linux mint comes with a program coincidentally called Hexchat for connecting to IRC networks. Are these obsolete at this point, or are there still places to hang out with people so i dont have to use discord?
Yes, I use it for collaborating on open source code that I use for work and keeping in touch with my friends from those open source project
s. Yes I know I am old. :chomsky-yes-honey:
IRCs are good backup news channels. The news broke about Desert Storm on IRCs way before any news outlet got a hold of any information. With how the commonly traveled internet is increasingly based on AWS/Cloudflare, having an IRC is a nice just-in-case
I'd say IRC is obsolete, but it is far from dead. Kinda like Doom, or e-mail. It is still one of the best places to get tech support (probably why it's included out of the box).
Hexchat is a good client. I've used it since it was called X-chat.