Re: Thunderbird and MIDs

On Fri, 20 Feb 2026 17:00:46 -0500, Paul <[email protected]> wrote:

>On 2/20/2026 2:18 PM, R.Wieser wrote:
>> Frank,
>> 
>>> I don't know if it still works in Outlook Express (Rudy?).
>> 
>> Yes, it does.  Both when clicking the news:// link inside a post, or when 
>> putting it into my webbrowser (FF 52) (which than handed it off to OE).
>> 
>> 
>> I also tried to put your posts message-ID
>> ([email protected]) after the news:// protocol
>> header, but although OE tried, it told me that it could not find the server
>> (ID-201911.user.individual.net).
>> 
>> Regards,
>> Rudy Wieser
>
>The most logical conclusion, might be that
>
>     [email protected]      <=== M-ID needs the b.c to resolve to a real email server
>    (email)          Perhaps email does not allow fudging the b.c part ?
>
>     [email protected]      <=== The M-ID on USENET News, all it needs to be, is "unique"
>    (News)           from every other message.

Correct.

>                     The designers consider there is
>                     no requirement for e.f to be real and suited to nslookup(e.f).

Correct.

>                     But on the minus side, from a context point of view,
>                     if we allow this, we cannot "guess" which USENET account/server
>                     this might have come from.

I'm not sure why you'd want to use a M-ID to guess which server was the
origin. It's not intended for that. In some/many cases, the Path header
might give you that information, if the server shows it.

>Outlook 
Outlook Express. Outlook has no Usenet capability.

>wants to look at exactly one server, for [email protected]

Yes, the server that's configured in that instance of OE.

>and when nsloopup(e.f)
>fails to work properly, it becomes wobbly.

No one is doing nslookup on a Usenet M-ID. There'd be no point.

>Whereas for a USENET client,

For a Usenet client? What were you referring to above?

>they have the option of trying any USENET news account/server

As long as it's configured within that Usenet client. No other Usenet
servers can be queried.

>to do a lookup of the [email protected] pseudo-identifier.

A stated above, no client is going to attempt to do a lookup of the M-ID
domain. There'd be no point.

>It only looks like an email
>address, when it isn't exactly an email address (as the domain can be
>fake or a vanity string).

That's why you normally need to tell your client how to treat such a
string.

>Jeff Relf wrote his own USENET news client, and it definitely has a
>"unique" string for messages like no other. The NNTP spec allows this.
>You do not have to accept the INN "suggested" M-ID, you can use your
>own, and that is what Jeff does.

I don't know the current state of affairs, but 20-30 years ago most
Usenet clients allowed you to specify the M-ID domain. Forte Agent still
does, but I haven't bothered. Hence, the @4ax.com on my messages.