Xref: utzoo misc.misc:2110 news.misc:1056
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From: fair@ucbarpa.Berkeley.EDU (Erik E. Fair)
Newsgroups: misc.misc,news.misc
Subject: Re: "We don't get that newsgroup here"
Message-ID: <22364@ucbvax.BERKELEY.EDU>
Date: 2 Jan 88 08:56:36 GMT
References: <2390@dasys1.UUCP> <1987Dec31.065249.24476@sq.uucp>
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In answer to Mark Brader's question, my view is that using misc.misc
to replace newsgroups that your site doesn't get is defeating the
purpose behind having newsgroups in the first place. Newsgroups
are topic separators, and I expect to find germane articles in each
and every newsgroup that my site receives. Thus I can tailor the
list of newsgroups that I read to reflect my interests.

If there is a topic being discussed in a newsgroup I don't get, it
is pointless to try and use misc.misc to reach the audience of
people interested in that topic, because they're all (in theory)
reading the newsgroup I don't get. It also runs contrary to the
notion that misc.misc is for discussions that have no newsgroups
(of course, our hypothetical discussion has a newsgroup; it's just
that my site isn't getting that newsgroup).

If your site isn't getting a newsgroup that you want to read, you
have two alternatives:

	1. Convince the local admin that your newsgroup is worth getting.

	2. Grin and bear life without it.

Note that option one includes you setting up your very own site
and getting that newsgroup or contributing some time or money to
your local system admin to offset the cost of receiving and storing
the articles in that newsgroup. Either way, it's good to recognize
that netnews is not without cost in resources of various types.

Newsgroups are the names of the discussion space. Ignore that, and
the network is doomed to death by uselessness. After all, what use
is a network in which you can't find what you're interested in (and
filter out what you're not interested in)?

	Erik E. Fair	ucbvax!fair	fair@ucbarpa.berkeley.edu