Feb 29, 2008

ASL?

mIRC logo. I mentioned in my first post that the first gay person I met (and outed myself to) was through IRC, so that makes it my first eyeball or EB. This was way back in 1999 and the guy I met was this shy, kinda nerdy teenager and I let him jerk me off. Anyway, I stumbled onto the local gay chat rooms out of curiosity. I already knew about IRC way before my first EB and it was during a lazy afternoon in September 1999 alone in my room that I decided to log on to #gay and to try to chat with other non-straight guys. Of course the room was filled with people from all over the world but I noticed an obviously Pinoy guy based on his nickname (which I don't recall anymore). I did a simple whois on him and I saw that he was logged in the #gaymanila channel. The rest as they say is history.

I guess that a large number of us had our first encounter of our secret world via IRC. Way, way before Guys4Men, Yahoo! Messenger, eGroups, Friendster and blogs, IRC was there to give people like us a discreet way to secretly meet other guys. I would assert that it is the pioneer Internet outlet for us gay and bi guys. I still log on to IRC from time to time and still see that the chat rooms are still quite active despite the rise of social websites like Guys4Men. I guess nothing beats the real-time nature of talking to other guys that IRC provides. The old #gaymanila channel is no longer active and it was replaced by the #bi-manila and #salsalan on both the Undernet and Dalnet IRC networks. I still remember the time when there was an impression that the chatters on bi/gay Undernet channels are "snobbish" while those on Dalnet are "jologs." Nowadays, this distinction is largely gone and many people actually log on to both networks at the same time (and spew the same personals ads on all four channels).

If you're still into IRC chatting, here's a tip that I would recommend: if you're using mIRC to chat in IRC (note: mIRC is the application used to access the IRC Internet service; they are not the same thing, though most people assume so) and you're using Mozilla Firefox to browse the Web, try the ChatZilla extension instead of mIRC. I've been using ChatZilla for a few years now and I find it much better than mIRC. One advantage is that ChatZilla is immune from the stupid scripts that plague mIRC users. Another is that since ChatZilla is integrated into Firefox, you get some nifty advantages such as middle-clicking on URLs in ChatZilla will launch that URL into a new tab in Firefox and these URLs are also colored such that you can tell whether you have visited it or not, just like in most normal web pages.

Since five years ago, I haven't been chatting on IRC as much as I used to. I guess I must've met more than a hundred guys from my early years spent chatting. (There were times when I had an EB every week!) Nowadays, I still log on from time to time and get to have a few EBs, but I have since ventured into more diverse ways of meeting other people. But if you're still very much in the closet, IRC is still an excellent way to get to talk to other guys since you only reveal as much of yourself as you are comfortable with.

So, have you ever chatted on IRC? Do you still chat there frequently or as much as before? Tell us some of your more interesting chat-related encounters and stories. :-)

15 comments:

Anonymous wrote on March 3, 2008 at 8:38 PM:

Hi Vince,

I'm one of the chatters that prowled the hallowed halls of #gaymanila, in the good 'ol mIRC days. It was indeed a different venue back then. I started chatting there in 1996, and like you, I basically outed myself in that venue. Over the years, I've met a lot of my close friends there, my lovers, and other interesting characters along the way.

At the time, the crowd in mIRC was rather well-off, well-educated and well-mannered (save for a few bad apples), because back then, computer and internet access were expensive. So you can imagine the demographics.

Anyway, I hope you were one of those guys I met during the EBs that the channel organized.

Cheers!

 
Vince (Discreet Manila) wrote on March 3, 2008 at 9:34 PM:

Hello Mr. Anonymous, thanks for visiting. Well, I wouldn't say that the chatters nowadays are of low quality. I believe that more people getting online is a net positive thing. Besides, you can tell who are the nice chatters from the way they chat with you, right? :-)

I haven't actually attended any chat grand eyeballs back in those days. I was too shy and paranoid to meet too many guys at once. I guess, I must've missed all the fun then. Hehehe.

 
Anonymous wrote on July 4, 2008 at 2:14 AM:

Hi Vince,

I totally agree with your posting here.

May I note that back then, mIRC chatters are more sensible to chat with and observes the silent rule that trust is to be established first before we engage into kinky stuff since majority of the people chatting then are closeted, discreet, straight acting and not too feminine.

I first encountered mIRC thru the chat server of PDInquirer then at webmaster (web portal of mIRC servers), ventured into #gaymanila when i saw it upon browsing the available channels at mIRC (/list gay), and true enough my first eb was with a regular chatter at #gaymanila by the handle "Goddess".

When I met him, he mentioned that he's out and feminine, and i mentioned that i have nothing against it since my intent in meeting was to put a face to a person i'm chatting with. So the usual venue for an eb is at a cafe. When we met, it was pleasant and full of laugh, exchanging stimulating conversations. He then mentioned that with my type of personality i should chat at #discreetguys or at #bi-manila.

Taking his advise, i ventured to #discreetguys and eventually got invited to a more discreet channel #discreets which is an invite only channel. With my being pleasant and friendly to everyone, i was privileged to become an operator of both channels and saw the rise and fall of other rooms in the mIRC, and the strife between Undernet and Dalnet chatters, to the point of a riot in malate during the weekend street parties.

By the time i became a channel manager and co-manager for other channels, the chatters of mIRC became more organized and got more populated to the point that the chat threads becomes sexual in nature and out of control.

With the lack of time logging in due to work and commitments, i lost track of mIRC and when i returned... its now a mess ... flooding the main room with sex postings.

Its true that mIRC made a big contribution in the opening up of the filipino gay and become more organized, but it too was a prime medium in the indulgence in sexual exploits which lead to the spread of STDs, opportunistic individuals, and a not so educating way of knowing one's self as a bisexual or homosexual person.

These days, new web chat mediums started out the same way mIRC chat rooms started out ... from decent-sensible chats to sexually craved postings ... this is evident in guys4men and about to with downelink

I miss chatting with PLU who goes online to truly just chat and express their views and what-have-you on the things around us. I hope that the majority of chatters would treat chat as a medium on its original intent and not abuse it for sexual exp0loits.

 
Vince (Discreet Manila) wrote on July 22, 2008 at 1:38 AM:

Le-ghost, thanks for sharing your IRC experiences. I think the remaining popular "pure" discussion-based medium where discreet guys can shares thoughts on anything under the sun is at PinoyExchange.

I would guess that the majority of guys who go into PLU chatrooms in IRC are really into hook-ups. If they want more serious conversations, they'd be going to "straighter" chat rooms.

I've also met Goddess; I think many serious IRC chatters have either met or talked to this guy. :-)

 
Anonymous wrote on October 28, 2008 at 6:40 AM:

just out of curiousity, so if irc was the wave of the past, what do closeted gay guys use now?

 
Vince (Discreet Manila) wrote on November 10, 2008 at 1:10 AM:

anon, I think most use G4M, using its privacy features (like hiding face pics behind a password). Plenty still use IRC, though, and G4M serves as a complement.

 
jappy wrote on April 19, 2011 at 11:46 PM:

i think the newer version of this is the blackberry.. if you only knew how much fun im having..its pretty much like the good old mirc days..

anyways, im willing to entertain anyone who have one, here's my pin: 236BC0F0. im sure you're just waiting to come by this fascinating development.

 
Jeff wrote on April 21, 2011 at 9:46 PM:

Met my first wacko bf in mIRC (#gaymanila) some time in 1996. Made many friends there, a group of them now in the US. it would be fair to say that mIRC was my coming of age.

 
Anonymous wrote on May 16, 2011 at 11:44 PM:

Hi Vince,
I happen to stumble on your blog because I have been surfing for a gay chat site which is composed of different nationalities and I started reading about your MIRC thing, and the rest of those who left their comments. It brought back a lot of memories, most of them good ones, like any old chatter from the good old mirc i had my few share of bad EBs (a couple actually) but the greatest thing that it brought me was my partner (ex now! or should I say axed now! LOL

I was (and still am) never an internet savvy guy and I also stumbled into Mirc because a friend was using it and I happened to chat with a guy who invited me to bi-manila, and the rest is history.

do you know any gay chatrooms that have different nationalities?

 
Anonymous wrote on May 17, 2011 at 11:00 PM:

jappy,

I started receiving anon requests in my BBM. I was told that my PIN was obtained online. And the rest was google history. Shame on you for using my PIN. Unfortunately your harrasment stops here coz I'll sell my phone and get a new one. And yes FUCK YOU!!! :)

 
Anonymous wrote on February 5, 2012 at 4:55 AM:

Hello guys. I am a filipino who lives in Spain and I would like to chat with filipinos there. Could you tell me what to do? I have mIrc version 6.2 by Khaled Marhdam Bey. What is the server I have to put and what channels I should write. Many thanks.

 
Anonymous wrote on June 29, 2012 at 11:46 PM:

hi,

I'm a discreet gay living in QC. I'd like to meet a couple of discreet gays. I'd like to have new friends over my house. If you're interested here is my number 09064990728

 
Anonymous wrote on April 27, 2013 at 1:34 AM:

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Anonymous wrote on April 27, 2013 at 4:54 PM:

ANONYMOUS WROTE ON APRIL 27, 2013 AT 1:34 AM:
i want to come out but i'm married and have a baby. please help me. 09297473595

Hi Anonymous -

I can be of help, if it is okay with you. Text me at 0927-3124487. Introduce yourself.

Beejay Rosenthal

 
Anonymous wrote on July 20, 2013 at 2:56 AM:

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