More of this Feature • Part 2: Cruising the Usenet • Part 3: Guitar Newsgroups

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Elsewhere on the Web • Download Xnews • Newsgroups FAQ • Usenet Help • Usenet on the Web

If you've never visited the usenet before, you're missing out on a huge part of what the internet has to offer. Within the usenet, you find endless discussion about guitars, guitarists, amplifiers, effects, repairs, and more. You'll also find guitar tablature, tens of thousands of mp3s, and music software.

Sound interesting? Of course it does! The usenet provides a method of exchanging thoughts, files, and pictures with others all around the world. The usenet is made up of many thousands of "newsgroups" - areas devoted to specific topics of discussion and information sharing (like jazz guitar, or sewing, or Latin music mp3s).

Before we progress any further, the following needs to be stated: the usenet is generally unmoderated, meaning that pretty much anyone can post pretty much anything they want to. This means there is a LOT of scary stuff floating around on the usenet. Thankfully, most of the filth is easily avoidable, but the usenet is still not a place you'd want your kids to be surfing while you're not around.

Here's a really basic overview of how the usenet works: messages, pics, mp3s, etc. are posted to specific newsgroups by people like you around the globe. These huge number of messages are stored in databases, on many interconnected computer systems worldwide. You are then able to access these databases, generally via your internet service provider, and allows you to view or download anything you wish. The usenet contains so much music, so many movies, and such a wealth of information, that you'll never be able to scratch the surface of what is offered.

All you'll need to start surfing the usenet is a small piece of software, and a bit of information about your internet service provider. For full details, read on!

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