Polari is an open source application that provides users with one of the most easy to use and uncomplicated IRC (Internet Relay Chat) client that was ever created for the GNOME desktop environment.
The application lets users to easily join IRC channels, talk in chat rooms, save and access history, identify mentions, access last used rooms, transfer files, and much more. It integrates well into the GNOME desktop.
Features at a glance
Key features include the ability to remember last used rooms, which will be automatically opened when the application starts, detect HTTP(S) links posted in a room and display them, saves transcripts, and supports over 20 private chats and rooms.
In addition, it supports the native GNOME 3 notifications, and integrates with the PasteBin and Bugzilla services. Its user interface is extremely simple and clean, allowing anyone to quickly add an IRC server and join a certain channel.
Getting started with Polari
When opening the application for the first time, users will be prompted by an empty window with a few inactive buttons. To connect to an Internet Relay Chat server, one should click the panel entry of the software and open the Connections dialog.
Clicking on the add new connection button will allow users to enter the address and description of the server they want to connect to, as well as their nickname and/or real name (not recommended). You can add as many IRC servers as you want.
Once the connection has been established, you can click the plus button on the main window to join an IRC channel or send a message to a user, if you know the nickname used by this user. Joining a channel will require users to select the IRC server on which the room exists, as well as its name and password (if applicable).
Bottom line
All in all, Polari is a beautiful and easy-to-use IRC client for the GNOME desktop environment. It should have been created a long time ago, instead of using the old XChat application or the unusable Empathy IM client.
What’s new in Polari 3.32.1:
- Handle notifications for private chats if GNOME’s chat integration is not available [Florian, Daronion; #18]
- Misc. bug fixes and cleanups [Florian, Shubhesh, Kalev; !103, !100, !101, !99, !108, !109, !110, !111]
- Translators:
