On this screen is a program running with text messages scrolling up at a rapid pace. In a column on the left of the screen is a list of names that is being constantly updated, with as many as four or five hundred names listed. What is happening is instant communication with people all over the world. In that list of names could be people from every inhabited continent, sharing ideas, cultures, and customs. Stereotypes are broken down and understanding is promoted.
Diversity is celebrated, as people strive to learn from each other.
Friendships are forged, lovers are brought together, and ideas are shared among people who will never meet. People are learning through a level and availability of interaction at levels that have never before been breached. Here is what thousands of hours of chat time has taught me. IRC, otherwise known as Internet Relay Chat, is one of the oldest and most popular forms of Computer Mediated Communication. Developed far before the World Wide Web, IRC is one of the largest uses of bandwidth on the Internet.