

Unfortunately, many people not familiar with IRC found it difficult to learn how to use initially. The most popular IRC client is mIRC and various scripts based on it such as SysReset and UPP. IRC allows fans to gather and talk about their favorite series, and provides a place for users to download manga from fserves (FileServers) of their peers as well as bots. IRC, or Internet Relay Chat, is a means for groups to communicate and coordinate projects in real-time. IRC became a popular way to distribute scanlation files. While direct downloads have always existed, in the early 2000's, servers and hosting sites were neither cheap nor widespread, so people resorted to other means to share manga. Prior to 2000, when the Internet was not as accessible as it is today, scanlations were mostly distributed on Usenet as well as passed around in anime clubs on CDs (much like early fansubs). There are many ways to distribute scanlations.
