30.05.2024
58 min
2182
In 1988, long before Telegram, Discord, and modern messaging apps existed, Finnish programmer Jarkko Oikarinen created Internet Relay Chat (IRC), a real-time communication system that would eventually bring together programmers, system administrators, hackers, and everyday users from around the world. What began as a small university project grew into an international network within just a few months, leaving a lasting mark on the history of the internet.
In the late 1980s, the internet looked completely different. Social networks, modern messaging apps, and group chats as we know them today did not yet exist. Users communicated primarily through email, Usenet discussion groups, and BBS (Bulletin Board Systems), which were electronic bulletin boards. These systems allowed people to read messages, post their own content, exchange files, and participate in discussions. However, communication often resembled traditional correspondence: one person would leave a message, and another would respond sometime later. Although some real-time communication technologies already existed, bringing users from different servers together in a shared chat remained a technical challenge.
It was in this environment that Finnish programmer Jarkko Oikarinen, known by the nickname WiZ, was working in the summer of 1988. At the time, he administered the OuluBox system at the University of Oulu, which ran on the server tolsun.oulu.fi. Oikarinen wanted to expand the capabilities of the BBS by adding Usenet-style news, group discussions, and real-time messaging. His first step was to create a chat system, using parts of the work developed by his friends Jyrki Kuoppala and Jukka Pihl, who had previously worked on tools for exchanging messages between users.
Based on this code, Oikarinen developed the first IRC client and server. The software was initially tested on a single computer, but even at that stage, it allowed multiple users to exchange messages simultaneously. The programmer later recalled that IRC was born in August 1988, although he could never pinpoint the exact date of its first launch.
“IRC’s birthday was in August 1988. The exact date is unknown, but it was sometime toward the end of the month,” Jarkko Oikarinen recalled.
What began as a small experiment to modernize a university BBS marked the beginning of Internet Relay Chat, a technology that would eventually become one of the most widely recognized forms of communication in the early internet.
The first IRC server operated at tolsun.oulu.fi, initially serving a small number of users within the university network. However, Jyrki Kuoppala quickly recognized the project’s greater potential and suggested that Oikarinen seek permission to distribute the software beyond the university. The administration had no objections, so after the first version was completed, Kuoppala set up another IRC server, which later became known as irc.cs.hut.fi. The servers were connected, creating the first IRC network, where users could communicate regardless of which server they were connected to.
Soon, Oikarinen’s acquaintances from other Finnish universities joined the project and helped establish additional servers. Markku Järvinen contributed to the development of the IRC client, while the technology itself gradually attracted more and more attention. It was around this time that Oikarinen realized his original plan to expand the BBS would probably never be fully completed. IRC was evolving into an independent system whose capabilities extended far beyond his initial vision.
The next major milestone was IRC’s international expansion. One of the first IRC users outside Finland was Vijay Subramaniam, who helped bring the software to American universities. IRC servers were established at the University of Denver and Oregon State University, where administrators became interested in connecting their systems to the Finnish network. IRC gradually spread across Finland’s academic network, FUNET, before establishing international connections through the Scandinavian network NORDUnet.
IRC developed so rapidly that within just two years, a university experiment had evolved into an international communication system. The key milestones during this period were:
August 1988. Jarkko Oikarinen created the first IRC client and server at the University of Oulu.
November 1988. IRC expanded beyond Finland and became part of the international internet infrastructure.
Mid-1989. Approximately 40 IRC servers were operating in different countries around the world.
1989. Michael Sandrof released ircII, which would eventually become one of the most popular IRC clients.
1990. The ChNet network was established to develop a new version of the IRC server software,
ircd 2.6, but it soon collapsed due to disagreements among developers.
For a technology that had only recently been tested on a single computer, this was a remarkable achievement. No major corporation was involved in promoting it. Instead, new servers were established by programmers, system administrators, and university communities who independently installed the software and connected to the network.
IRC’s defining feature was its ability to connect independent servers into a single network, allowing users to communicate in real time. To get started, users only needed to install an IRC client, select a server, choose a nickname, and join a channel. Channel names typically began with the # symbol, and discussions could cover virtually any topic, from programming and server administration to music, computer games, and casual conversation.
IRC clients primarily used text-based interfaces, with most actions performed through commands. Users could participate in multiple channels simultaneously, exchange private messages, create their own topic-based communities, and interact with automated bots. Thanks to its low resource requirements, IRC was particularly well suited to the computers and network connections available at the time.
Despite its apparent simplicity, IRC offered a wide range of features for managing communication. The basic commands used in IRC clients are still familiar to users of the protocol today:
/nick CyberPudge– change your nickname to CyberPudge.
/join #hackyourmom– join the #hackyourmom channel.
/msg WiZ Hello!– send a private message to the user WiZ.
/whois WiZ– view available information about a user.
/part #hackyourmom– leave the selected channel.
/quit– disconnect from IRC.
Another major advantage was its open architecture. Unlike today’s centralized platforms, IRC was not owned by a single company that controlled all servers and users. Different administrators could establish their own networks, set communication rules, and develop the software according to their communities’ needs. However, this also presented certain challenges, as maintaining the stability of a large network of independent servers was considerably more difficult than managing a single centralized system.
IRC was not the first tool for online communication, but its combination of group chats, instant messaging, flexible channel management, and the ability to connect multiple servers made it particularly popular among technology enthusiasts.
In 1989, programmer Michael Sandrof released ircII, a new IRC client that would eventually become one of the most widely recognized communication tools for Unix-like systems. The program offered advanced customization options, support for multiple channels, and scripting capabilities for automation. These features were particularly useful for programmers and system administrators, as IRC was gradually evolving from a place for casual conversations into a tool for everyday technical work.
At the same time, the network’s expansion brought organizational and technical challenges. According to historical accounts of IRC, one measure of network activity in July 1990 recorded an average of just 12 users across 38 servers. This indicated that even after expanding internationally, IRC remained a relatively small community whose members generally had a strong understanding of the system’s technical aspects.
In 1990, developers established a separate network called ChNet to work on a new version of the IRC server software, ircd 2.6. The network connected approximately 25 servers but lasted only a few months. Its collapse was caused by disagreements among project participants, who were unable to reach a consensus on the network’s future development. Similar conflicts emerged in other parts of the IRC community, where independent administrators held different views on server management and connection policies.
One of the most notable disputes involved the server eris.berkeley.edu, which allowed other servers to connect with relatively few restrictions. This created problems with network stability and management, eventually contributing to one of IRC’s first major splits. These events gave rise to EFnet, one of the oldest IRC networks, which later became an important part of internet community history.
It was already becoming clear that decentralization had both advantages and disadvantages. Server independence allowed IRC to develop without a single governing authority, but it also made collective decision-making more difficult. Questions of openness, control, and network governance that sparked disagreements among IRC developers more than three decades ago remain relevant to many modern decentralized platforms.
As the internet developed, IRC gradually expanded beyond university networks and became popular among programmers, system administrators, cybersecurity researchers, and hacker communities. Themed channels were used to discuss software, configure servers, identify vulnerabilities, exchange technical knowledge, and coordinate collaborative projects. In many cases, IRC served as an alternative to forums and email, allowing participants to receive answers from other users almost instantly.
IRC became particularly important within the open-source software community. Developers could discuss bugs, help newcomers, coordinate software releases, and stay in direct contact with users of their applications. For many technical communities, IRC became a virtual meeting place where experienced programmers and enthusiasts could communicate directly, regardless of their country of residence or the organization they worked for.
However, the technology was not used exclusively for legitimate purposes. IRC channels also became popular among certain cybercriminal groups, which used them to exchange information, coordinate attacks, and even control botnets. Some types of malware used IRC as a command-and-control (C2) channel, allowing infected computers to receive instructions from their operators. Nevertheless, the technology itself was not designed for criminal activity. Its openness and automation capabilities attracted both legitimate software developers and malicious actors.
Over the years, IRC became an integral part of early internet culture, particularly among people interested in Unix, Linux, networking technologies, and information security. Communities formed around individual channels, developing their own rules, slang, and traditions. For entire generations of programmers and hackers, IRC remained a place to find like-minded people, receive technical assistance, or join new projects.
The emergence of graphical messaging applications, social networks, and modern team communication platforms gradually reduced IRC’s popularity among mainstream users. However, the technology has not disappeared and is still used by various open-source communities, system administrators, and enthusiasts who value its simplicity, automation capabilities, and independence from major technology companies. IRC remains accessible through modern clients, while some networks support encrypted connections, additional authentication mechanisms, and integration with other platforms.
The history of Internet Relay Chat demonstrates how a small university experiment can influence the development of an entire technological culture. In 1988, Jarkko Oikarinen simply wanted to improve an electronic bulletin board system, but the chat he created evolved into an international network that connected people from different countries and became one of the symbols of the early internet. IRC did not invent real-time communication, but it helped make it accessible to independent communities around the world.
Although most users today prefer Telegram, Discord, and other modern services, IRC serves as a reminder of an era when the internet was built primarily around open protocols, independent servers, and people who created their own communication tools. This freedom to experiment is what made IRC not only an important technology but also a lasting part of hacker culture.
