Irc
Internet Relay Chat
Internet Relay Chat or IRC for short is a chat protocol that has been around since 1988[1].
It is still popular today via systems such as EFnet[2], DALnet[3], Freenode[4], etc.
IRC Clients
Freenode has a web based char client called Kiwi IRC
You can find a comprehensive list of IRC clients with a comparison of features here[5] .
Privacy
When connecting to IRC your IP address is visible to everyone. In an effort to protect your privacy you can use a VPN, TOR, or a Bouncer to redirect and mask your IP.
Available IRC bouncers:
Some available IRC bouncers include:
ircproxy - http://freshmeat.sourceforge.net/projects/ircproxy
jBouncer - http://www.jibble.org/jbouncer/
muh - http://muh.sourceforge.net/
psyBNC - https://psybnc.org/
shroudBNC - http://shroudbnc.info/
ZNC - https://wiki.znc.in/ZNC