[Coco] Re: Where's everybody goin'?

[KnudsenMJ at aol.com]

In a message dated 3/13/04 12:08:50 AM Eastern Standard Time, wb8tyw at qsl.net 
writes:

> Set up your news reader to use news.gmane.org as a server.  Then 
>  subscribe to the newsgroup gmane.comp.hardware.tandy.coco.

I'm not sure that my ISP will let me point to a different news server than 
what is built into their service.  In fact, any "newsgroup" that is available 
only on one server is really a "news" group, by my definition.  I don't know 
whether I could even get the bit.listserv.coco group -- haven't tried to find the 
"bit" groups on AOL, though I have some "alt" ones working ( but then "alt" 
groups go back to the 1980s).
 
>  You must post with an unmunged e-mail address that you can receive mail 
>  from.  You will get a confirmation e-mail message with instructions that 
>  you must follow for your post to be accepted.  You will only get the 
>  confirmation notice on your first post.

This is OK -- Dennis' list (this one) works the same way upon sign-up.
 
>  The gmane news server mungs anything it thinks is an e-mail address. 
>  For real e-mail addresses, it creates a temporary alias which it 
>  substitutes in the message.

I guess this is supposed to block spammers from harvesting addresses? 
But isn't Dennis' list directory also hidden from spammers, so no need for 
this?

>  When a mailing list gets to a high enough volume, it is much easier for 
>  me to follow it from a newsreader.

Mail is still more flexible and easier to work with for me.  I guess there's 
a lot of variation in email and news readers, but I don't know why news should 
be easier.  Email seems to have much less delay in it, whereas news servers 
tend to store stuff up, maybe for days, then forward it in bursts.

Anyway, I certainly hope that nobody goes off to this gmane as a substitute 
for this email list.  As an addition, OK, but not instead of.  --Mike K.