Probably one of the more active usenet groups

Alan D Ray

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Dec 30, 2021, 4:15:05 PM12/30/21

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This is probably one of the most active usenet groups.
I get on almost everyday and find 10-25 new posts.
I sincerely doubt that any Usenet group has that
traffic these days.
When I had my Amigas (1000 & 3000 models)
there would be hundreds of posts almost
everyday.
What a shame Usenet has deteriorated
so badly...it sure keeps these "kids"
out of here.

>ALAN

Ant

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Dec 30, 2021, 6:15:42 PM12/30/21

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Yep. Binary newsgroups are more popular though. :/
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Geeknix

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Dec 31, 2021, 2:22:58 AM12/31/21

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There are a few others out there, uk.sheds is one. It is much quieter
than its hayday but I feel retro computing is making a comeback and not
with those who remember it the first time round. People, young and old,
are looking for a simpler, smaller, anonymous computing. We could see a
resurgence in Usenet. The same as I witnessed over last couple of years
with IRC and BBS.

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Spalls Hurgenson

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Dec 31, 2021, 11:35:29 AM12/31/21

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On Fri, 31 Dec 2021 07:22:54 GMT, Geeknix
<use...@apple.geeknix135.net> wrote:
>On 2021-12-30, Alan D Ray <nal...@sccoast.net> wrote:

>There are a few others out there, uk.sheds is one. It is much quieter
>than its hayday but I feel retro computing is making a comeback and not
>with those who remember it the first time round. People, young and old,
>are looking for a simpler, smaller, anonymous computing. We could see a
>resurgence in Usenet. The same as I witnessed over last couple of years
>with IRC and BBS.

Preach on, Brother Geeknix! Usenet *will* rise again! Bring the word
to the unbelievers and it will be so!

Except, in my heart, I don't think it really will. I can understand
the viewpoint of the outsider; I can see why Usenet isn't a compelling
destination. From their perspective, the alternatives - web-forums -
are more full-featured - they have poop emojis! - and don't require
separate software to use. They are far less arcane in usage, too. Web
forums are far more active, and don't have as high a percentage of
grognards. Usenet also has a bad reputation (if people have even heard
of it at all); that it is obsolete tech, that it's filled with spam,
that it's only used by pirates. More importantly, they don't require
the user to sign up for a separate NNTP feed, which may require an
additional fee. Why use Usenet when you can discuss stuff with a
larger audience - and with emojis! - for free on Reddit?

But I make it a point to ignore all those pesky facts and hope anyway.
What does my heart know anyway? I remind myself of Usenet's
advantages. Things like it's wide range of unfiltered discussions, or
it 40-year history. I like that Usenet is a text-only interface
because it makes communicating through good writing (as opposed to
just posting a funny GIF) a priority. Or that Usenet is not tied down
to one corporate entity, which gives it an expansive reach that won't
disappear just because it's no longer profitable for the company. But
I'm not sure all that matters much to most people.

So instead, I tell myself that - despite all the above - a new dawn in
Usenet's popularity is just around the corner. I just need to keep
posting, and wait. That dawn is surely coming. Any day now. Any day.
;-)

In the meantime, diminished as it is, Usenet is still a great place.
Fewer users means there's not quite the range of discussion as I'd
like, but it also makes the newsgroups I subscribe to feel more like a
community as opposed to some larger forums where there are hundreds of
people who I barely know. That's not such a bad thing either.

PW

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Jan 1, 2022, 11:12:02 PM1/1/22

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On Thu, 30 Dec 2021 16:15:03 -0500, Alan D Ray <nal...@sccoast.net>
wrote:

*--

I remember when this one, the combat filght sim and MS flight sim
newsgroups were rocking!

Justisaur

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Jan 2, 2022, 5:40:56 PM1/2/22

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I remember when I mostly read and posted on rec.games.frp.dnd
and often times couldn't keep up with reading.

Heck I remember reading and posting on fido net. Unfortunately
they didn't end up with a repository like deja news - and now google,
so those posts are lost to the ether (net.) There are some repositories
but only for some of the groups. Some of my D&D stuff only ended
up there.

- Justisuar

Ant

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Jan 2, 2022, 6:41:09 PM1/2/22

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The good old days. :P
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Spalls Hurgenson

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Jan 3, 2022, 3:14:44 PM1/3/22

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I have a similar history. There used to be this awesome FIDOnet group
for riddles that I plundered for my D&D campaigns (and I even
contributed to a bit) but it's seemingly gone forever.

But, yeah, rec.games.frp.dnd used to be a booming place, and - like
you - its output far surpassed my ability to read it all (much less
contribute). Then again, c.s.i.p.g.action (and pretty much all the
c.s.i.p.g.* newsgroups) were likewise very active; you couldn't read
it all.

I suppose that's one advantage to our modern Usenet; I actually /can/
(and do!) read every comment in c.s.i.p.g.a these days. At least that
negates my worry about missing out on some fascinating discussion ;-)