Best Chat Script - Program for my needs?

[VidER]

Hi All !

I need to have a Chat System in My Web Site With Special Features..

I need it to be fast, be able to handle big numbers of users, Support Moderation (Ability to Kick and Ban people), supports provate messaging, and the most important feature:

Hosting Special Events with Special Guests who are the only ones able to type on the public chat while the others are only viewers with a mechanism that enables them to ask the Guests Questions that will not be viewable on the Public board unless the moderator approves them.

And a logging system that saves a copy of the special event's text would be great also :)

I have seen chats with this system but I need your advice what to use .. I am open to all Scripting Languages (PHP, Java, Cgi, PERL, .. etc) and maybe ASP but I am not that good with it.. So Please suggest whatever you have in mind .. Give me Chat Script names and their links and prices if possible .. I prefer free ones of course but if not possible I will have to pay ! :s

Thanks all and waiting for your comments and suggestions.

[Zone-MR]

IRC is definatley the standard for any chat. It features all the features you are looking for.

Download a good client, if you arent already familiar with it, get familiar with it. Set up some channel.

Then....

Download CGIIRC (cgiirc.sourceforge.net i believe), that is a gateway to access IRC from a browser. Stick it on your server, set it up the way you like it, and bingo....

There are probably many other different ways to acheive this, but as I mentioned IRC is the kinda standard. People can connect via your website, or use one of the many clients out there, and its definatley the most powerful.

All IRC networks support moderation via an OPs/Voice system. Some support additional user levels such as ChanAdmins/Halfops, and have basic forms of flood control. In the future you can increase functionallity by adding a bot to control floods/etc. And it can scale from one to thousands of users, so that isnt a problem....