I don't know about alt.folklore.computers but the case over on
comp.os.vms several years ago was that a lot of corporate contributors
found themselves with Google as the only way of posting from work. Well
locked down corporate PCs plus lack of access to NNTP was the major
factor here.
From where I stood, Google Groups also played a large part in the
decline of Usenet, due to their conversion of a once decent web
interface to a Javascript heavy one which was harder to navigate.
--
In a time of drastic change it is the learners who inherit the future.
The learned usually find themselves equipped to live in a world that no
longer exists. –– Eric Hoffer