I don't think I used IRC at all during 2005. Several people have been trying to persuade me to start using some sort of instant messaging but it seems like I just haven't had time! I might try out Adium one day.
Progress! I have had made my first faltering contributions in a couple of channels using irssi on a remote Debian box and have not had any major problems. I was talking to a student today who knows a thing or two about IRC, and when I told him I was using irssi he was not impressed - he uses a client called EPIC. I am going to stick to irssi for now though because that is what is installed on the box I am using.
I am missing one of the keys to true geekiness - I have never used IRC! Well hopefully that is about to change. Here are the obvious websites to look at:
www.zenatode.org.uk Ian Gregory 2010