Wookieepedia:IRC/Cloaks

Wookieepedia is now recognized as a project group by freenode, our IRC host, which means qualifying Wookieepedians can have a cloak that reflects their affiliation.

What is a Wookieepedia IRC channel cloak?
On freenode, the network which hosts the Wookieepedia IRC channel, an IRC user cloak replaces the display of your IP address or host name with a cloak.

For example,  becomes   in several IRC-related messages (,  , and various join/part/quit notifications).

Who can get a cloak?
All Wookieepedians that meet these requirements can request a cloak:
 * Wookieepedia account at least 1 month old
 * freenode account at least 1 week old
 * At least 50 non-reverted main namespace edits within the last three months
 * Not have been blocked from editing Wookieepedia within the last three months
 * Email verified with Wikia

If you have a cloak from another project, you will need the approval of the group contact from that project in addition to Wookieepedia's process to have a dual cloak. Be advised that freenode strongly discourages multiple-project cloaks and may not approve such a request.

Purposes of a cloak
User cloaks uniquely identify you as a Wookieepedia editor to those who see you in #wookieepedia or in other IRC channels. They are intended to help build a sense of community, as well as giving you a way to hide your hostname for security and privacy reasons.


 * Verification on IRC: The primary reason to wear a cloak is to prove that you are the user on-wiki who you say you are on IRC. For example, 's  cloak shows that he is who he says he is, as you cannot add a fake cloak onto yourself.
 * Community pride: According to Rob Levin, the late ex-head of freenode, user cloaks are a way to show off your pride as a Wookieepedian to those who see you in other IRC channels, and are intended to help build a sense of community.
 * Privacy: They are also a way to hide your hostname for security and privacy reasons. freenode provides an "unaffiliated" cloak to those without a cloak for a particular project. (Note: No cloak will fully hide hostnames in the webchat.freenode.net client, but unaffiliated cloaks will work with other clients).

How do I obtain a cloak?
freenode, the IRC (Internet Relay Chat) network which hosts the Wookieepedia channel, requires that these steps be followed prior to setting a cloak. Users should follow these instructions before requesting a cloak.

Throughout these instructions, means that you should replace that with a variable (for example a password, a channel name or a nick). The brackets are not needed in the text you actually type.


 * To register an IRC account with freenode, type:
 * /msg nickserv REGISTER 
 * It is strongly advised you register at least one secondary nick.
 * Change nick by typing :
 * /nick 
 * Then group this one to your first nick.
 * /msg nickserv GROUP
 * Optionally, you can hide your email from other users by typing:
 * /msg NickServ SET HIDEMAIL ON
 * Check your email address for an email from donotreply[at]freenode[dot]net for verifying your registration.
 * Accounts which are not verified after 24 hours will have their registration dropped.

If you have troubles with any of these steps, you can ask for advice in #freenode or #wookieepedia.

After the above steps have been completed, we can now request freenode staff to give you a cloak. Please follow the instructions here and then contact a Wookieepedia group contact in #wookieepedia. The current group contact is.

freenode staff demands that both the user and the group contact are online when the cloak is set. After you have talked to a group contact, they will ask staff, who will then send you a message, confirming that you want the cloak. You will be notified automatically on IRC when the new cloak is in place. Note that services require you to be on IRC and identified to NickServ in order to assign a cloak, so please ensure you are around.

The cloak will now be applied whenever you login to NickServ.

Cloak options
All cloaks must conform to the DNS hostname specification as described in RFC 1034 and RFC 1035. They may include upper- and lower-case Latin characters, Arabic numerals and dashes. They may not include spaces or underscores; dashes should be used instead. Your cloak will contain your username, adjusted to fit this requirement.

Wookieepedia cloaks may contain any one (but only one) of the user levels one has earned:
 * wookieepedia/bureaucrat/username
 * wookieepedia/administrator/username
 * wookieepedia/username

A user with an existing group cloak will have a Wookieepedia cloak in the format @ /wookieepedia.username or @wookieepedia/ .username.

Identify to freenode
For your cloak to be displayed, you will need to identify each time you log on.


 * To identify to freenode, type:
 * /msg nickserv identify 

Most clients will do this automatically.


 * For mIRC select:
 * Tools > Options > Connect - Options > "Perform" button > check "enable perform on connect" > Type the identify command in the text box > OK > OK.


 * For X-Chat:
 * XChat > Server List... > (select network) > (click Edit) > enter your nickserv password


 * For ChatZilla select:
 * ChatZilla > Preferences > freenode > "lists" tab > "Add" button > Type the identify command in the text box (without the /) > OK > OK.


 * For Pidgin select:
 * Accounts > Manage Accounts > "Add" button > change Protocol to IRC (Freenode is the default server)> add username and password (no commands, just type your password) > check "remember password" for auto identify; leave "local alias" blank > click save


 * For HydraIRC select:
 * Options > Prefs... > Scripts > Type "Freenode_OnLoggedIn" and click "Add" button > Type the identify command ( /msg NickServ IDENTIFY ) in the text box > OK.


 * For IceChat 7 select:
 * Edit Server > Startup > Type in the Nickserv Password box your password > click save


 * For Colloquy select:
 * File > New Connection... > Details > Type your password in the Server Password field > Click Connect


 * For Opera select:
 * "Opera" menu > Mail and chat accounts > (select network) > Edit > Outgoing tab > Type the identify command ( /msg NickServ IDENTIFY ) in the bottom text box > Click OK


 * For Miranda IM select:
 * Miranda logo > Options > IRC (in list on left under Network) > Account tab > Under "Default network", select FreeNode from the dropdown list > Enter your password in the "Password" box > Enter your nick in the box labeled "Nick" > Click OK

(Please insert instructions here for other clients)