Path: senator-bedfellow.mit.edu!dreaderd!not-for-mail
Message-ID: <usenet/[email protected]>
Supersedes: <usenet/[email protected]>
Expires: 8 Jul 2006 04:20:45 GMT
X-Last-Updated: 1995/08/07
From: Kevin Atkinson <[email protected]>
Subject: Usenet Info Center FAQ
Newsgroups: alt.internet.services,news.misc,news.admin.misc,news.groups,news.answers,alt.answers
Followup-To: poster
Organization: Clark Internet Services, Inc., Ellicott City, MD USA
Approved: [email protected]
Summary: The FAQ for the Usenet Info Center.  The Usenet Info Center is
 your source for Information on Usenet. This service contains pointers to
 many useful Usenet FAQ's and the Newsgroups Info Center -- what the
 project is really about.  This FAQ gives you some basic infomation on
 the project.
Originator: [email protected]
Date: 20 May 2006 04:20:49 GMT
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Xref: senator-bedfellow.mit.edu alt.internet.services:144692 news.misc:36518 news.admin.misc:79500 news.groups:521723 news.answers:308095 alt.answers:82335

Archive-name: usenet/info-center-faq
Posting-Frequency: every 35 days
Last-modified: 1995/08/07

                           USENET INFO CENTER FAQ


  This is the FAQ for the Usenet Info Center. The WWW version of the FAQ
  can be found at
  http://www.clark.net/pub/usenet-i/www/info-center-faq.html and the
  text version at ftp://ftp.clark.net/pub/usenet-i/info/info-center-faq
  This document is designed to tell you what the Usenet Info Center is
  all about. Suggestions and/or corrections are always welcome. Any
  comments except direct submissions should be sent to [email protected],
  NOT [email protected].

  This Usenet Info Center Launch Pad (the starting point for the www
  part) can be found at http://sunsite.unc.edu/usenet-i/. Various other
  information can be found at
  ftp://sunsite.unc.edu/pub/docs/about-the-net/usenet-info-center.

  This is a brand new version on the FAQ, certain information, that was
  a hang over from when the project started, has been dropped. The old
  FAQ should be available soon at the history archives.

  Copyrighted 1995 by Kevin Atkinson. You may redistribute this FAQ in
  any way as long as the content is not changed and this notice stays on
  it.
    _________________________________________________________________

   1. The Project:
        1. What is the Usenet Info Center?
        2. What is the Newsgroups Info Center?
        3. So what's available? (and where is it?)
   2. The Web Pages:
        1. My Goto Group Link doesn't Work!
        2. Do you know of any good news servers? (and the related
           questions)
        3. Why are there no pictures on your pages?
   3. Helping Out:
        1. With Spelling and Grammar
        2. By Submitting:
             1. Short Descriptions
             2. Long Descriptions
        3. Other Ways.
   4. Misc
        1. Were to get more info.
        2. Credits!


    _________________________________________________________________

The Project:

 1.1) WHAT IS THE USENET INFO CENTER?

  The Usenet Info Center is a starting place for your information on
  Usenet. I choose this more general name, rather then Usenet Newsgroups
  Info Center, so that I would not limit my self to just information on
  the Newsgroups.

 1.2) WHAT IS THE NEWSGROUPS INFO CENTER?

  The Newsgroups Info Center is the main part of the Usenet Info Center,
  the area where most of the effort is. The WWW version contains a
  heritage browsable list of the newsgroups and a way to search for a
  group of interest. The Newsgroups Info Center is one of the first big
  attempts to gather all the useful information on a group in one
  location; including a long description.

  Specifically Newsgroups Info Center contains:
    * A Short Description of the group.
    * A Long Description of the group
    * Any FAQ's that go with the group
    * The Moderators name and e-mail address if moderated
    * Where and how the group is archived, if at all.
    * Its average volume
    * Its average number of readers
    * Any mailing lists it is gatewayed to

 1.3) SO WHAT'S AVAILABLE? (AND WHERE IS IT?)

  Lots! To name a few:
    * Pointers to posts on Usenet to help the new and old alike users
      out. (http://sunsite.unc.edu/usenet-i/usenet-help.html)
    * A browsable and searchable WWW version of the Newsgroup Info
      Center that is designed to give you detailed info on every usenet
      group (http://sunsite.unc.edu/usenet-i/, to get you started)
    * Plain text versions of the Newsgroup Info Center that you can
      download and have available off line for your own use.
      (ftp://sunsite.unc.edu/pub/docs/about-the-net/usenet-info-center
      /report/txt/, ftp://usenet.eel.ufl.edu/usenet/info-center/report/txt/)


    _________________________________________________________________

The Web Pages:

 2.1) MY GOTO GROUP LINK DOESN'T WORK!

  The most likely reason is that you don't have a news server set up. To
  set up a news server check the docs for your browser. If you still
  can't figure it out check any FAQ's that might have the answer. It
  could also mean that your news server doesn't offer that group.

 2.2) DO YOU KNOW OF ANY GOOD NEWS SERVERS? (AND THE RELATED QUESTIONS)

  NO! Not off hand. Check out the "How to Receive Banned Newsgroups FAQ"
  for some light on this topic at http://www.cis.ohio-state.edu/hypertext
  /faq/usenet/usenet/banned-groups-faq/faq.html or http://www.lib.ox.ac.uk
  /internet/news/faq/archive/usenet.banned-groups-faq.html for some
  light on this subject. Please DO NOT ask me about this. The only answer
  I will give you, if any, is to check out this FAQ.

 2.3) WHY ARE THERE NO PICTURES ON YOUR PAGES?

  Well, because I don't have any. My pages would serve no real benefit
  to having pictures (other than making it more attractive) so it is a
  rather low priority. If you know of any good graphics or would be
  willing to create some I would be more than willing to look them over.
  If I like what I see there is a good chance of them be incorporated
  into my pages in the near future.
    _________________________________________________________________

Helping Out:

 3.1) WITH SPELLING AND GRAMMAR

  As you have probably figured out by now: I am a horrible speller. I
  would appreciate any corrections you may have. I honestly don't mind
  corrections, in fact I greatly appreciate them. I do however hate it
  when people just give me a list of words that need corrections with no
  clue as to where the mistake was.

  If you do send corrections to me PLEASE at very least include:
   1. The Title or URL of the page with the mistakes
   2. The word or phrase that needs corrections
   3. The correction.



  Send the corrections to [email protected] NOT [email protected].

 3.2) BY SUBMITTING:

   Short Descriptions

  I now have a way to overrule the descriptions I get for alt.* groups
  or any of the other groups in the " Alternative Newsgroup Hierarchies"
  post to news.lists.

  If you are unhappy with the description for any of these groups send
  the corrected descriptions to me a [email protected] and if I like the
  new desc. better I will add it to the database. (There is no special
  format you need to use, for now.)

   Long Descriptions

  Due to a problem at clark.net I lost all my scripts. If you have a
  great description you are dying to send me send it directly to me at
  [email protected] for the time being.

  The former instructions will appear when the scrip is back on line.

 3.3) OTHER WAYS:

  If you can think of some let me know...
    _________________________________________________________________

Misc:

 4.1) WERE TO GET MORE INFO.

  This FAQ only gives you the very basic information. The following
  information pages are also available.
    * History Archives (The Best thing available until I get a History
      FAQ together)
      http://sunsite.unc.edu/pub/docs/about-the-net/usenet-info-center/
      history/INDEX.HTML, or
      ftp://sunsite.unc.edu/pub/docs/about-the-net/usenet-info-center/history/
    * Detailed Information on the format of the individual group data
      http://sunsite.unc.edu/usenet-i/info/format.html, or
      ftp://sunsite.unc.edu/pub/docs/about-the-net/usenet-info-center
      /info/group-data-info
    * Information on how it is all done, the guts
      Coming soon!

 4.2) CREDITS!

People who submitted a good number of descriptions:
       Neil Pawson <[email protected]>
       Daniel Barrett <[email protected]>

Mirroring my site / letting me use it:
       Jonathan Magid <[email protected]>  (WWW pages &
                                          (sunsite.unc.edu)
       Mahesh Ramachandran <[email protected]>  (usenet.ufl.edu)

Giving me some sound advice:
       Robert E. Maas <[email protected]>  (desc-have, desc-still-needed)
       Jeff Dege <[email protected]>  (Suggesting change of name)
       Steve Fenwick <[email protected]>  (Suggesting change of name)
       Jim Jewett <[email protected]>  (making me aware of news.g'.reviews)
       Cameron Laird <[email protected]>  (pointing out 'g'_arc'.h')
       All those people who corrected spelling and grammar errors

The authors of the Post on news.lists:
       *.answers moderation team (List of Periodic Info' Postings, Part *)
       David C Lawrence <[email protected]> (Mailing Lists Avail' in Usenet
                               List of Moderators for Usenet,
                               List of Active Newsgroups, Part *, &
                               Alternative 'group Hierarchies, Part *)
       Brian Reid <[email protected]> (USENET Readership report for *)
       Gene Spafford <[email protected]> (Original author of List ' Mod',
                               List of Active 'groups, &  Alt' 'group Hier')
       John Gilmore <hoptoad!gnu> (Another Original author of
                               Alt' 'group Hier')

Other:
       Thomas A Fine <[email protected]>  (faq's via WWW)
       Jose Marques <[email protected]> (faq's via WWW)

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