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Microsoft to do for Usenet what it did for Email & The Web?

tjones2 writes "Seems like Microsoft isn't content with sad state of email these days. They now want to "make engaging with communities easier and friendlier". This means extending their reach into Usenet." Fortunately most of Usenet is such a cespool that really they can only make it better. And after cornering the market on email worms, imagine the benefits they can bring to NNTP!

37 of 437 comments (clear)

  1. Most active news group? by bihoy · · Score: 4, Funny

    Hmm, what could be the news group with the most activity? Let's search for groups with the word "pictures" in them and I'll bet we find out.

    1. Re:Most active news group? by rde · · Score: 5, Funny

      The pictures are overrated, and don't contain nearly as much pr0n as you'd think. Once, over the space of a week, I downloaded all pictures sent to alt.binaries.pictures.eroica .

      I got nothing but pictures of bloody Beethoven.

    2. Re:Most active news group? by AngelfMercy · · Score: 3, Funny

      I downloaded all pictures sent to alt.binaries.pictures.eroica . I got nothing but pictures of bloody Beethoven. but, where they heroic?

      --
      -nando
    3. Re:Most active news group? by Ciggy · · Score: 2, Funny

      "I got nothing but pictures of bloody Beethoven."

      I knew the original Lassie was actually a little laddie, but I didn't know Beethovwn was a bitch; but then again, I haven't watched the films.

      --

      A rose by any other name would smell as sweet;
      A chrysanthemum by any other name would be easier to spell
    4. Re:Most active news group? by Ztream · · Score: 2, Funny

      Well, I don't know about you, but I read alt.binaries.pictures.erotica.* for the articles.

  2. Argh! No! Not More Clippy! by SUPAMODEL · · Score: 5, Funny

    ... I see you are browsing alt.binaries.pictures.erotica.hornyteens
    Would you like:
    * tissues
    * baby oil
    * a life
    * or me to fuck off
    ?

  3. Re:Great - more e-mail addresses for spammers by Teknogeek · · Score: 4, Funny

    I seriously doubt that even Microsoft can make the USENET spam problem worse than it already is.

    --
    I mod down anyone who uses M$ in their posts. I like to live on the edge.
  4. Me2-4Me! by RyanFenton · · Score: 5, Funny


    Now, as a time-saving measure, right next to the "post reply" button, there will be a "Me Too" button, and a "Send me the link username@hotmail.com" button. :^)

    Ryan Fenton

  5. What can MS do to usenet? by jetmarc · · Score: 5, Funny

    Well, as a long time internet participant, I recall quite good what
    AOL did to usenet: Aquire a hord of "Me too" follow-up posters.
    Actually, a quick google-groups research shows that of the 32,000
    postings that contain "me too", a whopping 30,600 also contain the
    word "AOL".

    So I question - what can Microsoft do to usenet? I suspect, nothing
    nice. Probably their efforts result in even more MIME/HTML postings,
    with binaries attached in non-binary groups (probably something like
    "My Signature.exe"). And certainly a lot of proprietarily encapsulated
    text, such as .DOC rich text attached to an otherwise empty posting.

    On one hand, usenet is for everyone, including Microsoft users. On
    the other hand, I really hope that google-groups will filter them off
    so that usenet can stay the valuable source of accurate tech information
    that it is today.

    Marc

    1. Re:What can MS do to usenet? by joe_bruin · · Score: 4, Funny
      me too!

      i agree with the above post.


      -----Original Message-----
      From: jd142
      Sent: Sunday August 03, 08:24AM
      To: Slashdot (Discussion Groups)
      Cc:
      Subject: Re:What can MS do to usenet?

      correlation != causation. Maybe there are a lot of people saying that AOL users say "me too" a lot. Had this discussion taken place on usenet, we would have incremented the count by two, yet neither one of us are aol users. ;)
    2. Re:What can MS do to usenet? by GregGardner · · Score: 2, Funny

      What can MS do to usenet? What about:

      Hi! How are you?
      I send you this usenet posting in order to have your advice.
      See you later. Thanks.

  6. Re:Email and the Web? by MikeFM · · Score: 2, Funny

    They took over the market share with shabby products that allow spyware, viruses, cronic crashing, etc. Can't wait to have Usenet work as well!

    --
    At what price learning? At what cost wisdom? The price is a man's peace of mind, and the cost is his life.
  7. Re:meh by sqlrob · · Score: 4, Funny

    Check the stats for NANAE (news.admin.net-abuse.email) that get regularly posted. More than half is OE.

  8. Uh-oh! by feidaykin · · Score: 2, Funny
    Just wait until MS makes Usenet popular enough that the RIAA notices people can trade MP3s there.

    And just wait until your parents find out you can download PORN from Usenet!!! OH GOD NOOOO!!! THE END IS NEAR!!!

    [/joke]

    --

    "To confine our attention to terrestrial matters would be to limit the human spirit." -Stephen Hawking

  9. Re:Email and the Web? by sczimme · · Score: 2, Funny


    What did microsoft do for email and the web?

    s/for/to

    Now the answer should be clear...

    --
    I want to drag this out as long as possible. Bring me my protractor.
  10. Re:Great - more e-mail addresses for spammers by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    true, but I'm sure the boys at Redmond are up to the challenge

  11. The Mozilla News Reader Needs An Update by perimorph · · Score: 5, Funny

    Well isn't this just wonderful! It's not enough that usenet is plauged with spam, now we can have pop-up ads there, too!

    Someone let me know when the Mozilla team gets them blocked -- God bless them, every one. :)

  12. Re:meh by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

    That's a really awsome refutation of my statement. Can I subscribe to your newspaper?

  13. Microsoft's innovation of the week! by gstevens · · Score: 3, Funny

    This week, Microsoft invents the threaded news reader......

    Embrace and extend, embrace and extend....

    1. Re:Microsoft's innovation of the week! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

      congrats' for post number 6600000 !

  14. Nothing to worry about by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    search for newsgroups containing "e":
    Microsoft VBScript runtime error '800a0006'

    Overflow: 'CInt'

    /Static/default.asp, line 213


    Anyone using CInt for something like that is so utterly clueless that we'll have nothing to worry about.

  15. No, no, its just Marketing. by I+don't+want+to+spen · · Score: 2, Funny

    Spot the secret MS MeSsage: Use(.)Net - the dot is silent.
    Didn't you notice that, when you had to manually start windows from DOS, you had to type Win - its psychology, people.

    --
    Don't go to a brothel if you want to buy broth
  16. Re:Great - more e-mail addresses for spammers by MTWZZ · · Score: 2, Funny

    We could just switch back to UUCP and let Microsoft choke on that.

    --
    gcc: brain.c: No such file or directory
  17. DRM porn soon to follow. by Ignis+Flatus · · Score: 2, Funny

    Me suspects that MS has covertly cornered the online adult entertainment industry. And I don't even want to think about how they plan to enforce compliance.

  18. Re:They can make it worse, they do, they will. by io333 · · Score: 2, Funny

    Oh no, a bottom poster. I've been on usenet longer than you, and have been top posting from the beginning. I wish you bottom posters would stop screwing with the most logical, the easiest, and above all the *fastest* way to read through a discussion.

  19. Bringing Cholera to the Wild West by tz · · Score: 3, Funny

    Considering the number of OTDs (outlook transmitted diseases) that would be prevented if Microsoft would just shut off a lot of stuff by default, I can only wonder what new spams and worms will be spread more efficiently.

  20. Re:Great - more e-mail addresses for spammers by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

    Oh yee of little faith...

  21. Re:usenet is ok the way it is by cesspool · · Score: 5, Funny

    you keep saying 'cesspool' like its a bad thing ???

  22. Phonetic pronunciation of Beethoven by Animus+Howard · · Score: 3, Funny

    > I downloaded all pictures sent to alt.binaries.pictures.eroica .
    > I got nothing but pictures of bloody Beethoven.

    Erocia -> Beethoven

    Erotica -> Beat-Off-'n

  23. MS brings entertainment to Usenet... by Motherfucking+Shit · · Score: 5, Funny
    I've always thought that Microsoft brought quite a bit of entertainment value to Usenet newsgroups. There's nothing like loading up alt.binaries.pictures.erotica.$YOUR_TASTE and seeing a post thusly:
    From: Jason Doe <jason@example.com>
    Subject: Writing In Sick

    Bob,

    I haven't been feeling well lately. I will probably be staying home today and perhaps tomorrow unless I feel better. Please tell Mark that I will be completing my assignments as soon as I get back to the office. I hope to be back Monday but it may be later than that before I'm feeling OK again.

    Thanks,

    Jason

    --
    Jason Doe
    Senior Programmer
    ABC Corporation, Inc.
    202-555-1212 Ext. 555
    jason@example.com
    Microsoft(TM), we combine your email and newsgroup program into one. To which porno newsgroup do you want to accidentally send your personal email today?
    --
    "BSD: Free as in speech. Linux: Free as in beer. Windows 10: Free as in herpes." --Man On Pink Corner in #52607549.
  24. Re:Leave us alone please. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

    What are they trying to do.. make downloading pirated material easier?

    Actually, I imagine exactly the opposite. As RIAA actions, DRM, and etc snowball, all of the major methods of obtaining and sharing illegal content will eventually be targeted in some fashion. We've seen it already with Napster, we're probably seeing the beginnings of that with Kazaa. People who spend a good portion of the year behind a college/corporate networks' firewalls, like me, have probably seen it with other methods, too.

    As it stands now, Usenet really looks to be a last refuge, should it come down to it. With years and years of reputation as a valid and legal exchange of information, it would be difficult for a provider to justify denying access to it. If/when other methods start getting targeted, a lot of people will end up on Usenet.

    But! Microsoft is paving the way in DRM systems. Their eventual set-up can't have a gaping hole as large as all of Usenet, or they'll get reamed by headline after headline of "Latest MS Software available on Usenet within Hours of Release". Since Usenet is much more 'open' in the sense of protocols and such than a program developed by a single company or person, MS can work 'with' it in ways that wouldn't be appropriate with Kazaa, Bittorrent, etc.

    So, maybe I'm a little to conspiracy theorist here, but it seems like this is just preparing for the eventual attack on Usenet as a source for illegal trading of files.

  25. Re:usenet is ok the way it is by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

    Hypocrites all! Old and forgotten as it is, USENET is still your only one-stop source for raunchy, tasteless, or just plain sick jpegs -- and you can't claim card-carrying-unreformable-degenerate status until you've spent at least a couple of weeks reading alt.sex.stories....

  26. They can have my Pimp Ass Newsreader... by Picass0 · · Score: 2, Funny

    ... when they pry it from my sticky dead fingers.

  27. Microsoft's Reputation by Sloppy · · Score: 3, Funny

    In all seriousness, when I read "Microsoft to do for Usenet what it did for Email & The Web", my first thought was: "Microsoft is making a newsreader that automatically executes code stored inside of Usenet posts?"

    --
    As copyright owner of this comment, I authorize everyone to defeat any technological measure which limits access to it.
  28. Re:usenet is ok the way it is by Malfourmed · · Score: 3, Funny
    Maybe Google should explain better how the Activity rating works

    See, there's these pigeons...

  29. Cool now NNTP servers more linux help acceses by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

    Basicly all that has gone wrong with NNTP is the lack of accounts providing a NNTP server. Linux will be back in a flash. Microsoft does already support usenet what is new. Outlook express does it yep nice way to infect 1000 people quickly so NNTP server disappeared because of microsoft so fix the faults and it will be back.

  30. Good News, Bad News by MyHair · · Score: 2, Funny

    they had better [effing] leave 'html' and 'rich text' out of their news reader

    Good News: They probably will.

    Bad News: They will probably push MS Word .doc formatting instead. :-(

    This has been information from out of my ass. Thank you.