What's best irc client for Windows 7?

[jasong]

Simple question. :)

I will add, though, that while I'm certainly not an expert to irc, I'm pretty far above a beginner. The reason I'm asking is I've been on Linux for years, but I refuse to switch over to Linux unless I have a backup computer. Reason being is it's easier to get A Windows box to work than a Linux box, so when I'm down to one computer, I'll use Linux as long as I can, but once I screw it up(happens about once a year) I switch to Windows if I don't have a backup computer.

In this case, I dropped my nettop on the floor(death was delayed about a day for some reason), so now I only have the one box.

Back to the question, though, what's the best Win 7 irc client for an unlucky person who isn't a rank beginner?

[alpha]

mIRC has been the most popular for as long as I can remember (13+ years). XChat is also very popular but the official Windows build is shareware. However, I believe there are unofficial Windows builds which are free.

I suggest you just try a few different ones and use whatever you prefer ("best" is subjective). I always IRC from my FreeBSD box, so I can't really recommend what I use.

[jasong]

mIRC is limited in it's function, which is probably why it's so popular. It's amazing how many people think RTFM is offensive even without the "F." I'll try XChat to see what it can do.

[jasong]

Hope I didn't offend anybody with the above comment. I care very much for the various people in my life, but I tend to lack empathy unless someone actually complains to me. Nobody did in this case, btw.

[AnthonyThrash]

I mostly use thrashirc on windows 7, xchat on linux