Newsgroups

We have all ran into this delima - you need information about something, but are not finding anything relavant by using search engines. You know the information has to be out on the internet somewhere....but where?

This is where newsgroups come into play. There are thousands of newsgroups just waiting for you to tap into them. The great thing is that some are web-based and some can be integrated directly into your e-mail program. Some of the web-based news groups you may be familiar with are the yahoo groups or google groups.

What is a newsgroup? A newsgroup is nothing more than a collection of messages stored on a news server. Most newsgroups discuss multiple topics and allow anyone to post messages. Some are moderated and some are not. Moderators review postings to check and ensure the appropriateness of posted content.

Now, you may be asking - why would I look for information somewhere that anyone can post information? Well, if you are looking for information by simply doing a web search, you are asking for the same thing! Anyone can have a web site. They may also post any information on their site that they want. The information they post can be factual or completely false. So, why not hit newsgroups for answers to your questions.

With newsgroups, you may actually get better information because you get to see what people know/think but you also get to see how other people respond to the postings. So you may actually find information posted in newsgroups to be more valuable than information you find out on the web.

At the very least, newsgroups are usually great places to find references to sites on the internet that may have the information you are looking for.

One great place for information concerning microsoft product is the Microsoft Community Newsgroups. All of Microsoft's newsgroups are public. Microsoft monitors these groups sometimes, but does not actively moderate the content. Unlike many technical newsgroups, Microsoft does not require a valid email address before users may post to the group.

Many of the Microsoft newsgroups are support-oriented. Users post their questions and problems relating to computer problems and hope someone will answer them. It is important to note that if you suggestion you receive from newsgroups (any newsgroup), you are doing so at your own risk. Nobody will be held accountable if what you do ends up completely destroying your computer.

When joining a newsgroup, it is wise to use your secondary email address for newsgroups. There are many tools that scour newsgroups and pick up email address to be used for sending spam.

To set up your e-mail program to connect to news groups, you must know what the name of the news server your ISP provides to you. You can do this by calling their technical support or by visiting their web site. The news server for Time Warner Cable in the Houston area is news-server.houston.rr.com. This news server has over 45,000 different groups!

To view newgroups in Outlook Express, you will need to do the following:

• Start Outlook Express
• Click Tools -> Accounts
• Click the News tab
• Click Add News
• Enter in the name you wish to show up when you post to newsgroups
• Click Next
• Enter in the e-mail address you wish to use
• Click Next
• Enter in the name of the news server your ISP provides for you.
• If your ISP requires you to log on to their news server, click the check box stating that you will have to log on (most ISPs do not require this).
• Click Next
• Click Finish
• Click Close
• A box will pop up asking if you would like to download the news group list. You should click Yes. This may take a while to do (downloading information on over 45,000 forums takes a while!).

Once you have configured your e-mail program and downloaded the list of newsgroups, you can search for newsgroups discussing the topics you are interested in.

If you have closed the search box, to bring it back up again simply right-click on your newsgroup folder (on the left-side of your screen) and then right-click Newsgroups.

To subscribe to a group, simply left-click it once and then click the Subscribe button.

That shoudl get you started with newsgroups. Look for our next article about how to synchronize your account, sift through postings, and more!