Software:XiRCON

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Short description: Internet Relay Chat (IRC) client
XiRCON
Xircon.png
Xircon 1.0B4 running Kano 15b8 w/ conio theme loaded on Windows XP.
Original author(s)Mark Hanson
Initial release1996 (1996)
Final release1.0B4 (August 10, 1997; 27 years ago (1997-08-10)) [±]
Written inBorland C++/Object Windows Library, scripted with Tcl[1]
Operating systemMicrosoft Windows
Platformx86
Available inEnglish
TypeIRC client
LicenseFreeware[2]

XiRCON is a discontinued freeware IRC client for Microsoft Windows.[1] After TCP/IP was added to Windows, XiRCON was one of the most popular IRC clients on the platform.[3] The XiRCON client was used for a number of fields, such as library helpdesk,[4] genealogy,[5] and US Naval command.[6] Author Mark Hanson ceased development in 1997.[7]

Adoption

Due to its graphical user interface and ease of use, XiRCON is a suggested client in Learn Internet Relay Chat, Volume 1 (Toyer, 1998).[8] The client received a four-star rating "(better than most, very solid)" from IRCReviews.com, which summarized, "An IRC client that appeals to users of all skill levels."[9] With the proliferation mIRC computer worms, Steal this Computer Book 4.0 recommended switching to competing IRC clients like XiRCON.[10]

U.S. Navy

XiRCON was approved for military use, and in the US Navy it was more popular than mIRC.[6] In an effort to evaluate how real-time communications boost productivity in US Military command, a 2004 paper by Pacific Science & Engineering Group estimated that 28-50% of command groups used XiRCON.[6]

Post-discontinuation

After its discontinuation, XiRCON fielded a steadily growing community based around the Kano script, among others. As mIRC progressed it started to include XiRCON features such as multi-server support and visual themes. XiRCON's remaining userbase began to dwindle as mIRC became more stable and popular scripts comparable to Kano were released. A very small community still keeps the program alive via moderating the official IRC channel, #XiRCON on EFnet.

An attempt was made to clone XiRCON[11] by David Gravereaux, who was also the author of the Falcon extension[12] for XiRCON, but has yet to complete it. Gravereaux also wrote a "hack" for XiRCON that allowed it to use any Tcl core v8.1 or higher.[13]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 "XiRCON FAQ 1.0b1.6". http://www.irc.org/ftp/pub/pub/irc/clients/msdos/win3/xircon/tcl/xircfaq.html. "XiRCON is an IRC client written in Borland C++ for win32 that supports tcl." 
  2. ↑ Toyer, Kathryn (1998) (in en). Learn Internet Relay Chat. Wordware Pub.. p. 86. ISBN 978-1-55622-605-2. https://books.google.com/books?id=7_0nAQAAMAAJ&q=%22xircon%22+freeware. Retrieved 26 July 2021. "XiRCON is a freeware chat client that boasts it is IRC without limits" 
  3. ↑ Fagerland, Snorre (April 1998). Fitzgerald, Nick. ed. "Murky Waters". Virus Bulletin: 7. ISSN 0956-9979. https://www.virusbulletin.com/uploads/pdf/magazine/1998/199804.pdf. Retrieved 26 July 2021. 
  4. ↑ Lankes, David; Collins, John William; Kasowitz, Abby S (2000). Digital reference service in the new millennium : planning, management, and evaluation. New York : Neal-Schuman Publishers. ISBN 978-1-55570-384-4. https://archive.org/details/digitalreference0000unse/page/200/mode/2up?q=xircon. 
  5. ↑ Howells, Cyndi (2001) (in en). Cyndi's List: A Comprehensive List of 70,000 Genealogy Sites on the Internet. Genealogical Publishing Com. ISBN 978-0-8063-1678-9. https://books.google.com/books?id=GySyU_AtM9oC&q=xircon%20. Retrieved 26 July 2021. 
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 Heacox, Nancy J.; Moore, Ronald A.; Morrison, Jeffrey G.; Yturralde, Rey F. (2004-05-13). Real-time Online Communications: 'Chat' Use in Navy Operations. San Diego, California: SPAWAR Systems Center San Diego. pp. 6 – 7. http://www.dodccrp.org/events/2004_CCRTS/CD/papers/086.pdf. Retrieved 2009-06-07. 
  7. ↑ "Whatever Happened to XiRCON?". http://www.xircon.com/status.html. "Mark Hanson (aka dwoo) the author is no longer maintaining XiRCON. Actually he hasn't released a new version since 1997." 
  8. ↑ Toyer, Kathryn (1998) (in en). Learn Internet Relay Chat. Wordware Pub.. p. 86. ISBN 978-1-55622-605-2. https://books.google.com/books?id=7_0nAQAAMAAJ&q=%22xircon%22+freeware. Retrieved 23 January 2013. 
  9. ↑ "IRC Clients: Microsoft Windows: XiRCON". http://www.ircreviews.org/clients/xircon.html. 
  10. ↑ Wang, Wallace (6 May 2006) (in en). Steal This Computer Book 4.0: What They Won't Tell You About the Internet. No Starch Press. p. 72. ISBN 978-1-59327-343-9. https://books.google.com/books?id=4gcvDwAAQBAJ&dq=xircon+irc&pg=PT89. Retrieved 26 July 2021. "To stop most IRC worms, switch from mIRC to Visual IRC (www.visualirc.net), XiRCON (www.visualirc.net [sic]), or X-Chat (www.xchat.org)." 
  11. ↑ "XiRCON-II". http://wiki.tcl.tk/XiRCON-II. Retrieved 2008-02-09. 
  12. ↑ "Falcon extension for XiRCON". http://sourceforge.net/project/showfiles.php?group_id=1616&package_id=2093. Retrieved 2008-02-09. 
  13. ↑ "XiRCON Tcl 8.1+ hack". http://sourceforge.net/project/showfiles.php?group_id=1616&package_id=27045. Retrieved 2008-02-09. 

External links



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