XPost: news.groups, rec.arts.comics.dc.universe, rec.arts.sf.tv   
   XPost: rec.arts.tv   
   From: your.name@isp.com   
      
   "Your Name"  wrote in message   
   news:ifmdo2$nqj$1@lust.ihug.co.nz...   
   >   
   > "aemeijers"  wrote in message   
   > news:4qSdnd-ETL82NIPQnZ2dnUVZ_qudnZ2d@giganews.com...   
   > > On 12/31/2010 6:22 PM, SFTV_troy wrote:   
   > > >   
   > > > I'm also wondering about this so-called "decline" of Usenet?  I first   
   > > > joined back in 1988 and the Usenet back then, even in busy groups like   
   > > > rec.arts.startrek, was just a few messages a day.   
   > > >   
   > > > Now there are hundreds of messages.  It's pretty clear Usenet has   
   > > > grown a LOT since it's early days.   Maybe it's lost a few users this   
   > > > last decade but overall it's still bigger now than what it was circa   
   > > > 1990.  (Pre-AOL eternal september.)   
   > >   
   > > Fewer messages back in the 80s, but they were of higher quality. You had   
   > > to have connections and a few brain cells to participate in those   
   > > pre-GUI days. Now days, most of the 'work related' (college or   
   > > corporate) usenet groups have fled to private web forums, and aside from   
   > > porn and pirate groups, about all that is left is a few hobby groups and   
   > > the noise groups. Sure, the index has 10k group titles, but most are   
   > > abandoned, other than the occasional spam shotgun post.   
   >   
   > Many were created by the morons. For example (among MANY others),   
   > alt.cows.moo.moo and alt.cows.moo.moo.moo.  :-\   
   >   
   >   
   > > Not at all like the old days when newfeeds were a cooperative measure   
   > > between sysadmins doing it on the QT and hoping their bean counters   
   > > didn't notice. Now that most ISPs have dropped news hosting, the choices   
   > > are the few free hosts, a pay host, or Google Groups (which, to most   
   > > people under 35, is what they think Usenet IS.)   
   > >   
   > > Nothing lasts forever. Like dialup BBS systems (a few of which are still   
   > > out there), Usenet is withering away, replaced by newer and shiner toys.   
   > > TV news today said that Facebook is now like 10 percent of internet   
   > > volume. Even web pages are getting replaced by that silly private   
   > > mini-internet. The wonderful anarchy of the early internet is being   
   > > Borg'd. All hail the new corporate overlords.   
   >   
   > If such things actually got rid of the spammers, porn idiots and pirates,   
   > then it might well be worth it to make "the Internet" an actual useful   
   > resource instead of the cess pool it currently is.   
      
   Opps! I meant to add that the "new Internet" unfortuantely isn't actually   
   going to achieve those things.   :-(   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)