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AOL Kills Usenet Access

Posted by ryuzaki0 on from the bad-times dept.

Numair writes "BetaNews is reporting that AOL is about to terminate Usenet access for its users. Now, before everyone starts rejoicing ... where is the Usenet community going to find another large media company to protect it from frivolous copyright lawsuits?"

4 of 576 comments (clear)

  1. Uh oh... by TychoCelchuuu · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Is it good because it cleans up Usenet? Or does it just mean there will be an influx of idiocy to everywhere else? I'm scared!

    --
    Against stupidity the Gods themselves contend in vain.
  2. Well, that will be... by dcw3 · · Score: 4, Interesting

    ...the final nail in the coffin for me. The only reason I've stuck with them is because I've had an account dating back over a dozen years, and didn't want to give up that e-mail address. Between this, and the 33% price increase I saw when they did away with their 2 yr. plan, I see little reason to stay with them anymore...rat bastards.

    --
    Just another day in Paradise
  3. Real uses for USENET anymore? by kaustik · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Not trolling here, but...
    I remember the old days of dialing into my shell account and using my little news reader ('tin' was it?) to read through my favorite groups. I even remember downloading multiple posts, linking them together, and using some archaic app (binhex, maybe) to turn them into little binary apps like hangman. I was a big fan of USENET back then - good discussions, helpful people, uncensored pr0n...
    I tried to visit some groups recently and was sad to see more spam than a hotmail account, one-sentence off-topic posts, etc. Does anyone actually know of any more useful groups?

  4. Re:Wow. by westlake · · Score: 4, Interesting
    When AOL gained Usenet access people referred to it as "the September that never ended", referring to the fact that there was now a constant influx of clueless newbies

    But without new blood Usenet ages and dies.

    What happens if other ISPs decide that maintaining a news server for a handful of Geeks is no longer worth the trouble?