OT: The state of Usenet

Hard facts. Usenet is dying. Going the way of the Bulletin Board. ISPs are dropping, or have dropped, access to newsgroups. Connecting is no longer so simple, now you have to find a service, sign up for it, and set it up to download the groups you want. Meanwhile, people stop participating. For lots of reasons, I would guess. Usenet has been around a long time -- some of us are dying. Others have lost interest in old topics. Some are finding their needs met by other forms. Yahoo groups, for example. Facebook. It is what it is. Instead of hundreds of posts, there is a small trickle. Many newsgroups have no posts whatsoever.

This is not the U.N. Civilization will continue. If you want Usenet to be here, then you have to post, and post often. Interact with other posters. Make nice. If you are thin skinned and take offense easily, Usenet, and perhaps the Internet, is not the place for you. You cannot see the person's face, hear the tone of their voice, or see their "body language." If you assume the worst, I'm reasonably confident that they will accommodate you. If you consider that the comment may be coming from a friendly face, with perhaps a bit of dry wit or even a touch of sarcasm, you may "hear" it differently. I recommend giving the benefit of the doubt, but you're in charge of your own experience.

Because there is a wealth of experience here for anyone to tap, I would suggest having a backup plan of sorts. Make friends, exchange email addresses, connect in other forums, because when Usenet finally dies, we'll all be out here alone, except for those connections we've made, the bridges we've built.

If you just want to tell me to FOAD, that's your right, too. And right back atcha!

Reply to
Pogonip
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and to you I send a great big grin. love your post Juno

Reply to
Juno

Thank you. Sending you a big hug. Even though I'm not a hugger. ;-)

In poking around, I had a serendipitous moment -- Lily Abello's list is still alive.

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I used to rely heavily on her page. Looks like a body still can!

Reply to
Pogonip

And one back to you. I love your honesty, sincerity and realistic take on the world. I wish you could meet my grandson "E". He's not a hugger either but gives virtual hugs. He stands about 10 feet away and gives the best air hugs I've ever had.

Reply to
Juno

Well said, Joanne. I have also been saddened by the diminishing of activity here, and I miss many of the former regulars. There is certainly much truth in what you have written.

Happily, I have maintained private e-mail correspondence with several folks in this group (waves, you know who you are). ;-)

Reply to
BEI Design

:-)) One of my all time favourite sites. I have quite a few in my bookmarks. Kate's site is another.

Reply to
Farm1

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