Usenet is a worldwide distributed Internet discussion system. It was founded in 1980 to enable users to read and post public messages to various newsgroups. As such, it predates forums, blogs, instant messaging and P2P networks.
The importance of Usenet as an environment for discussion has diminished over recent years given the increasing popularity of internet forums and blogs. However, the newsgroup community remains very active and vocal. It continues to be a great resource of information, and to obtain support from like-minded individuals. Moreover, Usenet is a popular means of downloading files including Linux distributions.
Unlike web forums, Usenet does not have a central server or a dedicated administrator. Instead, Usenet is distributed among a conglomeration of servers that store and pass messages to each other. There are several different types of newsreaders. Some newsreaders are intended primarily for discussions, others are better suited for downloading files. Newsreaders that help users to adhere to the netiquette are evaluated by the Good Netkeeping Seal of Approval (GNKSA). There are also tools which are dedicated for downloading files only.
Here’s our recommendations.
To provide an insight into the quality of software that is available, we have compiled a list of 5 high quality Usenet tools. Hopefully, there will be something of interest here for anyone who wants to join in with Usenet.
Now, let’s explore the 5 Usenet tools at hand. For each title we have compiled its own portal page, a full description with an in-depth analysis of its features, together with links to relevant resources.
| Usenet Tools | |
|---|---|
| SABnzbd | Web-based binary newsgrabber with NZB support |
| Pan | Based on GTK2 and looks like Forte Agent |
| Nyuu | Command-line binary usenet poster |
| Thunderbird | Mail/news client with RSS and integrated spam filter support |
| LottaNZB | Simple and automated downloader |
Besides Thunderbird, there are other email clients, such as Claws Mail and Sylpheed, that offer basic Usenet functionality.
 Read our complete collection of recommended free and open source software. Our curated compilation covers all categories of software. The software collection forms part of our series of informative articles for Linux enthusiasts. There are hundreds of in-depth reviews, open source alternatives to proprietary software from large corporations like Google, Microsoft, Apple, Adobe, IBM, Cisco, Oracle, and Autodesk. There are also fun things to try, hardware, free programming books and tutorials, and much more. |