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“bot” is short for “robot”. It is a script run from an ircII client or a separate program (in perl, C, and sometimes more obscure languages). – irc-faq; Version 1.53; November 28, 1995. |
Most IRC programs can run scripts, also called robots, that can perform useful functions to help you manage a channel, usually as an operator. You can find several collections of scripts on many IRC web pages.
IRC scripts can perform automated tasks to run a channel for an operator, impersonate people, or perform other tasks on a channel. Some of the original IRC scripts, created in the 1990’s, are listed below:
- Eggdrop. Manages a channel for a user while they are logged off, keeping track of who is the Operator.
- KissServ. Automatically welcome users to a channel.
- Julia. A relatively sophisticated robot designed to pass the Turing test and chat like a real person for several minutes.
- NickServ. Prevent users from adopting a nick name already in use by another user.
However, note that you should never run an IRC script or robot unless you wrote it or completely trust the source, because it could contain a destructive virus. Also, don’t give up control of your machine — never run any IRC script unless you understand exactly what it will do — or you could get attacked.
Resources. The following sites provide more information on IRC scripts and robots:
A couple of well known non-IRC Internet robots are listed below:
- Alicebot – Improved version of Eliza.
- Eliza – The original conversational program.