"imminent death of usenet may be now"
Rick Harrison
notes that things are getting mighty quiet in a lot of newsgroups and
the author's university is dropping usenet.
Every September we used to get an influx of new users -- college and
university students -- and most of them would disappear after
graduation but a few would find ways to stay connected. Circa 2000 this
began to end. We don't get a whole lot of new participants any more.
It's a shame because usenet has things that most web forums and mailing
lists don't have such as: true threading, and killfiles (excellent
filtration of anyone you tag as annoying; you can make them disappear
from your view of the group without affecting their right to
self-expression).
There's something to be said for the decentralized distribution, too --
there is no "single point of failure." Most newsgroups are unmoderated
and one can post under a pseudonym if one needs to say something
controversial.
I hope usenet discussion groups will make a comeback someday but the
situation looks pretty bleak. Even the binaries groups that I watch,
such as alt.binaries.mac.applications, are fizzling out.
Padraic Brown
Interesting. I suppose someone must be tracking actual usage and new
user versus long time user statistics?
Some groups only cater to a few interested people (like this one).
Others have large and interested populations. I don't think Usenet
will disappear any time soon, at least not without a fight or two; but
if it did, then I guess we'd all manage to find alternatives to this
forum. Email lists and the like.
Padraic
** Posted from http://www.teranews.com **
dmitri mosier/iowa city ia
> A tiny blog posting athttp://tiger-spot.livejournal.com/84412.html
> notes that things are getting mighty quiet in a lot of newsgroups and
> the author's university is dropping usenet.
>
> Every September we used to get an influx of new users -- college and
> university students -- and most of them would disappear after
> graduation but a few would find ways to stay connected. Circa 2000 this
> began to end. We don't get a whole lot of new participants any more.
>
> It's a shame because usenet has things that most web forums and mailing
> lists don't have such as: true threading, and killfiles (excellent
> filtration of anyone you tag as annoying; you can make them disappear
> from your view of the group without affecting their right to
> self-expression).
Delphi forums has both. Although with D. the killfile is called
"ignore" (unforutnately you have to see THAT they posted SOMETHING;
all you actuall see is a header with the ignoree's name and the person
they're posting to's name.)
Best of all delphi is moderated so trolls can be dispatched quickly
and elegantly. There's even a "bozo" function where the troll posts
appear as ignored to all except the troll.
The Wicked Flea
> We don't get a whole lot of new participants any more.
Linguistics is a vague hobby of mine, and I cannot claim to be skilled
at it. In point of fact I haven't done anything but dabble in other
languages; however, I do enjoy reading old English. So for a lack of
experience I "lurk." I don't frequently ask questions due to all the
idiots on forums who scream "use the search function @#$%!" at anyone
unfortunate enough to make a new thread on (God forbid!) a topic
already discussed.
Besides, I only found Usenet through groups.google.com, and had no
idea of its existence more than four years ago. I still don't know
how to ignore someone through Google Groups.
On Sep 1, 1:10 am, Rick Harrison <_nickna...@harrison.net> wrote:
> It's a shame because usenet has things that most web forums and mailing
> lists don't have such as: true threading, and killfiles
I know for a fact that the forum package I use, MyBB 1.4, has an
ignore function, as well as a threaded view. I don't know what you
mean with "true threading" unless you mean an actual tree-view of a
given discussion.
> There's something to be said for the decentralized distribution, too --
> there is no "single point of failure." Most newsgroups are unmoderated
> and one can post under a pseudonym if one needs to say something
> controversial.
The redundancy of Usenet is its greatest strength, in my opinion, as
it functions as a network instead of a single point. (As you rightly
said.) But for me, the unmoderated newsgroups are little more than
creepy pits filled with angry vipers. I've seen my share of trolls
and flamers in both environments; anonymity seems to encourage these
unsavory individuals.
> I hope usenet discussion groups will make a comeback someday but the
> situation looks pretty bleak.
Perhaps it will. I wonder why I even wrote this now, but perhaps it
is to say that "it isn't just the participants who benefit." For
instance, I bought your first edition of Invented Languages because
I'm interested in conlangs. But again, I lack the knowledge base to
participate and have only been interested in it for a year. At most I
have notes on what I intend, and numerous bookmarks in my browser.
According to Google Groups this group has 165 subscribers, so I'd
hesitate to call this one dying.
Rick Harrison
<b0a9a3ae-3cc0-40e1...@c65g2000hsa.googlegroups.com>,
The Wicked Flea <thewic...@gmail.com> wrote:
> Perhaps it will. I wonder why I even wrote this now, but perhaps it
> is to say that "it isn't just the participants who benefit."
[snip]
>
> According to Google Groups this group has 165 subscribers, so I'd
> hesitate to call this one dying.
Thanks for your thoughtful comments, Wicked Flea. Sometimes those of us
who post messages forget that we are a small minority compared to those
who don't.
I hope you will enjoy the hobby of conlanging. My only advice to
beginners is: Be careful about asking others for feedback on your
conlang. Once you've heard or read a critique from someone else, you
can't unhear or unread it. It might take years to scrub the graffitti
of other people's thoughts from the walls of your internal sanctuary.
Padraic Brown
<_nick...@harrison.net> wrote:
>I hope you will enjoy the hobby of conlanging. My only advice to
>beginners is: Be careful about asking others for feedback on your
>conlang. Once you've heard or read a critique from someone else, you
>can't unhear or unread it. It might take years to scrub the graffitti
>of other people's thoughts from the walls of your internal sanctuary.
There is an old saying: if you can't take the heat, get out of the
kitchen. It applies here, too. If you don't want or can't handle
criticism, public forums like this aren't the best place to be in! A
wise person would therefore refrain from posting or publicly
describing their conlang. Of course, we all suffer a little because
we're deprived of that unique piece of artistic expression.
I've sought and offered opinions on my conlangs. I have yet to be so
offended that I'll spend years scrubbing graffitti from the sanctuary!
If someone doesn't like one of my conlangs, that's OK -- as the Kerno
speakers would say, "fea ridieir a lis chraves!" -- go pound sand!
arkestra
> In article
> <b0a9a3ae-3cc0-40e1-85a5-6decec0d8...@c65g2000hsa.googlegroups.com>,
> The Wicked Flea <thewickedf...@gmail.com> wrote:
>
>
>
> > Perhaps it will. I wonder why I even wrote this now, but perhaps it
> > is to say that "it isn't just the participants who benefit."
> [snip]
>
> > According to Google Groups this group has 165 subscribers, so I'd
> > hesitate to call this one dying.
>
> Thanks for your thoughtful comments, Wicked Flea. Sometimes those of us
> who post messages forget that we are a small minority compared to those
> who don't.
>
> I hope you will enjoy the hobby of conlanging. My only advice to
> beginners is: Be careful about asking others for feedback on your
> conlang. Once you've heard or read a critique from someone else, you
> can't unhear or unread it. It might take years to scrub the graffitti
> of other people's thoughts from the walls of your internal sanctuary.
I participate in a few groups, and although I find this one very
intriguing, have chosen not to post to it the past, due to just that
reason. I have a conlang project I am currently working on, but I'm
sorry to say no one will hear about it until it is completed.
But that's not to say that I don't enjoy lurking and the input I gain
passively!
Keep up the good discussions!
Craoi...@gmail.com
> A tiny blog posting athttp://tiger-spot.livejournal.com/84412.html
> notes that things are getting mighty quiet in a lot of newsgroups and
> the author's university is dropping usenet.
It is an international development I think. Most Finnish newsgroups
have been swamped by crackpots, extremists, and racists. In a
foreseeable future, Usenet is going to be - by definition - above all
the place where police will go harvesting the names and identities of
potential dangerous terrorists.