newsgroups empty

[LeeG]

When I look at certain newsgroups, like the 'Windows XP Networking and the
Web', it has no discussions in it. It has been like this for a while. Is it
a problem on the 'net' or is this local to my machine?. If it is not my
computer that is the problem, when will the missing newsgroups be available
again? The missing newsgroups are also not available for downloading via
windows live newsgroup reader.

 

[VanguardLH]

When I look at certain newsgroups, like the 'Windows XP Networking and the
Web', it has no discussions in it. It has been like this for a while. Is it
a problem on the 'net' or is this local to my machine?. If it is not my
computer that is the problem, when will the missing newsgroups be available
again? The missing newsgroups are also not available for downloading via
windows live newsgroup reader.

Stop using Microsoft's NNTP server (and their webnews-for-dummies
interface to it, aka their Communities). Microsoft tried to usurp
Usenet back in 2006 but decided their experiment is over since they can
exert no control over Usenet. Microsoft is leaving. First they are
dropping the newsgroups and eventually they'll kill off their NNTP
server.

Your choice will be to use a different NNTP server (some are free) to
access the microsoft.public.* newsgroups, or "enjoy" the wonderfully
inane and severely crippled web-based interface to their forums.

You haven't seen Microsoft's post repeatedly stating in the newsgroups
that Microsoft is leaving? Go read:

http://www.microsoft.com/communities/newsgroups/default.mspx

 

[PA Bear [MS MVP]]

Start here: http://www.microsoft.com/communities/newsgroups/default.mspx

The following NGs were removed on 01 June 2010:

microsoft.public.windowsxp.accessibility

microsoft.public.windowsxp.beta.general

microsoft.public.windowsxp.beta.help-and-support

microsoft.public.windowsxp.configuration_manage

microsoft.public.windowsxp.customize

microsoft.public.windowsxp.device_driver.dev

microsoft.public.windowsxp.embedded

microsoft.public.windowsxp.games

microsoft.public.windowsxp.messenger

microsoft.public.windowsxp.moviemaker

microsoft.public.windowsxp.music

microsoft.public.windowsxp.network_web

microsoft.public.windowsxp.newusers

 

[Bill in Co.]

Stop using Microsoft's NNTP server (and their webnews-for-dummies
interface to it, aka their Communities). Microsoft tried to usurp
Usenet back in 2006 but decided their experiment is over since they can
exert no control over Usenet. Microsoft is leaving. First they are
dropping the newsgroups and eventually they'll kill off their NNTP
server.

Your choice will be to use a different NNTP server (some are free) to
access the microsoft.public.* newsgroups, or "enjoy" the wonderfully
inane and severely crippled web-based interface to their forums.

You haven't seen Microsoft's post repeatedly stating in the newsgroups
that Microsoft is leaving? Go read:

http://www.microsoft.com/communities/newsgroups/default.mspx

If Microsoft wasn't really all that involved in the newsgroups anyways, why
do they feel the need to drop it, when so many depend on it and like it the
way it is (in the NNTP format - NOT this newage, web-based, thing)

 

[VanguardLH]

If Microsoft wasn't really all that involved in the newsgroups anyways, why
do they feel the need to drop it, when so many depend on it and like it the
way it is (in the NNTP format - NOT this newage, web-based, thing)

Costs. Both in resources, bandwidth, and manpower. They were paying
for maintenance of both their Usenet leeching gateway and for their
web-based forums. Usenet is not a "Microsoft thing". They don't
control it, they cannot define its standards, and they simply cannot
fark it over to their wants. With the web forums, and despite how
organizationally deficient they may be, they are in control. That's
what they like.

What is really laughable is that Microsoft wants to claim that the
30-year old NNTP standard is an outmoded form of communication and yet
Microsoft is still forced to support POP, IMAP, and SMTP over which they
also exercise no control. They keep trying to push yet another
proprietary e-mail protocol but it never catches on, so then they try
something else and fark over all their current users relying on their
"old" proprietary protocol. Hotmail has had, on average, 2 major
changes each year since they bought Hotmail which has made their users
keep learning a new dance. While there have been some improvements, it
seems NNTP hasn't really changed its basic nature for around 20 years.