The NewsDemon Blog

NewsDemon.com Newsgroups celebrates the diversity of our newsgroups subscribers and the longevity of the thousands of newsgroups that exist on USENET today. In order to facilitate a better USENET experience, there are some rules of USENET that should be considered. Below are 10 of the most important USENET newsgroup rules to abide by.

Thou Shall Not Spam

USENET newsgroup subscribers are pretty crafty. Intelligent too. Spamming newsgroups with products, services or any other material that is both unrelated and unsupportive of any particular newsgroup is greatly shunned upon. Respect the newsgroups you subscribe to and chances are you’ll receive equal respect. By spamming newsgroups, you’ll quickly be dismissed by other subscribers and other penalties can be given, including losing your membership to USENET by the access provider.

Thou Shall Not Troll

A “troll” is someone who deliberately posts a message to cause disruption, argues or otherwise harasses another for either self promotion or to disrespect fellow newsgroup subscribers. It is important to note that this type of behavior is greatly discouraged and should not be engaged at any point in time.

Thou Shall Not Provide Personal Information

Newsgroups are a great place for discussion on a number of topics. As they are one of the oldest and largest community driven portals online, it’s common for them to foster friendships and even trust. However, as a rule of thumb, it’s advised to never divulge any personal information you would not want the world to know. As most USENET newsgroups allow public access, your information may be used in ways that you would not intentionally want to be used against you. Although NewsDemon.com Newsgroups employs secure, 256 BIT SSL connections for secure connections, what you post on newsgroups do not offer the same protection. Therefore, restrain from posting information such as personal financials, residence or other private information to insure your security online.

Thou Shall Not Post Off Topic

The thousands of newsgroups available cater to just about every topic imaginable. Because of this, posting material of any kind that is not relative or on topic to the newsgroup should simply not be done. Off topic messages, especially nowadays, are simply ignored and can also be considered spam. When considering posting a message to a newsgroup, be considerate and take the time to be sure that the newsgroup you are posting to is relative to the material. NewsDemon.com Newsgroups offers an extensive directory of newsgroups that can help you on your way.

Thou Shall Not Write In Caps

DO NOT POST IN ALL CAPS WHEN POSTING TO NEWSGROUPS. Newsgroup subscribers and newsgroups themselves consider this a negative practice and should be refrained upon.

Thou Shall Not Cross-Post

With the thousands of newsgroups available, there are some that are very similar to others. Because of this, in some cases, newsgroup subscribers find the material they want to post relative to a section of newsgroups versus just one. With most newsreaders nowadays, to cross-post to several newsgroups is easy and convenient. Although it may seem like a good idea, be weary. Cross-posting to several newsgroups automatically grow suspicion by subscribers and may flag the post as spam. Before cross-posting, read the FAQ for each newsgroup if available to check the spam policy and the rules of the particular newsgroup. Some newsgroups discourage cross-posting specifically. Try one newsgroup at a time for your material that is most relative. If you receive a positive response, or no response at all after a few days, then cautiously consider posting it again on another relative newsgroup. If you are new to cross-posting, this rule is imperative to make sure your reputation on these newsgroups is saved from subscribers flagging your posts as spam by the veteran subscribers which may result in your access termination.

Thou Shall Not Ignore The Newsgroup FAQ

Each important newsgroup usually entails a sometimes lengthy but all important rules of conduct for subscribers. By adhering to the rules of the newsgroup, a better sense of community is achieved and postings on that newsgroup follow an easy to read format allowing users to best utilize the newsgroup for the topic and content that are posted. It’s important to take a look at and examine the FAQ for each newsgroup you subscribe to and may consider posting to. General posts and replies are especially important in order to follow the certain guidelines that the FAQ sets forth in order to gain the response you are looking for. Most newsgroup communities follow these FAQ terms seriously and so should you.

Thou Shall Not Hijack

With the many threads and posts on newsgroups, it’s encouraged to engage the conversation with relative material. However, using the popularity of these posts to share information that is not relative to the material or to engage subscribers directly is discouraged. Do not use these posts to popularize, grab attention to or bring the subject away from the content of the conversation. Consider what you post and how relative it is to the ongoing messages. If it is questionable whether your material is relative, instead post a new topic of the material in order to gain a proper response.

Thou Shall Not Flood Newsgroups

Flooding newsgroups involves the act of consistently and continuously posting material on newsgroups by one individual.  Although there are rare instances where it may considered acceptable, flooding newsgroups with even the most relevant material for a particular newsgroup is not one that should be engaged. This is not an acceptable method of posting on most newsgroups and goes against the policies of the majority of newsgroups FAQ. Refrain from continuously posting the same or relevant information or material. Practice netiquette and allow for some time to pass before posting additional or relevant material from the time your initial post was made. This will allow users to review the content that you have posted and save you from a negative reputation on these USENET newsgroups as it may very well be considered spam.

Thou Shall Not Flame

Everyone has an opinion about something. With the thousands of subscribers on newsgroups, those opinions often times are not the same as others. The culture of newsgroups is to accept, discuss and share these differences of opinions respectfully with either like minded or those with contrasting points of view. It’s important in these newsgroups to respect others with other opinions and not engage in “Flame Wars“. Flame wars are heated arguments online that attack, belittle or otherwise disrespect other USENET newsgroup subscribers. There are strict penalties of engaging in Flame Wars and can result in permanent banning from these newsgroups and by your USENET access provider.

Following these rules of USENET will result in a better experience overall while engaging newsgroup subscribers and create a better community overall. Do you have any other rules that you feel that we’ve missed? Leave a comment below to have us add them along.