Re: net.martyr

Adam H. Kerman <[email protected]> wrote:
> Frank Slootweg <[email protected]> wrote:
> >Adam H. Kerman <[email protected]> wrote:
> >>Grant Taylor <[email protected]> wrote:
> >>>On 2/28/24 19:08, Sn!pe wrote:
> 
> >>>>What distinguishes one from the other?
> 
> >>>I'm assuming that "NetNews" is a reference to FidoNet (or other FTN) echos.
> 
> >>>Usenet is one set of groups and FidoNet echos are a different set of groups.
> 
> >>I don't agree. NetNews and Usenet are synonymous terms. RFCs 850 and
> >>1036 refer to Usenet; RFC 5536 to Netnews. Some documents refer to
> >>USENET. There isn't a lot of consistency.
> 
> >>The only distinction I make between Usenet and newsgroups is that Usenet
> >>is limited to newsgroups whose articles are distributed; local
> >>newsgroups aren't Usenet. But plenty of people don't even make that
> >>distinction.
> 
> >  Agreed, with the distinction that some 'local' newsgroups *are*
> >distributed or/and are *not*local, in the sense of limited to one
> >geographical area.
> 
> I use "local" with respect to the network, not geography. If articles in
> these groups don't leave the network, they're local.
> 
> >  For example HP had (has?) hp.* newsgroups, which were distributed
> >worldwide - i.e. not local -, but were only company-internal, so not
> >part of Usenet.
> 
> >  So I think we need some other term for 'local', but I can't think of a
> >good one.
> 
> I've always used "institutional", for groups related to a company or
> university.
> 
> In newsgroups in which discussion is supposed to be related to
> geography, I use the term "regional". If there's discussion without
> relating it to geography, then "international".

  Thanks for sharing your views.

> My terminology hasn't caught on.

  Yeah, neither have mine. Bummer! :-)

  Terminology will always be a problem. So we can only explain what we
mean in a given situation/context (assuming someone *asks* what we mean,
instead of jumping to the wrong conclusion).

> >  I divide NetNews into a Usenet (for example these groups) part and a
> >non-Usenet (for example hp.*) part, but that's not very clear to a lot
> >of folks either.
> 
> >>>With the gatewaying that happens between, there is some amount of 
> >>>overlap between them.
> 
> >>>But each will have newsgroups / echos that the other does not have.