websites such as Facebook or MySpace that violate personal privacy, is not permitted without prior consent from the user whose privacy might be violated.
 * 6)  Trolling or general irritation or disruption of other users is not permitted. This often includes, but is not limited to; excessive usage of capital letters, punctuation marks, deliberate distortions of the English language (such as "1337 speak"), and excessive usage of non-English languages.
 * 7)  Don't be a dick. As a guideline, don't go out of your way to irritate others. ( And especially do NOT try to test the OPs patience and limits ) Vicious abuse is grounds for sanctions.
 * 8)  No whining. Users who ask for something from another IRC user and are refused it should not stoop to complaining. It is acceptable to be persistent, but in a mature manner.
 * 9)  Real-world politics and/or religion may only be discussed with unanimous consent. If someone doesn't want to talk about them, drop the subject.
 * 10) Official language: English. We don't care if it's British or American, as long as it's not "L33t" or "TXT." Abbreviations are fine, but keep it within reason.
 * 11) No spamming. The meaning should be obvious. Don't say the same thing six times because no one is responding to you. Don't keep yammering on about a subject nobody cares about.
 * 12) Please keep only 1 ( in words: One ) connection to the channel alive. One is sufficient enough to read, write and mingle with the other guests.

Nickname
The nickname guideline is a loosely enforced rule. Newer users are encouraged to use their existing Vault username until their activity and knowledge of the channel allows them to make a custom nickname. However, impersonation of any user will be met with consequences from the channel staff, and may lead to a ban if such activity persists. Also, offensive nicknames are not allowed.

Flooding
While you can say as many lines of text in a row as you want, any deliberate flooding of five lines or more without reason, or any spamming of the same message five times or more, will result in being kicked from the channel.

In addition, users who "join flood" (join, leave, and then re-join the channel repeatedly, be it deliberately or out of technical reasons) will be banned from the channel for a period of time determined by the op issuing the ban.

Caps
The usage of capital letters and caps lock is frowned upon. Using capital letters to write a word or a whole entry is typically perceived as shouting.

Using excessive capital letters once will often result in a courtesy warning by an operator, and persistent usage of capital letters may lead to a kick or ban, depending on severity.

Topics of discussion
The channel is meant for help and discussion on Fallout Wiki and discussion about the Fallout series, though respectful off-topic discussions are allowed.

Bots
Any user wishing to bring a bot into the channel should seek approval from a channel administrator. Unauthorized or malicious bots are prohibited and are to be immediately kicked/parted from the channel.

Consequences
Operators have a wide discretion relating to the issuing of warnings and bans which infringe on this rule.

The content of messages will greatly impact on the severity of the punishment. In certain particular cases, exceptions may be permitted, although these are infrequent.

Typically, the following hierarchy will apply to infringements on the above regulations (with the exception of specifically implied consequences).


 * First offense: Warning
 * Second offense: Kick
 * Third offense: One day ban

Further offenses will result in an extended ban, at the discretion of the op administering the ban.

Operators use their discretion when applying these rules, and understanding of the rules depends on the operators perception of the rules. Particular exceptions may be granted by specific operator approval. These rules and regulations, however, should be followed strictly by users.

Infringement of these rules and regulations will lead to punishment by an operator. When you enter the IRC channel, you are expected to have prior knowledge of all these rules.

Channel ops
Operators, or ops, are the IRC equivalent of administrators. Some of them are also Fallout Wiki admins, but it's not a universal rule. In most IRC clients, they are denoted by the @ symbol (although they usually assume op status only if there is a need to use their operator rights).