Steven;
No problem. It is just another tool, only as good as you make it.
The big difference in our IRC is that it is a fully independent, stand alone IRC server run by me on equipment and bandwidth donated by JacquesM. It is NOT a part of Scoop or this forum. It is "associated" with Otherpower and Fieldlines not "owned" by them. IRC is run by and populated by people who care and not one Luddite among the regulars.
Everyone from apartment dwellers with no RE installed, 100% off gridders with nothing but RE to hicks like me somewhere in the middle. And not just geeks either we have folks doing everything from electronics design to turbine construction all helping each other find solutions.
If your experience with IRC was from one of those massive IRC networks like Dahlnet or something then the difference is as big as the difference between shopping your local department store and going to the Mall of America. Small friendly place similar to a local pub or tavern. But with a global user base. Lots of quick one on one solutions have come from our little channel.
We have put many folks on the track to workable systems as well as steered folks away from dead ends.
Typical end of summer low user count lately but as winter gets here more folks are inside and online so our user numbers go up.
Anyway, likely nothing like your experience from the '90s.We have a messaging system and there is logging which addresses your "record of the exchange", too as well as in channel calculators for RE related things, units conversions and math.
Its there to use for anyone and it is your choice, of course.
Only 11 folks on IRC today but by mid winter it will be a couple dozen lurkers on the main channel. Just at a quick glance I see people on this morning from Australia, The U.S., The U.K., Finland and The Netherlands. So you get a wide variety of viewpoints and timezones so never know when it will get hopping good.
The doer to poser ratio is lots better than on this forum.
Just felt I should clear up any misconceptions on the facts about IRC . Of course there is no guarantee other than it will be working when you try to use it. Unlike some resources.
Tom