Next: People, Up: Fighting Information Overload [Contents][Index]

### 3.1 Channels

Most people want a notification when something is said on a channel they have joined, particularly if they have been addressed directly. There is a global minor mode that will do this kind of tracking for you. All you need to do is switch it on using `M-x rcirc-track-minor-mode`. To make this permanent, add the following to your init file:

    (rcirc-track-minor-mode 1)

When other people say things in buffers that are currently buried (no window is showing them), the mode line will now show you the abbreviated channel or nick name. Use `C-c C-SPC` to switch to these buffers.

If you prefer not to load `rcirc` immediately, you can delay the activation of this mode:

    (add-hook 'rcirc-mode-hook
              (lambda ()
                (rcirc-track-minor-mode 1)))

If you’ve joined a very active support channel, tracking activity is no longer useful. The channel will be always active. Switching to active channels using `C-c C-SPC` no longer works as expected.

The solution is to mark this channel as a low priority channel. Use `C-c C-l` to make the current channel a low-priority channel. Low priority channels have the modeline indicator “LowPri”. `C-c C-SPC` will not switch to low priority channels unless you use the `C-u` prefix.

If you prefer a channel to never show up in the modeline, then you have to ignore it. Use `C-c TAB` to ignore the current channel.

Next: People, Up: Fighting Information Overload [Contents][Index]