mIRC is a popular Windows based Internet chat relay client which allows users to communicate, share files, play games or work with other members from around the world on IRC networks via private one-to-one connections or multi-user groups through different servers. mIRC is user friendly, supports file transfers and is fully configurable.

mIRC was created in 1995 to improve on earlier types of IRC clients which developers felt lacked basic IRC features. These extra features included ability to share files, customizable UI and improved scripting to improve the way the client behaves. Over the years user input has contributed to improve the mIRC client with users wanting support for multiple server connections and a change to the way channels and notify lists are displayed, with a treebar format preferred over the default switchbar.

For compatibility - OldVersion.com advises mIRC 6.35 and earlier versions for Windows 95/NT 4.0/98/ME. Later than 6.35 are compatible with Windows 2000 OS and later.

General consensus says that from v6.2+ are most stable, secure and the fastest versions of the mIRC client, 6.xx works great with PCs running older Windows operating systems.

Old versions of mIRC are still functional but are no longer supported with technical or security updates.

Pros: Connect to multiple chat room servers, secure, fast, available for older operating systems.

Cons: Challenging to use for beginners, hard to find old subjects, long queues for servers.