Introduction

Object Design

This library has a 3 layered API, allows developers to pick the layer/features he needs. You could use any layer for writing IRC applications, the question is how much IRC abstraction and features you need. You have the choice!

Layer 1: IrcConnection

This layer is a low-level API and manages the messagebuffer (for reading and writing)

Layer 2: IrcCommands (extends IrcConnection)

This layer is a middle-level API. It contains all IRC RFC commands plus some useful and easy to use IRC methods (like Join, Part, Op, Deop, Ban, Unban etc.).

Layer 3: IrcClient (extends IrcCommands)

This layer is a high-level API with all features you could need for IRC programming, like channel syncing (keeping track of channels in objects with modes/topic/users), user syncing (for nicks, indents, hosts, realnames, servers, and hopcounts). This layer is fully event driven, all received data is parsed into different events with special arguments for each event (this makes it very easy to use the received IRC data without checking each time the RFC!)

How to use SmartIrc4net

Here is an example of how to use the library using the high-level API:

using System;
using System.Collections;
using System.Threading;
using Meebey.SmartIrc4net;
// This is an VERY basic example how your IRC application could be written
// its mainly for showing how to use the API, this program just connects sends
// a few message to a channel and waits for commands on the console
// (raw RFC commands though! it's later explained).
// There are also a few commands the IRC bot/client allows via private message.
public class Test
{
    // make an instance of the high-level API
    public static IrcClient irc = new IrcClient();
    // this method we will use to analyse queries (also known as private messages)
    public static void OnQueryMessage(object sender, IrcEventArgs e)
    {
        switch (e.Data.MessageArray[0]) {
            // debug stuff
            case "dump_channel":
                string requested_channel = e.Data.MessageArray[1];
                // getting the channel (via channel sync feature)
                Channel channel = irc.GetChannel(requested_channel);
                
                // here we send messages
                irc.SendMessage(SendType.Message, e.Data.Nick, "CHANNEL'"+REQUESTED_CHANNEL+"'");
                irc.SendMessage(SendType.Message, e.Data.Nick, "Name:'"+channel.Name+"'");
                irc.SendMessage(SendType.Message, e.Data.Nick, "Topic:'"+channel.Topic+"'");
                irc.SendMessage(SendType.Message, e.Data.Nick, "Mode:'"+channel.Mode+"'");
                irc.SendMessage(SendType.Message, e.Data.Nick, "Key:'"+channel.Key+"'");
                irc.SendMessage(SendType.Message, e.Data.Nick,"UserLimit: '"+channel.UserLimit+"'");
                // here we go through all users of the channel and show their
                // hashtable key and nickname 
                string nickname_list = "";
                nickname_list += "Users: ";
                IDictionaryEnumerator it = channel.Users.GetEnumerator();
                while(it.MoveNext()) {
                    string      key         = (string)it.Key;
                    ChannelUser channeluser = (ChannelUser)it.Value;
                    nickname_list += key+" => "+channeluser.Nick+", ";
                }
                irc.SendMessage(SendType.Message, e.Data.Nick, nickname_list);
                irc.SendMessage(SendType.Message, e.Data.Nick, "");
            break;
            case "gc":
                GC.Collect();
            break;
            // typical commands
            case "join":
                irc.RfcJoin(e.Data.MessageArray[1]);
            break;
            case "part":
                irc.RfcPart(e.Data.MessageArray[1]);
            break;
            case "die":
                Exit();
            break;
        }
    }
    // this method handles when we receive "ERROR" from the IRC server
    public static void OnError(object sender, ErrorEventArgs e)
    {
        System.Console.WriteLine("Error: "+e.ErrorMessage);
        Exit();
    }
    
    // this method will get all IRC messages
    public static void OnRawMessage(object sender, IrcEventArgs e)
    {
        System.Console.WriteLine("Received: "+e.Data.RawMessage);
    }
    
    public static void Main(string[] args)
    {
        Thread.CurrentThread.Name = "Main";
        
        // wait time between messages, we can set this lower on own irc servers
        irc.SendDelay = 200;
        
        // we use channel sync, means we can use irc.GetChannel() and so on
        irc.ActiveChannelSyncing = true;
        
        // here we connect the events of the API to our written methods
        // most have own event handler types, because they ship different data
        irc.OnQueryMessage += new IrcEventHandler(OnQueryMessage);
        irc.OnError += new ErrorEventHandler(OnError);
        irc.OnRawMessage += new IrcEventHandler(OnRawMessage);
        string[] serverlist;
        // the server we want to connect to, could be also a simple string
        serverlist = new string[] {"irc.fu-berlin.de"};
        int port = 6667;
        string channel = "#smartirc";
        try {
            // here we try to connect to the server and exceptions get handled
            irc.Connect(serverlist, port);
        } catch (ConnectionException e) {
            // something went wrong, the reason will be shown
            System.Console.WriteLine("couldn't connect! Reason: "+e.Message);
            Exit();
        }
        
        try {
            // here we logon and register our nickname and so on 
            irc.Login("SmartIRC", "SmartIrc4net Test Bot");
            // join the channel
            irc.RfcJoin(channel);
            for (int i = 0; i < 3; i++) {
                // here we send just 3 different types of messages, 3 times for
                // testing the delay and flood protection (messagebuffer work)
                irc.SendMessage(SendType.Message, channel, "test message "+i.ToString());
                irc.SendMessage(SendType.Action, channel, "thinks this is cool "+i.ToString());
                irc.SendMessage(SendType.Notice, channel, "SmartIrc4net rocks "+i.ToString());
            }
            
            // spawn a new thread to read the stdin of the console, this we use
            // for reading IRC commands from the keyboard while the IRC connection
            // stays in its own thread
            new Thread(new ThreadStart(ReadCommands)).Start();
            
            // here we tell the IRC API to go into a receive mode, all events
            // will be triggered by _this_ thread (main thread in this case)
            // Listen() blocks by default, you can also use ListenOnce() if you
            // need that does one IRC operation and then returns, so you need then 
            // an own loop 
            irc.Listen();
            
            // when Listen() returns our IRC session is over, to be sure we call
            // disconnect manually
            irc.Disconnect();
        } catch (ConnectionException) {
            // this exception is handled becaused Disconnect() can throw a not
            // connected exception
            Exit();
        } catch (Exception e) {
            // this should not happen by just in case we handle it nicely
            System.Console.WriteLine("Error occurred! Message: "+e.Message);
            System.Console.WriteLine("Exception: "+e.StackTrace);
            Exit();
        }
    }
    
    public static void ReadCommands()
    {
        // here we read the commands from the stdin and send it to the IRC API
        // WARNING, it uses WriteLine() means you need to enter RFC commands
        // like "JOIN #test" and then "PRIVMSG #test :hello to you"
        while (true) {
            irc.WriteLine(System.Console.ReadLine());
        }
    }
    
    public static void Exit()
    {
        // we are done, lets exit...
        System.Console.WriteLine("Exiting...");
        System.Environment.Exit(0);
    }
}

Connect to your favorite IRC server, set the IRC server in the source. Join the #smartirc channel. Compile the source, spawn the bot. The bot should join #smartirc and say three messages, after that send him a private message: "/msg smartirc say #smartirc hello!".

Official Project Page

Have fun

There you go, have fun with bot coding! ;)