If IRC is ancient and Matrix is too complex - there is XMPP (Jabber) in the middle ground.
#xmpp #jabber #chat #instantmessaging #privacy #selfhosted #e2ee #opsec
XMPP – The Middle Ground Of Instant Messaging (Prosody)
XMPP or Extensible Messaging and Presence Protocol is an open communication protocol.It has been actively developed since it was introduced in 1999.Over time, a large part of its user base migrated to centralized cloud platforms. IRC is a simple, reliable, text-based protocol.Matrix is a robust but more complex protocol with higher resource requirements.XMPP sits between them, closer to IRC…
Tom's IT Cafe (tomsitcafe.com)