Related articles
Edit |
Discuss Article
NewsgroupA newsgroup is a repository, usually within the Usenet system, for messages posted from many users at different locations. The term is somewhat confusing, because it is usually a discussion group. Newsgroups are technically distinct from, but functionally similar to, discussion forums on the World Wide Web.
Newsgroups are arranged into usenet hierarchies, theoretically making it simpler to find related groups. The term Top-level usenet hierarchy refers to a usenet hierarchy defined by the prefix prior to the first dot. So for instance newsgroup rec.arts.sf.starwars.games would be in the rec.* usenet hierarchy. There are eight major hierarchies of newsgroups, known as the "Big 8":
- comp.* - Discussion of computer-related topics
- news.* - Discussion of Usenet itself
- sci.* - Discussion of scientific subjects
- humanities.* - Discussion of the humanities (e.g. literature, philosophy)
- rec.* - Discussion of recreational activities (e.g. games and hobbies)
- soc.* - Socialising and discussion of social issues.
- talk.* - Discussion of contentious issues such as religion and politics.
- misc.* - Miscellaneous discussion - anything which doesn't fit in the other hierarchies.
These were all created in the Great Renaming of 1986-1987, prior to which all of these newsgroups were in the net.* hierarchy. At that time there was a great controversy over what newsgroups should be allowed. Among those that the usenet cabal (who effectively ran the Big-8 at the time) did not allow were those concerning recipes, drugs, and sex. This resulted in the creation of an alt.* (short for "alternative") usenet hierarchy where these groups would be allowed. Over time the laxness of rules on newsgroup creation in alt.* compared to Big-8 meant that many new topics that could, given time, gain enough popularity to get a Big-8 newsgroup had newsgroups instead created in alt.*. This resulted in a rapid growth of alt.* which continues to this day. Due to the anarchic nature with which the groups sprung up, some jokingly referred to ALT standing for "Anarchists, Lunatics and Terrorists"
The alt.* hierarchy has discussion of all kinds of topics, and many hierarchies for discussion specific to a particular geographical area or in a language other than English.
Before a new Big 8 newsgroup can be created, it must be discussed in the newsgroup news.groups, and it must be voted on(anyone is allowed to vote). The vote will only pass if at least two-thirds of all votes cast are in favour and there are 100 more votes in favour than against. Creating a new group in the alt.* hierarchy is not subject to such strict rules, but it should be discussed in alt.config first.
Typically, a newsgroup is focused on a particular topic such as 'shellfish'. Some newsgroups allow the posting of messages on a wide variety of themes, regarding anything a member chooses to discuss as on-topic, while others keep more strictly to their particular subject, frowning on off-topic postings. The news admin (the administrator of a news server) decides how long articles are kept before being expired (deleted from the server). Usually they will be kept for one or two weeks, but some admins keep articles in local or technical newsgroups around longer than articles in other newsgroups.
Newsgroups tend to come in two types, binary and text. There is no technical difference between the two, but the differentiation means that users and server who only have limited facilities can avoid downloading large binaries.
Newsgroups are much like the public message boards on old bulletin board systems. For those readers not familiar with this concept, envision an electronic version of the corkboard in the entrance of your local grocery store.
Newsgroups frequently become cliquish and are subject to sporadic flame wars and trolling, but they can also be a valuable source of information, support and friendship, bringing people who are interested in specific subjects together from around the world.
There are currently well over 100,000 Usenet newsgroups, but only 20,000 or so of those are active. Newsgroups vary in popularity, with some newsgroups only getting a few posts a month while others get several hundred (and in a few cases several thousand) messages a day.
Weblogs have replaced some of the uses of newsgroups (especially because, for a while, they were less prone to spamming).
A website called DejaNews began archiving Usenet and also provided a searchable web interface to it in the 1990s. Google bought the archive from them and also made efforts to buy other Usenet archives to attempt to create a complete archive of Usenet newsgroups and postings from its early beginnings. Google also has a web search interface to the archive and also allows newsgroup posting.
See also: List of newsgroups
Non-Usenet Newsgroups are possible and do occur, as private individuals or organizations set up their own nntp servers. Examples include the newsgroups at [1].
External links
rv spam
Source | Copyright
|
 |
 |
|
Webmasters: Add your website here:
Readers: Edit |
Discuss Listings
news.newusers.questions: Creating New Newsgroups
Complete information on how to create newsgroups, in the Big 8 hierarchy, alt.*, and a few other assorted hierarchies.
http://nnqweb.tripod.com/ncreate.html
Usenet Volunteer Votetakers
Group that administers the votes used in the Big 8 hierarchy to decide whether to create a newsgroup. Policies, vote-counting software, and status on current/upcoming/recent votes. The Big 8 is comp.*, humanities.*, misc.*, news.*, rec.*, sci.*, soc.*, and talk.*.
http://www.uvv.org/
Free.uk.* newsgroups
In the free.* hierarchy, anyone can set up a new group. Here are simple instructions how to create a new newsgroup in the free.uk.* hierarchy and a list of newsservers which carry the free.uk.* groups.
http://www.users.zetnet.co.uk/rob/freefaq/fgroups.htm
So You Want to Create an Alt Newsgroup
Guide to creating Usenet groups in the alt.* hierarchy. Creating a successful alt newsgroup depends only on convincing news administrators tocarry your newsgroup. Here are tips to help you achieve this.
http://www.cis.ohio-state.edu/~barr/alt-creation-guide.html
How to Create a New Alt Newsgroup
A very detailed set of step-by-step instructions on how to create an alt.* group. Related links concerning group creation guidelines in other hierarchies and FAQs about moderated groups.
http://tgos.org/newbie/newgroup.html
Newsgroup Creation in the US Hierarchy
Procedures for creation, removal, renaming, and/or reorganization of us.* hierarchy newsgroups, for amending newsgroup charters, for changing moderation status, and for other changes in us.*.
http://www.panix.com/~kingdon/us-create.html
Guidelines for Group Creation in the UK hierarchy
Newsgroup creation process within uk.*
http://www.usenet.org.uk/guidelines.html
How to Create a New Big-8 Newsgroup
How to create a new usenet newsgroup in one of the Big-8 hierarchies. Written by David Lawrence.
http://www.faqs.org/faqs/usenet/creating-newsgroups/part1/
How to Format and Submit a New Group Proposal
For those who are preparing to propose the creation or reorganization of a group in the comp, humanities, misc, news, rec, sci, soc, or talk hierarchies (known collectively as the Big Eight).
http://web.presby.edu/~jtbell/usenet/newgroup/how-submit.faq
The Big Eight Newsgroup Creation Process
Documents the process to create, rename, remove, or change the moderation status of newsgroups in the Big Eight hierarchies. Written by Russ Allbery.
http://www.eyrie.org/~eagle/faqs/big-eight.html
How To Write a Good Newgroup Message for Alt
Detailed explanations on "newgroup" messages for alt.* groups, the type of control message which creates a newsgroup, and the correct way to write and send them.
http://www.gweep.ca/~edmonds/usenet/good-newgroup.html
|
