An Intro to Usenet - Some Background History

Usenet was originally started in 1979 as a way to send information and communications between Duke University and the University of North Carolina. Jim Ellis and Tom Truscott started the news and announcement service that has evolved into a world wide system of news and information sharing.

At first it evolved into a few more schools, and then the system of discussion groups we have today. Ironically though, even as the service becomes more popular, fewer universities are offering the service to their students and faculty. In May of last year, Duke University permanently turned off their server, the first Usenet server.

Usenet is a global discussion and file sharing system. In the Usenet newsgroups, or just “groups” you can find posts from every country, and social group. Almost every subject you can imagine is being discussed, posted on, and shared. With Usenet, newsgroups doesn't necessarily mean news, it's just what they call it.

The file sharing can be anything...software, movies, photos, music, or any kind of data. But, there are a few requirements you will need to take care of before starting to share your files with the world.

First you will need internet access, we will assume that you already have this. The type of service doesn't matter, but the better the service the faster the transfer of your files will go. I recommend DSL for the fastest possible speeds. The next thing you will need is a Usenet provider, and there are more than a few, so do your homework to get the best deal possible for your uses.

Many providers offer free limited time and usage packages, so you can “test drive” the service. Most charge anywhere from $5 to $15 depending on the amount of access you want. Then you will need a news reader, we'll discuss these selections more in depth in our next article.

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