FAQ: *** Which News Group? *** v3.04
John Hall
(Version 3.04)
A guide to the Demon newsgroups
Read this before you post anything!
# = changes since the last posting (none)
Last updated 5 Dec 2008.
EMERGENCIES & PROBLEMS
If you have a problem and need assistance:
1) (Urgent) Phone the Demon Helpdesk:
Standard Dial Up Support 0845 272 2444
Broadband Customer Support 0845 272 0040
see also http://www.demon.net/helpdesk/
2) (Fairly urgent) Use the text chat service:
see http://www.demon.net/helpdesk/textchat/
3) (Not so urgent) E-mail help...@demon.net. Be sure to include details
of your system hardware and software including
version numbers. If the problem is with connections,
include the first 7 digits of the number you are
dialling FROM and the Demon number which you are
dialling. Include details of the modem or router
and its model number. The reply will probably
take a few days.
4) (Leisurely) Use the support newsgroups (see below).
5) Any problems with Usenet news at Demon's end (NOT *your* computer's
problems with it) should be e-mailed to help...@demon.net.
From November, 2008, Demon's news service has been outsourced to
Highwinds Media. The change should be "transparent" to Demon's users,
who should still connect to news.demon.co.uk
Highwind's FAQ can be found at:
<http://support.highwinds-media.com/faq.php>
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OPENING REMARKS
What is the status of this FAQ?
-------------------------------
This FAQ has NO official status and none of it was written by Demon.
How far do Demon newsgroups travel?
-----------------------------------
All Demon newsgroups are available worldwide on any news server which
wants to carry them, not just to Demon subscribers. However, many
servers *don't* carry them, so if you want to have an international
discussion use a non-Demon group. There are also uk.* groups for some
subjects.
If you read any uk.* newsgroups it is highly recommended that you
subscribe to the very low volume newsgroup uk.net.news.announce to keep
up with proposed new groups, votes, committee elections etc.
If you want to have a public discussion within Demon's domain (i.e.
mainly Demon subscribers, with a few guests looking in from elsewhere),
use the list of Demon groups below to decide which one to use.
Can I use Demon's news server when connected via another ISP?
-------------------------------------------------------------
No. In order to use Demon's news server (news.demon.co.uk) you must
be connected directly to Demon. However, Demon's newsgroups are
available to any ISP that wishes to carry them, so you should be
able to access them via your ISP's own news server.
Lurk First!
-----------
It is recommended that you should read at least a week's postings in
a newsgroup before you post to it, to ensure you understand its content
and tone. The exceptions are demon.ip.support.newuser and demon.test,
in both of which you are permitted to grow up in public.
Netiquette is ... not being silly. Play it by ear - or read one of the
guides such as http://www.dickgaughan.co.uk/usenet/guide/guide.html
Off-Topic Postings
------------------
You may make a posting to a group and someone replies that you should
have used a different group. Do not be upset by this as it is in
everybody's interest that information is focused. *If you're looking in
the wrong place, you won't find the people you want to talk to.* Please
read the previous sentence again. Once more just to make sure.
If follow-ups (i.e. further postings) are directed to another group,
subscribe to that group for a week or two to see any further responses.
How do I start a newsgroup?
---------------------------
Discuss the idea in the group(s) which most closely resemble your idea
and which are at present carrying its future traffic. Cross-post to all
of them if there are more than one, and also to the appropriate group-
creation discussion group:
news.groups for comp, humanities, misc, news, rec, sci, soc,
talk groups
alt.config for alt groups
uk.net.news.config for uk groups
demon.news for demon groups
*Regular posters to these will be able to explain further what is
involved.*
Don't be disappointed if people tell you to use existing groups instead;
they will often be right, and you may well be told about appropriate
newsgroups you hadn't heard of before.
Don't Panic!
------------
You'll soon get the hang of it after a week or two of reading news.
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And Now... THE DEMON NEWSGROUPS (sorted by category)
--------------------------------------------------------------
Groups with (Moderated) in the comments mean that you cannot make
postings to them. This is different from the way that moderation works
in most non-Demon groups, in which your writings *are* received as
e-mail by the moderator, who will then use them to create whatever
articles they like.
Some of the Demon groups were set up to meet needs that no longer
exist, or which have become very small. (For example, few people
use an Atari for their Internet access any more.) Such groups
therefore have very few posts and few readers.
If that is the case for the group to which you want
to post, then if the topic is not Demon-specific consider looking
for an equivalent group elsewhere. An attempt has been made below
to note which groups appeared to be moribund as at October, 2006
and where possible to suggest an alternative newsgroup.
demon.ip.support.* - Internet connection problems & queries, *not*
general computing issues, for which you require
SUPPORT from Demon staff and/or other experts.
The great majority of advice comes from
other users rather than Demon staff.
demon.nl.support Internet connectie problemen & vragen, niet
algemene computer vragen, waarvoor je ondersteuning
nodig hebt van Nederlandse Demon medewerkers
Internet connection problems & queries, *not*
general computing issues, for which you require
support from Dutch Demon staff.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
demon.ip.support.newuser For the hesitant new user to make postings.
(*Recommended for new users*) No flaming!
Lurking not required! This is a group for
new users to post to, *not* a playground or
wibble group. Users who are no longer new,
and who are insufficiently knowledgeable to
help provide solutions to new users'
problems, should leave the group.
Whilst by definition discussion of the
Demon Turnpike software is not off topic
here, you may find more/better support in
the newsgroup demon.ip.support.turnpike
Now receives very few posts, but is still
monitored by some knowledgeable people.
demon.ip.support.ie4 Microsoft Internet Explorer v4 (and
later versions) support. This newsgroup
is for the discussion of the use of
Internet Explorer with particular
reference to its use by Demon Internet
Customers.
It is expected that most articles will be
posted by users of IE. As such,
discussion of the relative merits of
particular browsers will be unwelcome.
Binary postings are not permitted in this
(or any other Demon) group. Also, users
should take particular care, even in
this newsgroup, to avoid
posting articles which contain HTML
sections: plain text should be used
exclusively.
Almost moribund. The appropriate
group in the
microsoft.public.windows.inetexplorer.*
hierarchy is a possible alternative.
demon.ip.support.pc DOS (not Windows) Internet support.
Active.
demon.ip.support.pc.announce Announcing new Internet software for the
PC. (Moderated)
Unlikely to receive any postings.
demon.ip.support.winsock Windows 3.1 Internet support.
Monitored by a couple of Windis users
(an Internet access package which works
under Win9x as well as under Win3.1).
demon.ip.support.win95 Windows 95 and Windows 98
*INTERNET CONNECTION* support ONLY!
NOT for general Windows questions.
Moribund. Try uk.comp.os.ms-windows
where you are likely to find
some Demon users.
demon.ip.support.nt Windows NT and Windows 2000
*INTERNET CONNECTION* support ONLY!
Moribund. Try uk.comp.os.ms-windows
demon.ip.support.os2 IBM OS/2 & Warp Internet support.
Moribund. Unfortunately I cannot
suggest a good alternative.
There is no uk.* group, and
the comp.os.os2.* groups are unlikely
to have anyone with Demon knowledge.
demon.ip.support.amiga Amiga Internet support.
Moribund, but some former regulars
can be found on the channel #disa
on IRCnet - irc.demon.co.uk
on ports 6665-6669 (avoid 6667).
demon.ip.support.archimedes Acorn RISCOS Internet support.
Monitored by at least one knowledgeable
person.
demon.ip.support.atari Atari ST Internet support.
Monitored by at least one knowledgeable
person.
demon.ip.support.mac Macintosh/PowerMac Internet support.
Appears to be moribund. uk.comp.sys.mac
is a possible alternative.
demon.ip.support.turnpike Specifically for the Turnpike software.
Active.
demon.ip.support.unix Unix Internet support (including Linux).
Active.
demon.ip.support.other Internet support for other computers.
Moribund.
demon.ip.www Self-help support for using Demon's
COMMERCIAL web services. Please note that
demon.homepages.* newsgroups exist for
demon homepage support, service and
adverts.
Moribund.
demon.ip.support *Non-computer-specific* other Internet
support - see below!
Active,
A note on the purpose of demon.ip.support:
-----------------------------------------
Use it when you're sure that the problem or question is to do with
Demon's setup, or any other computers on the Internet - if it's
something to do with *your* setup or software, use the support group
appropriate to your computer type.
N.B. There are also other non-specific groups - see below.
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demon.ip.* - IP stands for INTERNET PROTOCOL (not general) computing
issues. Groups without "support" in their name are not
guaranteed to be read by Demon staff. However, there *are*
helpful and friendly experts, including some staff members.
demon.ip.developers For developers of software for use with Demon.
Moribund.
demon.ip.discoveries Post your discoveries on the Net here
(URLs etc.)
Moribund.
demon.ip.winsock Please use demon.ip.support.winsock
demon.ip.winsock.dics Specifically for the DICS Windows software
package.
Moribund.
demon.ip.cppnews Specifically for the CPPNEWS DOS news+mail
package.
Moribund.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
demon.tech.* - General (non-Internet) computing issues. Not support
groups. There are always people who can help, some may be
staff.
demon.tech.amiga Amiga discussions.
Moribund. Use the appropriate comp.sys.amiga.*
group. Alternatively, some former regulars
of demon.ip.support amiga can be found
on the channel #disa on IRCnet
- irc.demon.co.uk on ports 6665-6669
(avoid 6667) and may be able to help.
demon.tech.atari Atari ST discussions.
Moribund. Use the appropriate comp.sys.atari.*
group.
demon.tech.archimedes Acorn RISCOS (Archimedes) discussions.
Monitored by at least two knowledgeable users.
comp.sys.acorn.* is a possible alternative.
Groups nominally for Archimedes/Acorn now
mostly cover RISC OS as the current
environment on various hardware systems,
though support for old hardware is still
around.
demon.tech.pc IBM-compatible PC (DOS, Win & OS/2) discussions.
Active.
demon.tech.mac MacOS discussions.
Still read by a few knowledgeable people.
uk.comp.sys.mac is an alternative.
demon.tech.unix Unix computing (including PC Unix) discussions.
Still monitored by a number of
knowledgeable people.
demon.tech.modems Modems & comms software discussions.
Still a little activity.
demon.nl.hardware Discussions about hardware. The emphasis is on
hardware such as modems and ISDN equipment which
is used to connect to Demon Internet. Discussion
on topics concerning computer hardware in
general can also be found in this newsgroup.
Little activity.
vragen over en problemen met hardware Hierbij
ligt de nadruk met name op modems en isdn-
apparatuur welke gebruikt wordt om verbinding
te maken met Demon Internet.
Please note that these are fairly low-traffic groups compared to the
international discussions on computers to be found in the comp.*
hierarchy.
There is a comp.* group for most subjects, e.g. comp.sys.mac.graphics,
but these groups are largely American-based and can contain an
unmanageable number of postings every day.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
demon.* - "Other". Not support groups. Some have special functions,
others are for discussions of various kinds.
demon.adverts Personal and commercial adverts by Demon users.
just the advert here - NO discussion - put the
line Followup-To: demon.adverts.d
in the header of any advert you post.
Active.
demon.adverts.d The discussion area for demon.adverts.
Little activity.
demon.announce Demon Internet announcements. (Moderated)
(*Recommended for all users*)
Active.
demon.nl.announce Demon Internet Nederland aankondigingen.
(Beheerd) (Aanbevolen voor alle abonnees)
Demon Internet in The Netherlands announcements.
(Moderated) (*Recommended for all users*)
Active.
demon.answers Helpful info files get posted here every week.
(Moderated) (*Recommended for new users*)
Active.
demon.archives.announce Notices of files placed on the Demon FTP server.
Moribund.
demon.archives.d Discussion area about the Demon FTP server.
Moribund.
demon.games Discussion of online games running on Demon's
servers. For discussion of online games playing,
with special reference to those games for which
Demon runs servers.
Articles should be of general interest; email or
the chat systems of the particular games should
be used for private or ephemeral conversations
likely to concern only one or two people.
General questions about configuration or
technical support issues should be asked in more
appropriate newsgroups.
Where articles refer to a single game they
should include the name of that game in their
subject to assist automatic killing of articles
which will not be of interest to all.
All but moribund.
demon.homepages.authoring This newsgroup is for discussion of the
creation of WWW pages on the Demon "homepages"
service. Topics will include HTML, authoring
software, and other similar issues as they
relate to the homepages. This newsgroup should
NOT be used for advertising web sites or for
discussion of the quality of the homepages
service - separate newsgroups exist for both of
these topics (see below).
Active.
demon.nl.homepages Discussions of Demon homepages (Netherlands).
Intended for discussions on any aspect of
homepages. Example topics could be HTML, Java or
other related subjects.
All but moribund.
Discussies over Demon homepages. Hierbij kan men
denken aan HTML, Java en andere aanverwante
onderwerpen.
demon.homepages.adverts For announcements such as "try my web page about
xxx". These announcements must be for Demon
"homepages" only, and must be reasonably brief
and to the point.
Unless a significant amount of restructuring of
a site has occurred, the announcement should not
be repeated. It would be extremely unusual for
there to be any necessity to make any new
announcement before a month has elapsed.
Active.
demon.local Local chatter about any subject. Don't get a
life, get demon.local! Remember to lurk first!
Active.
demon.nl.babbel Local chatter about any subject (Netherlands)
A little activity.
Lokaal gepraat over iedere onderwerp.
demon.news Discussions about the Demon hierarchy of
newsgroups and the creation of new ones.
demon.* groups ONLY.
*NOT for complaints about the news server!*
*NOR for general news about Demon!*)
Active.
demon.sales (Moderated) Demon sales announcements.
(This has been unused for a considerable time)
demon.sales.d The discussion area for demon.sales
Inactive.
demon.pops Discussion of new and existing points of
presence. This group is effectively defunct.
demon.security Security/encryption related issues.
Moribund.
demon.security.keys For posting your public keys (e.g. PGP).
Moribund.
demon.service This group was originally created to allow
subscribers to let off steam in public.
It is NOT a support group, and you may not
get any response from Demon staff. However
it is the appropriate group for discussing
any and all aspects of Demon's service,
and is read by a number of Demon staffers.
Active.
demon.nl.mopper Grumbling and letting off steam. This is where
everyone can grumble and let off steam about the
services and quality of Demon (Netherlands).
Some activity.
Mopperen kribben over. Een newsgroup waarin
iedereen vrij en openbaar kan mopperen kribben
omtrent de dienstverlening en services van
Demon Internet.
demon.service.homepages This newsgroup is for service aspects of the
homepages - such as availability, features,
performance or other issues. This would also be
the place to discuss the Acceptable Use Policy
for the pages, or other aspects of the material
to be found on homepages.
Monitored by at least three knowledgeable users.
demon.service.isdn For ISDN service issues
Moribund. Use demon.service
demon.nl.software.algemeen General discussions about software.
The emphasis is on software which is used in
combination with Demon and the Internet in
general.
Some activity.
Algemene discussies over software Hierbij ligt
de nadruk vooral op software welke gebruikt zal
worden in combinatie met Demon Internet en het
internet in het algemeen.
demon.nl.software.os Questions about and problems with software. For
discussion of subjects relating to software and
operating systems in general. The emphasis is on
connecting with Demon Internet. Other software
related subjects may also be discussed here.
No activity.
Vragen over en problemen met software waarin
over onderwerpen gepraat kan worden die te maken
hebben met software en besturingsystemen in het
bijzonder. Andere anderwerpen kunnen hier ook
gediscuseerd woeden.
demon.nl.technobabbel Chat about technical subjects.
No activity.
Bletsen over technische onderwerpen.
demon.test For you to post messages to test your setup.
(text messages only - use a newsgroup such as
alt.binaries.test if you need to test binaries)
Active.
demon.tickets Formerly used for service messages passed to
Demon from other Internet providers. This
newsgroup is currently defunct.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Newsgroup Charters and Topics
1) It is always "on topic" to discuss a newsgroup's charter within that
newsgroup.
2) If changes are to be proposed to a newsgroup's charter, then the
discussion should be crossposted to the appropriate admin group
for the hierarchy. Charters for uk.* groups can be found at:
http://www.usenet.org.uk/
3) Except in groups that explicitly allow binaries, articles
should be plain text. The posting of binaries, whatever their size,
is not permitted in demon.* groups.
4) Users should also take care to configure their newsreader software
so as to avoid posting "VCards", "HTML", "wallpaper" or other
extraneous material.
Follow-ups from this posting are set to poster, i.e. me.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Messily hacked out of Demon's welcome.txt, thoroughly shuffled by Steve
Rogers, hundreds of errors pointed out by Marcus Bainbridge, Richard
Clayton, Alan Cundell, Mark Rogers, Tony Gold, Russ Evans, Eddie Robins,
Paul Allen, David Woolley, aDe Lovett and Chris Salter. FAQ maintained
and posted for many years by {R}ichard Ashton and subsequently by Paul
Terry.
If anyone would like to see changes in this posting, please e-mail me.
To avoid seeing it again, put X-Killfile: SR-WG in your KILL file.
John Hall <fa...@jhall.demon.co.uk>