AOL Kills Usenet Access
from the the-september-that-never-ended-has-ended? dept
According to Brian McWilliams, AOL has decided to stop offering Usenet access from within the AOL software. Obviously, users can still get access via Google Groups over the web, but for many it's not quite the same. Of course, what some may find amusing about all of this is that many Usenet veterans recall the September that never ended, when AOL first offered Usenet access and (according to many) killed off the usefulness of Usenet permanently. So, does this mean that the September that never ended has ended?Thank you for reading this Techdirt post. With so many things competing for everyone’s attention these days, we really appreciate you giving us your time. We work hard every day to put quality content out there for our community.
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personally I still cringe
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September and ever
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Google groups? pshaw
I only use it to find things ... then I get on xnews if I really want to get serious.
I haven't used an ISP provided usenet service in years. Third party providers are much better at keeping things up, speedy, and accessible.
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The death of Usenet
I would suspect that more ISPs will drop Usenet, particularly in light of legal challenges claiming that, by hosting newsgroups that include pedophile groups, they are in effect distributing child pornography. It's easier and cheaper to pull the plug on a service that few of their customers even know exist than to fight court battles.
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Other choices
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