Usenet-woordenlijst

A single post on Usenet. Every message, whether it's a text discussion post or a chunk of a binary file, is an article. Each article has a unique Message-ID and is distributed across Usenet servers worldwide. See also: Wat is Usenet.

The "alternative" newsgroup hierarchy, created in 1987 during the Great Renaming. Unlike the main hierarchies (comp.*, sci.*, etc.), alt.* groups can be created by anyone without a formal vote. This is where alt.binaries.* lives, the binary newsgroups most commonly used for file sharing.

The core server infrastructure that stores and distributes Usenet articles. A backbone operator owns the actual hardware (servers, storage, network connections). Some Usenet providers run their own backbone (like NewsDemon); others resell access to someone else's. This distinction affects article availability, speed, and independence.

A file (image, software, document, media) that's been encoded and posted to a Usenet newsgroup. Binary articles are typically much larger than text articles and are split across multiple posts. They're encoded using formats like yEnc.

How far back a provider stores binary articles, measured in days. This is the number that matters most when comparing providers. NewsDemon currently offers 5,695+ days of binary retention. Details: Usenet Retention Explained.

A Usenet plan where you buy a fixed amount of data (e.g. 100GB, 500GB, 1TB) with no expiration date. You use it at your own pace. Contrast with monthly subscription plans that renew on a schedule.

The percentage of an article's segments that are actually available for download on a given provider. A completion rate of 99%+ means almost every article within the retention window can be downloaded in full. Lower completion means more failed downloads. NewsDemon maintains 99%+ completion. See: Retention and Completion.

The number of parallel downloads your newsreader can run at once. More connections = faster overall speed, because you're downloading multiple article segments at the same time. NewsDemon allows up to 50 simultaneous SSL connections. Setup details: Getting Started Guide.

Posting the same article to multiple newsgroups simultaneously. The article has a single Message-ID but appears in multiple groups. Different from "multipost," which creates separate copies with different Message-IDs.

A legal request under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act to remove copyrighted content. US-based Usenet providers honor DMCA requests. EU-based providers follow their own NTD (Notice and Takedown) procedures. This is one reason different providers have different article inventories.

The stream of articles flowing into a Usenet server from other servers. Backbone providers peer with each other, exchanging feeds so each server gets a copy of articles posted elsewhere on the network. NewsDemon ingests around 500TB per day through its feed.

The 1987 reorganization of Usenet newsgroup names into the hierarchical system still used today (comp.*, sci.*, rec.*, soc.*, talk.*, news.*, misc.*). It also led to the creation of alt.* as an unregulated alternative. Full story: Geschiedenis van Usenet.

The metadata attached to every Usenet article: subject line, author, date, newsgroups, Message-ID, and other fields. Your newsreader downloads headers first to let you browse what's available, then downloads article bodies (the actual content) when you choose to download something.

The top-level naming system for newsgroups. The "Big 8" hierarchies are comp, sci, rec, soc, talk, news, misc, and humanities. The alt hierarchy is separate and unregulated. Regional hierarchies (uk.*, de.*, etc.) also exist.

A website that crawls binary Usenet newsgroups and creates a searchable index. You search the indexer, download a .nzb file, and hand it to your newsreader. The indexer doesn't host any files — it's a search engine for Usenet binaries.

A globally unique identifier assigned to every Usenet article. It looks something like <[email protected]>. No two articles on any server anywhere should have the same Message-ID. Your newsreader uses Message-IDs to request specific articles from the server.

A file split across multiple Usenet articles. Because Usenet was designed for text, large binary files must be broken into segments (typically around 750KB each) and posted as separate articles. Your newsreader reassembles them automatically.

A topic-specific discussion group on Usenet. Similar in concept to a subreddit, forum, or mailing list. There are over 110,000 active newsgroups. Examples: comp.lang.python, sci.physics, alt.binaries.multimedia. Full explanation: Wat is Usenet.

Software that connects to your Usenet provider's servers and lets you browse newsgroups, search, and download articles. SABnzbd and NZBGet are popular for binary downloads; Thunderbird and Pan work for text newsgroup browsing. See our newsreader guide and setup guide.

Network News Transfer Protocol. The protocol that Usenet runs on, similar to how the web runs on HTTP. Developed in 1986, NNTP handles the distribution of articles between servers and the delivery of articles to users. It's still the standard today. When you enter a "server address" in your newsreader, you're connecting via NNTP. History: Geschiedenis van Usenet.

The European equivalent of DMCA takedowns. EU-based Usenet providers follow NTD procedures to remove content in response to rights-holder complaints. Different from DMCA in process and legal framework, but similar in practical effect.

A small XML file that contains pointers to specific Usenet articles. Think of it as a download recipe — it tells your newsreader exactly which articles to grab, from which newsgroups, to reconstruct a complete file. You get NZB files from indexer sites. The format was created around 2003 and is now the standard way to download binaries from Usenet.

An error-correction format for Usenet. Uploaders post PAR2 files alongside their content. If any article segments are missing or corrupted during download, your newsreader can use the PAR2 data to reconstruct the missing pieces without re-downloading anything. Replaced the original PAR format around 2003.

The exchange of article feeds between Usenet backbone operators. When two backbones peer, they share articles with each other so both have a copy. This is how Usenet's decentralized architecture works. No single server needs to hold everything because peering distributes articles across the network.

The process by which a new article spreads across the Usenet network. When someone posts an article to one server, that server's feed distributes it to peered servers, which pass it on to their peers, and so on. Within minutes, a single article can reach servers worldwide.

A company that gives you access to Usenet. Your provider operates (or resells access to) NNTP servers, gives you login credentials, and determines your speed, retention, and connection count. Providers range from independent backbone operators like NewsDemon to resellers who lease server access from larger companies.

A Usenet provider that doesn't own its own backbone. Instead, it purchases access to another provider's infrastructure and sells it under its own brand. Resellers on the same backbone have the same article inventory. See: Independent vs. Corporate-Owned Providers.

How far back in time a provider stores articles, measured in days. Longer retention = access to older content. NewsDemon offers 5,695+ days, growing daily. Some providers inflate their numbers. See our full analysis: Usenet Retention Explained.

A single chunk of a multipart binary post. Large files are split into segments (typically ~750KB each), each posted as a separate article. Your newsreader downloads all segments and reassembles the original file. If segments are missing, PAR2 files can often repair the gaps.

Spam + forge. A type of Usenet abuse where fake articles are mass-posted with forged headers, often to disrupt a newsgroup or drown out legitimate posts. Providers with good filtering (like NewsDemon's AI-driven system) catch and discard sporge before it reaches users.

The storage system where a Usenet server keeps its articles. "Spool" dates back to early Unix terminology. Modern providers use NVMe-based spools for fast article retrieval (NewsDemon achieves sub-3ms latency on NVMe spools) and high-density storage for older articles.

Encryption that protects the connection between your newsreader and the Usenet server. With SSL enabled (port 563 or 443), your ISP cannot see what you're downloading. NewsDemon provides 256-bit SSL on every plan. Full details: Usenet Beveiliging & Privacy.

How far back a provider keeps text-only discussion articles. Some providers have shorter text retention than binary retention. At NewsDemon, text and binary retention are the same: 5,695+ days.

A Usenet provider that operates its own backbone infrastructure, meaning it owns the servers, storage, and network connections. Contrast with resellers who lease access. Tier-1 providers include both independent companies and subsidiaries of larger corporations. The distinction matters: what "independent" actually means.

A chain of related articles in a text newsgroup: an original post and all its replies. Similar to a thread on a forum or Reddit. Newsreaders organize articles into threads based on the References header.

A worldwide decentralized discussion and file distribution system created in 1979. Runs on the NNTP protocol. Over 110,000 newsgroups, millions of users, 45+ years of continuous operation. Full explainer: Wat is Usenet.

Unix-to-Unix Copy Protocol. The original transport mechanism for Usenet articles, used from 1979 until NNTP replaced it in the late 1980s. UUCP transferred data over dial-up phone lines between Unix machines. Slow and expensive, but it got the network started.

An early encoding format for converting binary files into text for transmission over Usenet. Replaced by MIME and later by yEnc. UUEncode had roughly 40% overhead, so a 1MB file would take about 1.4MB of Usenet articles. yEnc reduced that to under 2%.

The current standard encoding format for binary files on Usenet, introduced in 2001. yEnc converts binary data into a format that can be transmitted as Usenet articles with less than 2% overhead (compared to UUEncode's ~40%). This made binary downloads dramatically more efficient and is one of the reasons Usenet binaries took off in the early 2000s. History: Geschiedenis van Usenet.