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Using IRC for Electronic Meetings?
paenguin asks: "Our Linux User Group sometimes needs to hold Exec meetings, electronically. We have used IRC in the past, but it leaves us with a problem: there is no easy or built-in way to prove who is who. Do Slashdot readers know of a way to provide non-repudiation over IRC, or of another open source method of holding group electronic meetings where we can verify that everyone is who they say they are?" Wouldn't a private IRC server, with a combination of suitable IRC services (ala NickServ and ChanServe) and fairly restrictive policies, be one solution to this problem? How would you set up such a system? For those willing to brave the setup hassles, might some form of secure IRC also be an option?
What's stopping you from using an IM client that allows multiple users in a conference-type configuration?
The IM server is responsible for authentication, so you just add your buddies and then start chatting. Seems simple.
I have been pwned because my
just exchange AOL Screen Names in a face-to-face setting, and set up a private chat room. Done!
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It's been a while since I spent much time in IRC, but even several years ago we would identify channel ops with a bot (eggdrop, if I recall correctly). Giving everyone ops isn't necessary, either. It is simple to have usernames and passwords maintained and authenticated on a bot and to set the IRC channel to require members to be given a voice (by the bot upon authentication) to speak in the channel.