 UseNet 

Usenet (short for user's network) is a giant collection of
discussion groups, each centered upon a special topic of
interest--boxing, bee keeping, photography, sex--whatever.
There are more than 5000 such groups within Usenet, the 
majority of which are devoted to topics of non-local inter-
est.  No one is in charge of Usenet.  The procedures for
transporting data (NNTP = network news transport protocol),
posting articles, and forming new groups have been estab-
lished through tradition (Usenet began in 1979 at U of North
Carolina).  There is no control over content and there is no
censorship.  Whoever you are, you are sure to find lots of 
disagreeable things on Usenet--so ignore them.

 The News? 

Though the discussion groups are called "newsgroups,"  they
have little to do with news in the traditional sense.  They
are more likely to be very specialized discussions of research
trends, recipes, fan clubs... you name it.  You can find most
areas of human interest discussed somewhere on Usenet.  It is
a great place to go when you have specific questions and need
expert answers.  You simply post your question to the group
and soon you will see an answer posted.  It all depends on the
group, of course.  If your question is inappropriate, you can
also expect to see some very deflating comments posted.



 How Do You Use Usenet? 
To use Usenet you have to be connected to a host computer that
has a "news server," and you have to have access to a news
reader program.  There are four commonly used news reader pro-
grams on Unix systems: rn, nn, trn and tin.  Your host will
probably provide at least one of these.  If you have a SLIP
connection or use Xwindow applications, you can use some very
sophisticated graphical newsreaders.  A good one for Windows
is called WinVN.

The job of the newsreader is to keep track of the newsgroups
to which you have subscribed, present the articles to you,
and perform tasks such as decoding encoded files.  Newsreader
programs tend to be pretty complex and difficult to learn.

 Discovering The News 

The first time you use your newsreader you will get a list
(a ponderous, long list) of available newsgroups.  If you
subscribe to a group you will see it among your groups each
time you run the newsreader (the term "subscribe" does not
imply cost--it is all free).  Later you can unsubscribe to
any group and it will disappear from your list.  There is
a file in your Unix home directory called .newsrc which 
keeps track of the groups to which you are subscribed and
the articles which you have read.




 Usenet vs Internet 

Usenet is just a collection of discussion groups.  It is not
a computer network at all.  Usenet uses computer networks (the
Internet among others) to spread the news.  Usenet is a news
service transported by computer networks.

Usenet operates cooperatively among computer networks, like a
bucket brigade.  Networks that offer Usenet also act as dis-
tribution points, passing the Usenet articles along to other
networks.  A network offering Usenet needs three things: 1) a
news administrator, 2) a news server (computer), and 3) an 
agreement with at least one other Usenet site to transport 
the news.  Some computers act as hubs, feeding many sites.

 Organization 

Although no one is in charge of Usenet, many conventions have
developed to keep things organized and flowing.  It is a good
example of a successful democratic system run by right 
thinking people (!?!).  One such convention is the way the
newsgroups are organized into "heirarchies" based on content.
There are mainstream heirarchies, like bionet (life sciences),
bit (BITNET listservs), biz (business and management), comp
(computers), etc.  And then there is the alt heirarchy--where
you will find all the truly weird stuff.




 Newsgroup Names 

Newsgroups are named according to their heirarchies and 
specific contents.  Usually they have at least a three part
name, each part separated by a period, rec.drama.stagecraft,
for example, or alt.sex.fetishes.  Since no one is in charge,
undergraduates being what they are, you will find some silly
or frivolous groups as well, such as alt.dinosaur.barney.die.
die.die, or alt.lampreys.stupid.  Don't be misled.  There are
also many serious and very useful groups.  Much of what is
vital and interesting on the Internet may be found among 
the newsgroups.



 Reading The News 

Newsreader programs work by showing you a list of the groups
to which you are subscribed.  To see the articles in a par-
ticular group you simply select it.  Most groups have many
articles, and they are "threaded," meaning the related
articles are grouped together.  News administrators set an
expiration date on the articles, so new articles are con-
stantly appearing and old ones are disappearing.  It is the
job of the newsreader program to make it easy for you to
find articles, read them, post to groups, decode text en-
coded binary files, decrypt encrypted articles, and the 
like.  As you can tell, it is a job getting to know your
newsreader and the rules of Usenet, but it is worth it.

 To Learn More 

The best way to learn more about Usenet and the newsgroups
is to subscribe to and read the group called "news.answers."
Further, many groups post FAQ (frequently asked questions)
files regularly.  FAQs are maintained by the group moderator
or other volunteer and are posted as articles to the group.
FAQs are also available via anonymous ftp from news archive
sites, such as rtfm.mit.edu.










