It's been a while since I've done an official update on SkipIRC, and there's a lot going on at the moment.
New servers
We're in the process of migrating way from AWS virtual servers owned by pxdnbluesoul to a new set of VPSes on Vultr. There are a few reasons for this:
- The OS distribution on the existing servers is approaching EOL.
- AWS is suboptimal both from a UI perspective (seriously, it's awful, I can't believe they're charging money for this) and from an ethical perspective (hashtag ethics committee.)
- Under the current arrangement, I frequently have to ask
pxdnbluesoul or
aismallard to carry out routine administrative tasks when I lack the necessary permissions to handle them myself. Under the new arrangement,
Hexick, and I will have the necessary permissions.
We won't be reusing server names, so safe.oh.us.irc.scpwiki.com, euclid.ie.eu.irc.scpwiki.com, and keter.nsw.au.irc.scpwiki.com will be retired. The new theme will be story elements: setting.nj.us.irc.scpwiki.com and plot (Location TBD, but most likely Tokyo) will be the new user-facing servers, with IRC services running on conflict.nj.us.irc.scpwiki.com. Once both new user servers are up and running, we'll begin a staged shutdown of the old servers by disabling new connections and shutting each one down as the last user disconnects.
VIP Lounge
Our soft launch of VIP Lounge is going well overall. The current interim user addition process is a bit more labor-intensive and slower than we'd prefer, but plans are underway to automate it. We're experiencing a reliability issue with our current VIP Lounge host on AWS, so that's being moved to Vultr as well.
Here are some examples of currently-implemented SkipIRC-specific functionality:
What's next
We're currently working on some quality-of-life features to make IRC more accessible to users who might be less comfortable with the traditional command-line interface. Hexick is working on porting our pronoun customizations to the latest version of atheme, the IRC services package used on SkipIRC. I'm currently working on some RPC (Remote Procedure Call) enhancements that will allow the VIP Lounge to interact directly with IRC services, to present a friendly interface for nick/channel registration and customization. A planned enhancement for the VIP Lounge will replace its separate user/password database with a connection to IRC's NickServ, meaning that either signing up for VIP Lounge or registering a nick with NickServ will effectively do both at once. Finally, we'll be adding verification web links to sign-up emails. The combination of these registration enhancements will present a sign-up experience that will be more familiar to the majority of users.
After that, we'll begin work on some enhancements. IRCv3 supports replies and reactions; they're currently available in IRCCloud but not yet in The Lounge. It's within our capabilities to add them but it'll be a bit of work. Profile pictures are an unofficial IRCCloud extension, on the other hand. We could support them as well but bidirectional interoperability would require cooperation from the IRCCloud team.
Why SkipIRC?
Finally, for those who are wondering why we still need to maintain an IRC presence, I wrote a brief essay on the topic.
As always, feedback is welcome.