Contrary to the name, there is actually very little "news" in the
newsgroups. Newsgroups are basically an electronic bulletin board.
Items are posted and can be responded to via email.
Depending upon your online-service or Internet Service Provider
(ISP), you should have access to about 12,000
newsgroups (currently there are over 26,000).
With this many newsgroups there is probably at least one out there
for everyone. USENET,
the international newsgroup network, is much like the Internet itself...no
single agency is in charge. The system connects computers from around
the world. The system administrators decide which newsgroups to
supply. Very few systems supply all of the newsgroups.
There
are a couple of methods for finding the newsgroups that may be of
interest to you. If you are using the Netscape Navigator (in the news
window) go to options and select Show All Newsgroups.
The newsreader will then display all the newsgroups that are available
from your service provider. Be aware, this may take a few minutes
to complete. A list of all newsgroups will then appear on the left
side of the screen. Simply click on the title of the newsgroups
to obtain all of the messages. (The options menu
will give you several choices for the sorting of these messages.)
Another
method for finding newsgroups is searching by subject. Below are
a few Web sites that may assist you with the search.
|
Favorite Web Sites |
| Google Groups
Allows you to search newsgroups for messages matching
your keywords. You can then reply or post your own message. |
| Usenet Info Center Launch Pad
Information on Usenet and its newsgroups. Includes functions
for browsing and searching for specific newsgroups. |
| Search for Groups
Searches newsgroup by title, description, or moderator
name. Search FAQs by subject, author or summary. |
Both
the Netscape Navigator and Internet
Explorer have a very competent newsreaders integrated into their
browsers.
Newsgroups
are arranged in subgroups which makes them easier to list. A newsgroup
name starts with a subgroup header followed by one or more descriptive
words, separated by "."
Frequently
Asked Questions (FAQ's) are an important part
of USENET culture. These list and answer the kinds of questions
that beginner's ask, and provide a good introduction to each group.
They are often an excellent source of information on the subject
matter of the group.
It
is highly recommended that you read the groups FAQ before posting
a message.
