PalmBlog

USENET: The Little Known Resource

Many of us get much of our Palm information from sites like this, as well as mailing lists, but the more aged among us also know of a little-tapped resource chock full of helpful information: Usenet. Usenet, the name for a protocol through which thousands of topical discussions are carried by computers throughout the world connected to the Internet, had much more of a role to play back before the Web, but it can still be incredibly relevant and helpful today. Usenet newsgroups are generally populated by people truly dedicated to the particular topic being discussed, whether cats, classic cars or (in this case) PDAs. While there are dedicated newsreader programs for desktop computers (and maybe even a few for Palm handhelds) that directly access Usenet newsgroups (as the discussions are called), the easiest way for a newbie to discover Usenet is through Google Groups, formerly known as Dejanews. Go to that page and search for comp.sys.palmtops.pilot, and you will be stunned at the level of discussion and information. For those of you who want to explore Usenet further, check to see whether your ISP carries Usenet newsgroups directly and how to access them or, if not, you can get much more detailed access (for a fee) and information from Newsguy. One final warning: Usenet newsgroups truly cover *every* topic, including some that are distinctly *not* child-friendly, so beware of who's reading over your shoulder when you scan the list of newsgroups available! {Jonathan}