earwigbot/docs/setup.rst

Setup
=====

The bot stores its data in a "working directory", including its config file
and databases. This is also the location where you will place custom IRC
commands and bot tasks, which will be explained later. It doesn't matter where
this directory is, as long as the bot can write to it.

Start the bot with :command:`earwigbot path/to/working/dir`, or just
:command:`earwigbot` if the working directory is the current directory. It
will notice that no :file:`config.yml` file exists and take you through the
setup process.

There is currently no way to edit the :file:`config.yml` file from within the
bot after it has been created, but you should be able to make any necessary
changes yourself.

After setup, the bot will start. This means it will connect to the IRC servers
it has been configured for, schedule bot tasks to run at specific times, and
then wait for instructions (as commands on IRC). For a list of commands, say
"``!help``" (commands are messages prefixed with an exclamation mark).

You can stop the bot at any time with :kbd:`Control-c`, same as you stop a
normal Python program, and it will try to exit safely. You can also use the
"``!quit``" command on IRC.