mIRC Bots

This page explains what a bot is, what kind of bots there are, how do you use a bot, and how do you make your own bot. (Frequently Asked Questions about Internet Relay Chat roBOTs)

What is a bot?
A bot is a script written to respond to commands given by the owner and users, and also events that happen, such as a person joining the channel or leaving, etc. Bots can be fun and/or annoying, depending on what they do, etc. There are also different types of bots, which perform different commands.

What kind of bots are there?
First, there are war bots. War bots are written to cause chaos and havoc in channels and to users. They do things like flooding users, kick and banning them, k-lines, etc. There is really no good reason to use these unless there is someone who is being really annoying, won't stop bothering you, and is someone who you really dislike.

Then there are channel bots. Channel bots are boring, but can be useful. They will perform simple tasks like OP, DEOP, KICK and BAN. Channel bots should only be used with your good friends, as they can tell it to OP them and KICK and BAN you.

Last, there are bar bots. Bar bots can be fun, but they can become annoying real fast. They will serve you a drink and food, play games, and other things. What's good is if you have a bar bot with channel bot powers. It's fun to use with your friends for a while.

How do I use a bot?
You start your copy of mIRC, connect to a server, then you would start the bot: In Windows 3.1x, you would goto File/Run, then type this command line: C:\Bot_Directory\mIRC16.exe
C:\Bot_Directory\bot_name.ini, where "Bot_Directory" is where you keep your bots, and "bot_name" is the bot's filename. In Windows 95, you would click Start/Run and in the space type the following command line: C:\Bot_Directory\mIRC32.exe C:\Bot_Directory\bot_name.ini, where "Bot_Directory" is where you keep your bots, and "bot_name" is the bot's filename.

How do I write a bot?
Before you decide to try and write your own bot, consider the following:

• Is the bot I'm going to write already written? If so, you could save a lot of time using the one written already.
• Is my bot going to have features that any other bot won't? I've seen a lot of bots these days that have the same features as others.
• Would I use a bot? If you're going to use it once or twice a year, forget it.
  

Then if you really want to write your own bot, I think the easiest way to learn how to write a bot, is to download some and read the .INI files to see how they work. It's pretty straight forward once you look at them and test their abilities.

(Frequently Asked Questions about Internet Relay Chat roBOTs)